Dorst, Chris (2023) Does the Best System Need the Past Hypothesis? [Preprint]

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Abstract

Many philosophers sympathetic with a Humean understanding of laws of nature have thought that, in the final analysis, the fundamental laws will include not only the traditional dynamical equations, but also two additional principles: the Past Hypothesis and the Statistical Postulate. The former says that the universe began in a particular very-low-entropy macrostate M(0), and the latter posits a uniform probability distribution over the microstates compatible with M(0). Such a view is arguably vindicated by the orthodox Humean Best System Account (BSA). However, I argue here that recent developments of the BSA render the Past Hypothesis otiose. In particular, the trend among Humeans toward a more pragmatic view of laws — according to which the best system is the one that is maximally effective at helping creatures like us amplify our information about the worl — does not support the idea that the Past Hypothesis is a law of nature.

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Item Type:	Preprint
Creators:	Creators Email ORCID Dorst, Chris cdorst@ufl.edu 0009-0002-5225-7089
Keywords:	past hypothesis, best system account, best predictive system account, Humeanism, laws of nature
Subjects:	General Issues > Scientific Metaphysics General Issues > Laws of Nature Specific Sciences > Physics > Statistical Mechanics/Thermodynamics
Depositing User:	Chris Dorst
Date Deposited:	01 Oct 2023 14:05
Last Modified:	01 Oct 2023 14:05
Item ID:	22609
Subjects:	General Issues > Scientific Metaphysics General Issues > Laws of Nature Specific Sciences > Physics > Statistical Mechanics/Thermodynamics
Date:	30 September 2023
URI:	https://philsci-archive.pitt.edu/id/eprint/22609

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• Does the Best System Need the Past Hypothesis? (deposited 01 Oct 2023 14:05) [Currently Displayed]
  • Does the Best System Need the Past Hypothesis? (deposited 03 Oct 2023 22:28)

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