1st Dec, 4:00 pm (CET): In the context of VIRTUAL LAB 4, Enrico Cinti (Université de Genève) will give a talk titled “Spacetime Emergence: Revolution or Footnote?”. The talk will last approximately 40 minutes.
The talk will take place online.
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81835156467?pwd=inADRqjxflg4seKX4SHA3l8edjWtRh.1
Abstract:
The idea that spacetime is not fundamental comes in several versions, depending on which aspects of space, time, or spacetime are called into question. Philosophically, such views can be framed as elimination, reduction, or derivativism — each offering a different metaphysical picture of how the world is structured. Analogously, at the physical level we identify different extents to which physical theories abandon the traditional notion of spacetime, from the less to the more radical. These moves take us from physics into the metaphysics of spacetime. But do they matter for broader philosophical debates? A sceptic might dismiss them as technical details with little wider significance. An optimist might argue they carry far-reaching consequences. We will argue that spacetime emergence can indeed bear on several central areas of philosophy, including theories of consciousness, the philosophy of mathematics, accounts of causation, and conceptions of laws of nature. Moreover, we will see that the extent to which spacetime emergence bears in these issues is related to the degree to which a given physical theory abandons the traditional notion of spacetime. This leads to a theory-dependent, layered conception of spacetime emergence and its relevance for philosophy, which goes from theories involving only small deviations from standard spacetime, to theories seemingly questioning even the distinction between concrete and abstract. We will conclude cautiously: spacetime emergence does not automatically revolutionise philosophy, but in certain approaches it could genuinely reshape our understanding of fundamental questions across these domains.