Abstract
A number of recent theories of quantum gravity lack a one-dimensional structure of ordered temporal instants. Instead, according to many of these views, our world is either best represented as a single three-dimensional object, or as a configuration space composed of such three-dimensional objects, none of which bear temporal relations to one another. Such theories will be empirically self-refuting unless they can accommodate the existence of conscious beings capable of representation. For if representation itself is impossible in a timeless world, then no being in such a world could entertain the thought that a timeless theory is true, let alone believe such a theory or rationally believe it. This paper investigates the options for understanding representation in a three-dimensional, timeless, world. Ultimately it concludes that the only viable option is one according to which representation is taken to be deeply non-naturalistic. Ironically then we are left with two seemingly very unattractive options. Either a very naturalistic motivation—taking seriously a live view in fundamental physics—leads us to a very non-naturalistic view of the mental, or else views in the philosophy of mind partly dictate what is an acceptable theory in physics.
Similar content being viewed by others
Notes
For a related discussion of self-falsifying propositions see Bardon (2005).
It suffices to either think of theories as models (which represent, or fail to represent, the way the world is) or as sets of propositions (which jointly represent, or fail to represent, the way the world is). Then the wordily state represented by an entertaining of, say, a timeless theory, is the worldly state that the theory qua model, models, or the worldly state that the set of propositions represent. Believing the theory to be true, then, is believing that the model holds of the world, or believing that the set of propositions are jointly true.
In particular, we do not mean by ‘representation’ the relatively specific doctrine called the ‘Representational Theory of the Mind’ by Fodor and others, which requires belief in very local and syntactically individuable representational states, and is more or less equivalent to the Language of Thought hypothesis.
Points, here, are points in configuration space; they are not point-sized objects: each is a three-dimensional object.
There is no reason to suppose that this phrase denotes the essentially modal notion that the phrase has in the lexicon of most philosophers.
Though we do not require that perdurantism is true: arguably one can make sense of there existing a lonely intrinsic duplicate of an enduring object at-a-time.
See for instance Dowe (1992).
Such as, for instance Lewis (1973).
It is of the first importance to avoid big, widespread, diverse violations of law.
It is of the second importance to maximize the spatiotemporal region throughout which perfect match of particular fact prevails.
It is of the third importance to avoid even small, localized, simple violations of law.
It is of little or no importance to secure approximate similarity of particular fact, even in matters that concern us greatly (Lewis 1979, p. 472).
This may not pick out a single unique path. Baron and Miller suggest that this will make little difference to the evaluation of counterfactuals.
For a useful survey of such views see Cummins (1989).
Exactly what naturalism is, and how to characterize it, is a vexed issue. If naturalism is nothing more than following science where it takes us, then perhaps almost all defenders of timeless theories are motivated by naturalism. Equally, there are other characterizations of naturalism that build more into a conception of naturalism, and which might be such that at least some defenders of timeless theories are not motivated by naturalism thus understood.
References
Anderson, E. (2006). Relational particle models: 1. Reconciliation with standard classical and quantum theory. Classical and Quantum Gravity, 23(7), 2469–2490.
Anderson, E. (2009). Records theory. International Journal of Modern Physics D, 18(4), 635–667.
Anderson, E. (2012a). Problem of time in quantum gravity. Annalen der Physik, 524(12), 757–786.
Anderson, E. (2012b). The problem of time in quantum gravity. In V. R. Frignanni (Ed.), Classical and quantum gravity: Theory, analysis and applications (pp. 1–25). New York: Nova.
Barbour, J. (1994a). The timelessness of quantum gravity: I. The evidence from the classical theory. Classical and Quantum Gravity, 11(12), 2853–2873.
Barbour, J. (1994b). The timelessness of quantum gravity: II. The appearance of dynamics in static configurations. Classical and Quantum Gravity, 11(12), 2875–2897.
Barbour, J. (1999). The end of time. Oxford, New York: Oxford University Press.
Bardon, A. (2005). Performative transcendental arguments. Philosophica, 33(1–4), 69–95.
Baron, S., & Miller, K. (2014). Causation in a timeless world. Synthese, 191(12), 2867–2886. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11229-014-0427-0.
Baron, S., & Miller, K. (2015). What is temporal error theory? Philosophical Studies, 172(9), 2427–2444.
Block, N. (1986). Advertisement for a semantics for psychology. Midwest Studies in Philosophy, 10, 615–678.
