What Events Lurk Inside the Wave Function? by Sean Carroll

Sean Carroll seems to be entirely typical of physicists. In effect, what he is saying is that the low-level universe needs a physics doctorate in order to know how to behave.

But seriously, we haven’t yet had any physicists who can explain what turns a bunch of equations, numbers and other symbols into a moving system. Seemingly physicists tend to think that yet MORE equations are required.

And, seemingly in the conscious minds of physicists, a bunch of equations, associated numbers and other symbols IS a system.

And that is true: the consciousness and agency of physicists, plus their special symbols IS in effect a system; this is the “system of representation” that physicists use to represent the actual low-level real-physical-world system.

Unfortunately, physicists have seemingly not noticed that the essential elements of their “system of representation” includes their own personal consciousness and agency. The consciousness and agency of physicists are in effect the logical connectives that turn their special symbols (e.g. equations and numbers) into a more complete “system of representation”.

But physicists seemingly believe that their consciousness and agency are irrelevant to a “system of representation”, and they seemingly believe that their special symbols can stand alone as a complete “system of representation”.

And, of course, their special symbols CAN’T stand alone as a complete “system of representation” without including the logical connective symbols that are necessary to represent consciousness and agency.

Lorraine Ford
Back in 2016 when this video of Sean Carroll speaking of his Mad-Dog Everettianism was seemingly made, people were not as aware of computer algorithms as they are today.

What computer algorithms demonstrate is the necessary, behind-the-scenes, algorithmic processing steps (performed by human beings or computers) required to turn equations into part of a viable system. These necessary algorithmic processing steps can’t be dismissed or hidden under the carpet.

So, contrary to Sean Carroll’s claim (which mightn’t have been on this video) that Mad-Dog Everettianism is a minimalist solution to the problem of quantum mechanics, the behind-the-scenes algorithmic processing steps required to attempt to implement Carroll’s Mad-Dog Everettianism is anything but minimalist.

The issue is: to this day, physicists (and mathematicians) seem completely incapable of seeing or acknowledging that, without the aspects of the world that can only be represented as algorithmic steps, equations can never represent a viable system.

Algorithmic steps are represented by statements containing the following types of symbols: IF, AND, OR, IS TRUE, and THEN. These symbols (IF, AND, OR, IS TRUE, and THEN) represent time-place point-of-view aspects of the world that are necessary in order for a viable, moving, world to exist.

These necessary aspects of the world, represented by IF, AND, OR, IS TRUE, and THEN, are entirely different aspects of the world to the aspects of the world represented by equations. These necessary aspects of the world, represented by IF, AND, OR, IS TRUE, and THEN, CAN'T be represented by equations.