If Metrical Structure Were Not Dynamical, Counterfactuals in General Relativity Would Be Easy
History and Philosophy of Physics
2015-09-15 v1 General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology
Abstract
General relativity poses serious problems for counterfactual propositions peculiar to it as a physical theory. Because these problems arise solely from the dynamical nature of spacetime geometry, they are shared by all schools of thought on how counterfactuals should be interpreted and understood. Given the role of counterfactuals in the characterization of, inter alia, many accounts of scientific laws, theory confirmation and causation, general relativity once again presents us with idiosyncratic puzzles any attempt to analyze and understand the nature of scientific knowledge must face.
Keywords
Cite
@article{arxiv.1509.03866,
title = {If Metrical Structure Were Not Dynamical, Counterfactuals in General Relativity Would Be Easy},
author = {Erik Curiel},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:1509.03866},
year = {2015}
}
Comments
10 pages