Driessen, Alfred (2019) Aristotle and the Foundation of Quantum Mechanics. [Preprint]
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Abstract
The four antinomies of Zeno of Elea, especially Achilles and the tortoise, continue to be provoking issues which not always receive adequate treatment. Aristotle himself used this antinomy to develop his understanding of movement: it is a fluent continuum that he considers to be a whole. The parts, if any, are only potentially present. The claim of quantum mechanics is precisely that: movement is quantized; things move or change in non-reducible steps, the so-called quanta. This view is in contrast to classical mechanics, where small infinitesimal steps are permitted. The objective of the present study is to show the merits of the Aristotelian approach. It is a suitable candidate for providing a philosophical framework for understanding fundamental aspects of quantum mechanics. Especially one may mention the influence of the final state in quantum mechanics, which in philosophical terms relates to the final cause. Like in the work of Aristotle, examples from science are also presented in the present study. They serve to illustrate the philosophical statements. However, in contrast to ancient Greek, the examples now relate to issues which are only fully accessible to the scientifically trained reader. It may, therefore, happen that certain parts in the present study miss clarity for the philosopher and other parts for the scientist. One conclusion, therefore, could be that an open dialogue between scientists and philosophers is needed to get a better understanding of the challenging issues at the cross-road of both disciplines.
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| Item Type: | Preprint | ||||||
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| Keywords: | Aristotle, Quantum Mechanics, metaphysics, continuum, movement | ||||||
| Subjects: | General Issues > Scientific Metaphysics General Issues > Philosophers of Science Specific Sciences > Physics > Quantum Mechanics |
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| Depositing User: | Dr. Alfred Driessen | ||||||
| Date Deposited: | 02 Aug 2019 04:02 | ||||||
| Last Modified: | 02 Aug 2019 04:02 | ||||||
| Item ID: | 16265 | ||||||
| Subjects: | General Issues > Scientific Metaphysics General Issues > Philosophers of Science Specific Sciences > Physics > Quantum Mechanics |
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| Date: | 3 July 2019 | ||||||
| URI: | https://philsci-archive.pitt.edu/id/eprint/16265 |
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