Hacker News new | ask | show | jobs
by Noseshine 3588 days ago

    > if all that exists follows mathematical law
As a thought experiment, try the opposite direction: Math mirrors reality, not reality mirrors math. I don't see electrons solving quantum equations - equations describe an electron. The cannonball follows a trajectory that we can describe using math - but it doesn't do math. Sure, you can say that it does, implicitly, but IMHO that's stretching it a bit, I don't see the value in such a metaphor.

From a certain level such questions become completely arbitrary and useless: Remember, it's your brain that interprets everything and you can just say whatever you want when there are no consequences.

1 comments

> As a thought experiment, try the opposite direction: Math mirrors reality, not reality mirrors math.

If this was true, it would severely limit the usefulness of math. We'd see our predictability break down much sooner than we do actually. Read up on it here:

http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/mathphil-indis/

Why do you interpret my post as an absolute?

http://dilbert.com/strip/2015-06-07

I said - and I have no idea why I have to paraphrase my one sentence - to try a thought experiment, to see what happens when you reverse the direction.

Not to mention that you didn't really say anything? I have no idea what your point even is.