History of Western Philosophy from a Perspective of Quantum Theory: Introduction to the Theory of Everyday Science

Shiro ISHIKAWA

May 2023 · Shiho-Shuppan Publisher

About this ebook

Recently I proposed Quantum Language (QL) as a language of (dualistic and idealistic) science, which is also characterized as a linguistic turn of quantum mechanics. QL has two subclasses, non-commutative QL and commutative QL. They are applicable to quantum systems and to classical systems, respectively. 

QL is composed of Axiom 1 (measurement), Axiom 2 (causality), and the linguistic Copenhagen interpretation. This theory has a stronger descriptive power than (quantum) mechanics and statistics.

Axioms 1 and 2 are usual since they are operator algebraic generalizations of quantum mechanics. On the other hand, the part of “linguistic Copenhagen interpretation” is not usual. This is defined by “a rule for drawing a line between science and pseudoscience”.

For example, the Popper's falsifiability is one of the rules of the linguistic Copenhagen interpretation. Other examples are:

1) “There exists only `one', and not `many'.” (due to Parmenides) -> “Measurement can only be done once”, “A state does not move.” 

2)“There is no motion.”(due to Parmenides) -> “A state does not move.”

3) “There is only the present.” ( due to Augustinus) -> “There is no tense.”

4) “To be is to be perceived.” (due to Berkely) -> “Nothing can be said without measurement.”  

...

It is surprising that philosophers who did not know quantum mechanics approached the Copenhagen interpretation as described above. Thus, I consider that the Copenhagen Interpretation is not attached to quantum mechanics, but to quantum language. 

I will show that QL is a scientific perfection of dualistic idealism in Western philosophy. In fact, the following unsolved problems in Western philosophy can be solved only by QL,  not by statistics.

* Zeno paradoxes, the problem of universals, Descartes problem (=mind-body problem + subjectivity problem), the Leibniz-Clarke space-time correspondence, Hume's problem of induction, the Grue paradox, From Kantian synthesis to QL-synthesis, the brain in a vat, Hempel's flagpole problem, the black raven problem, Wittgenstein's problem  “ Why does logic work in our world?”, etc.

The most fundamental theories in modern science are commonly said to be the three: theory of relativity, quantum mechanics, and statistics. However, as this book will show, commutative QL is more powerful and beautiful than statistics. Therefore, I would replace the above three by “ theory of relativity, quantum mechanics, and commutative QL”.