he doesn’t address the most credible alternatives to MWI
I don’t think you need to explicitly address the alternatives to MWI to decide in favor of MWI. You can simply note that all interpretations of quantum mechanics either 1) fail to specify which worlds exist, 2) specify which worlds exist but do so through a burdensomely detailed mechanism, 3) admit that all the worlds exist, noting that worlds splitting via decoherence is implied by the rest of the physics. Am I missing something?
admit that all the worlds exist, noting that worlds splitting via decoherence is implied by the rest of the physics.
If “all the worlds” includes the non classical worlds, MWI is observationally false. Whether and how decoherence produces classical worlds is a topic of ongoing research.
Is that a response to my point specifically or a general observation? I don’t think “simply noting” is nearly enough justification to decide strongly in favor of MWI—maybe it’s enough to decide in favor of MWI, but it’s not enough to justify confident MWI evangelism nor enough to make bold claims about the failures of science and so forth. You have to show that various specific popular interpretations fail tests 1 and 2.
ETA: Tapping out because I think this thread is too noisy.
I suppose? It’s hard for me to see how there could even theoretically exist a mechanism such as in 2 that failed to be burdensome. But maybe you have something in mind?
It’s hard for me to see how there could even theoretically exist a mechanism such as in 2 that failed to be burdensome.
It always seems that way until someone proposes a new theoretical framework, afterwards it seems like people were insane for not coming up with said framework sooner.
That would have been my guess. I don’t really understand the transactional interpretation; how does it pick out a single world without using a burdensomely detailed mechanism to do so?
I don’t think you need to explicitly address the alternatives to MWI to decide in favor of MWI. You can simply note that all interpretations of quantum mechanics either 1) fail to specify which worlds exist, 2) specify which worlds exist but do so through a burdensomely detailed mechanism, 3) admit that all the worlds exist, noting that worlds splitting via decoherence is implied by the rest of the physics. Am I missing something?
If “all the worlds” includes the non classical worlds, MWI is observationally false. Whether and how decoherence produces classical worlds is a topic of ongoing research.
Is that a response to my point specifically or a general observation? I don’t think “simply noting” is nearly enough justification to decide strongly in favor of MWI—maybe it’s enough to decide in favor of MWI, but it’s not enough to justify confident MWI evangelism nor enough to make bold claims about the failures of science and so forth. You have to show that various specific popular interpretations fail tests 1 and 2.
ETA: Tapping out because I think this thread is too noisy.
I suppose? It’s hard for me to see how there could even theoretically exist a mechanism such as in 2 that failed to be burdensome. But maybe you have something in mind?
It always seems that way until someone proposes a new theoretical framework, afterwards it seems like people were insane for not coming up with said framework sooner.
Well the Transactional Interpretation for example.
That would have been my guess. I don’t really understand the transactional interpretation; how does it pick out a single world without using a burdensomely detailed mechanism to do so?