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Some Remarks on the Metaphysics and Epistemology of the Creation–Discovery View

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Some Remarks on the Metaphysics and Epistemology of the Creation–Discovery View Some Remarks on the Metaphysics and Epistemology of the Creation–Discovery View Christian de Ronde∗ Federico Holik† Wim Christiaens‡ In this article we want to discuss the meaning of the violation of Bell inequalities by macroscopical systems as proposed by Diederik Aerts in several examples [1, 2, 3]. We will draw on recent research that has focused on Aerts’ contributions to the debate concerning the interpretation of the EPR-paradox and the violation of Bell inequalities by quantum entities [4]. This also requires a discussion of the so-called creation-discovery view (CD). CD makes explicit the metaphysical and epistemological principles according to which Aerts develops his analyses of the Bell inequalities. A discussion of a number of these principles will be the main goal of this presentation. We will discuss a central epistemological thesis and a central metaphysical thesis. 1. CD-epistemology. CD is a “double helix” of realism and idealism: on the one hand it adopts a strong realist stance by stating that a physical entitiy is something that exists in itself and independent of man; on the other hand it considers a real entity to be a construction that has to be understood in terms of real and possible creation-discoveries. It would appear that according to CD reality is both mind-independent and a human construction. 2. CD-metaphysics. Aerts has coined the term “biomousa” to designate the central process at work in physical reality [5]. The biomousa is not just the structure of change, it is the structure of creativity. Aerts solves the problem of CD-epistemology by making the biomousa (reality) itself a construction process, i.e., a process of creation–discovery. The process of knowledge is not just metaphysical, but reality itself is a process of knowing: world views are for man what molecules were for atoms. The construction of reality carried out by man is a creation–discovery that is a special case of the construction of reality: CD-epistemology fits within CD-metaphysics. This means that it is not in its results but in the nature of its activity that CD-epistemology is realist. Acknowledgments This work was carried out within the projects G.0362.03 and G.0452.04 of the Fund for Scientific Research Flanders (FWO). Wim Christiaens is post-doctoral researcher for the FWO. References [1] Aerts, D. (1981), The one and the many: towards a unification of the quantum a classical description of one and many physical entities. Doctoral dissertation, Brussels Free University, Brussels. [2] Aerts, D. (1982), Example of a macroscopical situation that violates Bell inequalities. Lett. Nuovo Cimento 34, 107–111. [3] Aerts, D. (1985), The physical origin of the EPR paradox and how to violate Bell inequalities by macroscopical systems. In P. Lathi and P. Mittelstaedt (Eds.), Foundations of Modern Physics, 305– 320. World Scientific, Singapore. [4] de Ronde, C. (in preparation), Quantum Mechanics: Complementarity, Potentiality, Perspectives and Faculties (Seeking for an Objective Account of Physical Reality). Doctoral dissertation, Brussels Free University, Brussels. [5] Aerts, D. (1993), De muze van het leven. Quantummechanica en de aard van de werkelijkheid (The muse of life. Quantum mechanics and the nature of reality). Uitgeverij Pelckmans, Kok Agora. ∗Center Leo Apostel (CLEA) and Foundations of the Exact Sciences (FUND), Brussels Free University, Belgium; e-mail: [email protected] †Instituto de Astronom´ıay F´ısica del Espacio (IAFE) and Buenos Aires University, Argentina; e-mail: [email protected] ‡Centre for Logic and Philosophy of Science, Universiteit Gent, Belgium and CLEA, Brussels Free University, Belgium; e-mail: [email protected].
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