Re: Upstairs--Third Person narration

In article <1olcbt7ef5hbn.1p0s1fdkngh68.dlg@xxxxxxxxxx>,
b.scott@xxxxxxxxxxx says...
On Sun, 18 Mar 2007 21:20:17 -0000, Gerry Quinn
<gerryq@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in
<news:MPG.2067bd709e56b2ba98b595@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> in
rec.arts.sf.composition:

Mathematics is just lists of strings obtained by the recursive
application of sets of string modification rules to an initial null
string.

No, it isn't. Take out 'just', and you'll have a statement
for which an argument can be made.

Given the context (reality, or physical reality if you prefer), it is
justified.

No, it isn't, though it's possible that you would have to
get inside a mathematician's mind to understand this.

If the mathematician wants to say something useful about physics (which
was the context), he had best adjust his concepts appropriately.

As I see it, we observe the universe and invent laws couched in
mathematical form, which seem to describe regularities in its
behaviour. At this point, we can write down a model description of
part of the universe as a string, and apply our mathematical apparatus
to generate further strings. Insofar as our model is valid, these new
strings will describe future or alternative states of the universe, or
the part of it we are interested in. But it is all predicated on the
model being and remaining valid to a good approximation. At no point
can we say the mathematics is 'in' the universe.

The question of 'what other sort is there' arises. Of
course Plato had an answer, but I'm more of an
Aristotelian.

I was not referring to Platonism, though it's true that most
mathematician's act and talk as if they were Platonists of
some sort. Mental constructs are part of our reality.

It's not obvious that they are part of physics. But I think this is
the point you were making when you said you would prefer the phrase
'physical reality'.

- Gerry Quinn
.

Relevant Pages

  • Across the Megaverse...
    ... 'THE COSMIC LANDSCAPE,' BY LEONARD SUSSKIND ... Physicists are not like ordinary people, and string theorists are not ... extraordinary fact that the universe appears to be uncannily, nay, ... latest ideas in physics, God "had no freedom at all." ...
    (sci.space.history)
  • Across the Megaverse... (NEW YORK TIMES)
    ... 'THE COSMIC LANDSCAPE,' BY LEONARD SUSSKIND ... Physicists are not like ordinary people, and string theorists are not ... extraordinary fact that the universe appears to be uncannily, nay, ... latest ideas in physics, God "had no freedom at all." ...
    (sci.space.policy)
  • This Weeks Finds in Mathematical Physics (Week 226)
    ... The first week they had lots of talks on "higher-dimensional rewriting", ... to find two files that give the same bit string. ... Now, if you're a mathematician, the whole idea of a cryptographic ... You can see the algorithm for this ...
    (sci.math.research)
  • This Weeks Finds in Mathematical Physics (Week 226)
    ... The first week they had lots of talks on "higher-dimensional rewriting", ... to find two files that give the same bit string. ... Now, if you're a mathematician, the whole idea of a cryptographic ... You can see the algorithm for this ...
    (sci.physics.research)
  • by filtering with diferent
    ... Is it possible to filter duplicates codes by filtering with diferent ... I have a table from where i load into my tables, ... elseif data2 is not null then return data2 as data2 ... elseif data3 is not null then return data3 as data3 ...
    (comp.databases.oracle.server)