Note on Carnap’s “On the Dependence of the Properties of
Space Upon Those of Time”

Malament, David (2009) Note on Carnap’s “On the Dependence of the Properties of
Space Upon Those of Time”.

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Abstract

Carnap’s goal in the paper is to make precise a sense in which, if relativity theory is correct, statements about the topological structure of physical space can be reduced to statements about temporal or causal order. In this note, I reconstruct Carnap’s account, indicate a number of technical problems, suggest how they might be fixed and, finally, contrast Carnap’s work here with that done earlier by the British mathematician A. A. Robb.

Subjects:Specific Sciences: Physics: Relativity Theory
ID Code:4909
Deposited By:Malament, David B.
Deposited On:23 September 2009
Additional Information:To appear as an introductory note, accompanying Carnap's essay, in Collected Works of Rudolf Carnap, Volume 1: Early Writings, eds. A. W. Carus, Michael Friedman, Wolfgang Kienzler, and Sven Schlotter, Open Court Press.