Agency and the physics of numbers

John M. Myers; F. Hadi Madjid

doi:10.1117/12.2304806

14 May 2018 Agency and the physics of numbers

John M. Myers, F. Hadi Madjid

Proceedings Volume 10660, Quantum Information Science, Sensing, and Computation X; 106600F (2018) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2304806
Event: SPIE Commercial + Scientific Sensing and Imaging, 2018, Orlando, FL, United States

Abstract

There is an analog in physics of Godel’s incompleteness theorems, namely the theorem that the set of explanations of given evidence is unaccountably infinite. An implication of this theorem is that contact between theory and experiment depends on activity beyond computation and measurement—physical activity of some agent making a guess. Standing on the need for guesswork, we develop a representation of a symbol-handling agent that both computes and, on occasion, receives a guess from interaction with an oracle. We show: (1) how physics depends on such an agent to bridge a logical gap between theory and experiment; (2) how to represent the capacity of agents to communicate numerals and other symbols, and (3) how that communication is a foundation on which to develop both theory and implementation of spacetime and related competing schemes for the management of motion.

Conference Presentation

Citation Download Citation

John M. Myers and F. Hadi Madjid "Agency and the physics of numbers", Proc. SPIE 10660, Quantum Information Science, Sensing, and Computation X, 106600F (14 May 2018); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2304806

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