Re:Natural Magick (1584)
by autoexec on Tuesday October 08, 2019 @05:04PM
(#21197247)
I wouldn't say math was invented. One thing plus another thing has always been two things, even before we existed to give names to that concept. The names, symbols, etc were invented but the language of mathematics is just how we describe what has always existed.
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Re:Natural Magick (1584)
by kevin_thibedeau on Tuesday October 08, 2019 @05:16PM
(#21197361)
One thing and another thing just exist. They don't perform abstract operations on one another. They may engage in physical interaction but that behavior is only modeled by mathematics. There is nothing to do a "plus" without man to account for it. It is not an inherent attribute of the universe.
The Pythagoreans believed the underlying substance of the universe was not water, air or fire but math. It is, I'd argue, the modern world view.
The key difference between hydrogen and helium, for instance, seems to be a matter of number.
So does Max Tegmark [0], who believes the multi-verse is literally made of math, but I wouldn't say that's the modern world view. Most believe that math is our best tool for understanding reality, but that reality maintains an independent existence.