Butterfield, J., & Isham, C. (1999). On the emergence of time in quantum gravity. In J. Butterfield (Ed.), The arguments of time (pp. 111–168). Oxford, New York: Oxford University Press.
Cummins, R. (1989). Meaning and mental representation. Cambridge: Bradford Books/MIT Press.
Deutsch, D. (1997). The fabric of reality: The science of parallel universes and its implications. London: Penguin.
Dodd, P. J., & Halliwell, J. J. (2003). Decoherence and records for the case of a scattering environment. Physical Review D, 67(10), 105018. https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevD.67.105018
Dowe, P. (1992). Wesley Salmon’s process theory of causality and the conserved quantity theory. Philosophy of Science, 59, 195–216.
Dretske, F. (1981). Knowledge and the flow of information. Cambridge: MIT Press.
Dretske, F. (1983). Precis of knowledge and the flow of information. Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 6, 55–63.
Field, H. (1977). Logic, meaning and conceptual role. Journal of Philosophy, 69, 379–408.
Fodor, J. (1987). Psychosemantics: The problem of meaning in the philosophy of mind. Cambridge, MA: MIT/Bradford.
Fodor, J. (1990). A theory of content and other essays. Cambridge, MA: MIT/Bradford Press.
Gell-Mann, M., & Hartle, J. B. (1994). Time symmetry and asymmetry in quantum mechanics and quantum cosmology. In J. Halliwell, J. Perez-Mercader, & W. Zurek (Eds.), Physical origins of time asymmetry. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Harman, G. (1982). Conceptual role semantics. Notre Dame Journal of Formal Logic, 23, 242–257.
Healey, R. (2002). Can physics coherently deny the reality of time? In C. Callender (Ed.), Time, reality and experience (pp. 293–316). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Horwich, P. (2005). Reflections on meaning. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Jackson, F. (1998). From metaphysics to ethics: A defence of conceptual analysis. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Lepore, E. (1994). Conceptual role semantics. In S. Guttenplan (Ed.), A companion to the philosophy of mind. Oxford: Blackwell.
Lewis, D. (1973). Causation. Journal of Philosophy, 70(17), 556–567.
Lewis, D. (1979). Counterfactual dependence and time’s arrow. Noûs, 13(4), 455–476.
Maloney, J. (1994). Content: Covariation, control and contingency. Synthese, 100, 241–290.
Millikan, R. (1984). Language, thought and other biological categories. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
Millikan, R. (1989a). In defense of proper functions. Philosophy of Science, 56(2), 288–302, and reprinted in Millikan, 1993(a) op. cit.
Millikan, R. (1989b). Biosemantics. Journal of Philosophy, 86, 281–297.
Neander, K. (1991). Functions as selected effects. Philosophy of Science, 58, 168–184.
Neander, K. (1995). Malfunctioning and misrepresenting. Philosophical Studies, 79, 109–141.
Neander, K. (1996). Swampman meets swampcow. Mind and Language, 11(1), 70–130.
Price, H (2008). Two notions of naturalism. http://philsci-archive.pitt.edu/4430/1/Tilburg1.pdf. Retrieved November 2017.
Reichenbach, H. (1956). The direction of time. Berkeley: University of Los Angeles Press.
Rovelli, C. (1995). Analysis of the distinct meanings of the notion of time in different physical theories. Il Nuovo Cimento, 110 B(1), 81–93.
Rovelli, C. (2004). Quantum gravity. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Rovelli, C. (2007). The disappearance of space and time. In D. Dieks (Ed.), The ontology of spacetime (pp. 25–36). Amsterdam: Elsevier.
Stampe, D. (1986). Verification and a causal account of meaning. Synthese, 69, 107–137.
Tallant, J. (2008). What is it to “B” a relation? Synthese, 162, 117–132.
Acknowledgements
Thanks to Jonathan Tallant, Oliver Pooley, Carlo Rovelli, Jeremy Butterfield, Sam Baron and Adrian Bardon, and participants at the International Association or the philosophy of Time Association (2016) for helpful criticisms and encouragement. The study was funded by Australian Research Council with Grant Nos. DP110100486, FT170100262, DP11010048.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Braddon-Mitchell, D., Miller, K. Quantum gravity, timelessness, and the contents of thought. Philos Stud 176, 1807–1829 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11098-018-1097-4
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11098-018-1097-4