How to Combine Chance and Determinism: Thinking about the Future in an Everett Universe

Jenann Ismael

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

9 Scopus citations

Abstract

I propose, in the context of Everett interpretations of quantum mechanics, a way of understanding how there can be genuine uncertainty about the future notwithstanding that the universe is governed by known, deterministic dynamical laws, and notwithstanding that there is no ignorance about initial conditions, nor anything in the universe whose evolution is not itself governed by the known dynamical laws. The proposal allows us to draw some lessons about the relationship between chance and determinism, and to dispel one source of the tendency among Everettians to introduce consciousness as a primitive element into physical description.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)776-790
Number of pages15
JournalPhilosophy of Science
Volume70
Issue number4
DOIs
StatePublished - Oct 2003

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • History
  • Philosophy
  • History and Philosophy of Science

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