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Philosophy and Quantum Mechanics
The reason for this post is that I am simply interested in the effects (or lack thereof) that quantum mechanics (QM) has on philosophy.  I know quantum mechanics fairly well, but know little philosophy.  At least, the philosophy I do know came long before quantum mechanics.  Can anyone clue me in as to how modern philosophers have incorporated quantum mechanics?  What papers or books should I read?

I hope we can have a lively discussion here between people who know some philosophy and others who really know quantum mechanics well (say, have studied it at a first year graduate level).  I usually find popular discussions involving QM to be quite lacking, as they usually reveal little real understanding.  This is fine, since obviously not very many people will take it upon themselves to learn QM (or philosophy for that matter).  I also suspect that many students of philosophy don't really have a solid understanding of QM, so it would really help to have a dialogue.

So here is what I suggest:

The philosophers among you (I suspect there are many) can suggest your ideas about QM and philosophy.  Then the QM(-ers?) among us will pass it through our "this-is-compatible-with-my-solid-understanding-of-QM" filter (and explain the result as best we can).  Similarly, the QM-ers can suggest how they think QM affects philosophy, and then the philosophers can pass it through their "yeah-but-consider-this-philosophical-argument" or their "well-that's-not-philosophically-tenable" filters.

Also,  I know somewhere out there are students of philosophy who have also taken advanced quantum mechanics classes.  Please shed some light on this subject for us!
Hi Andrew,
I'm not a physicist nor a philosopher but I have a fair bit of education in both, so I'll try to get the ball rolling here.

You should remember that philosophy was not merely effected by QM but in turn effected QM. The understandings of physicists come from a change in the philosophy of their time, which is then turned by them into new theories in Physics. That is, the philosophy behind QM can be seen everywhere in 20th century thought. For example, I remember reading the preface of Shoshana Felman's book on Writing and Madness where very similar ideas to QM appeared. She didn't know QM (though Lacan and the French who influenced her probably knew some popularization of it), but the ideas are everywhere.

Another example is Schrodinger's cat on which a tremendous amount of philosophical nonsense has been written. So yes, looking at a situation changes it. That's pretty much the extent which it directly influenced philosophy, yet the background which allowed Schrodinger to think his theory influenced not only him but many philosophers and philosophical theses.

Perhaps the most significant effect QM had on philosophy, which is related to the appearance of non-Euclidean geometry, is the shattering of a world of truth, which Damian mentions in post. For example, the appearance of philosophical theses on how scientific theories change in time (here you can read Duhem, and Kuhn.)

(Great profile picture.)
Books Discussed
The Structure of Scientific Revolutions
by Thomas S. Kuhn
The Aim and Structure of Physical Theory (Princeton Science Library)
by Pierre Maurice Marie Duhem
Writing and Madness: Literature/Philosophy/Psychoanalysis (Meridian: Crossing Aesthetics (Stanford,
by Shoshana Felman

Hi Andrew,
I listen to pod casts on this site:

http://www.partiallyexaminedlife.com/category/podcast-episodes/

There's one that addresses the question you ask.  I hope you understand it better than I did.

In response to Linda OReilly
Thanks Linda!  The partiallyexaminedlife looks like a wonderful website.  I'll listen to the pod cast you suggested and probably many others.
I've not been on this site long, but I've already noticed you are a truly prolific pandalosopher.
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Latest Post: October 20, 2010 at 4:20 AM
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