[meroes]

How can you explain appealing to these “unreal objects” (real numbers, set theory, arithmetic) * does* help science? (Effectiveness maybe)

I see you are also a non realist about science.

But even the methodological naturalist (one who takes natural empirical science to be the best method but not an ontology) must wonder how we are uncovering and putting more precision to more and more of the world.

I don’t think we can currently explain why this made up tool “works”.