These claims-to-accuracy are not beliefs in the sense that they are based on evidence and are subject to revision, and are therefore not certain.
That seems like a really tortured definition/interpretation/understanding of ‘belief’. What’s the motivation for that? To distinguish these “claims-to-accuracy” as different than religious belief? I’m confused why this rhetorical stance is useful or interesting given that even religious belief is based on evidence and subject to revision, and even very few religious believers claim total or complete certainty.
There may be some issues about the classification or demarcation of complex entities , but they are not necessarily the same as issues about the existence of entities.
I agree with respect to classification but not for demarcation – if it’s unclear how to demarcate two entities isn’t it unclear whether two entities exist (versus one or none)?
And generally, because of the seemingly inevitable issues with demarcating individual entities of a given class, it’s less clear that they exist, or the reality of their existence (as entities of that class) seems less obvious, i.e. they are ‘less real’.
I’m suggesting that ‘is real’ and ‘exists’ are not binary values but rather magnitudes. Unicorns seem pretty clearly ‘not real’ and that it is true that they ‘do not exist’ (and never existed). But the magnitude of their reality or non-existence is not perfectly un-real or non-existent, as even something folk tales that mention them is (very) weak evidence that they might be real or might have existed (or might still exist somewhere).
Here are two of my favorite examples of categories of entities that are somewhat unreal or less ‘existential’:
Tectonic plates
The species of dogs, wolves, and coyotes
For tectonic plates, it’s not obvious how many exist, thus the existence of some possible plates is uncertain. Obviously the components of plates exist but, at least for some (possible) plates, it’s not clear that they do exist or are ‘real’ – as tectonic plates.
And dogs, wolves, and coyotes can all interbreed, and produce sexually fertile offspring, and genetic evidence of existing (individual) dogs, wolves, or coyotes indicate that they are all genetically intermixed. Are those species real? Do those species exist? Surely, in general, the individual members of those species exist, but do the species themselves exist? Are those species ‘real’? It seems clear to me that the ‘reality’ of those three species is strictly less than the reality of any members of those species.
I wasn’t trying to attack you, or Sabine or shminux either, so I’m sorry if seemed that way to you.
I think I understand their position pretty well – all of the questions they supposedly face about whether the objects of study are ‘real’ or whether they ‘exist’ are almost certainly frustrating. Obviously all of those objects are real enough, or likely enough to exist, in the sense that a sufficient cumulative weight of evidence exists and is accepted, for it to be almost entirely uncontroversial for professional physics to study them. On one end of professional practice of their field, just studying the relevant mathematics is a perfectly accepted practice in and of itself. On the other end, there’s sufficient observational evidence, especially given the corresponding (accepted) theoretical interpretations, that the study of these objects is by itself relatively mundane and unremarkable.
The annoying real/exists questions are almost certainly interpreted as critical, if not negative, judgements implying that the physicists at whom the questions are addressed are either stupid or naive, or maliciously deceptive, for believing the objects of study as being (sufficiently) real or existing. So I’d expect an almost overwhelming urge for them, the physicists, to want to avoid dealing with such questions or otherwise to be able to themselves imply or aver that such questions are stupid or naive, or even unanswerable (and thus not ‘scientific’, i.e. worthy of their consideration).
And I’m sure some (small) degree of ill will, on both the part of physicists and the real/exist questioners, is warranted. Asking whether the object of someone’s studies are real or whether they exist is almost unavoidably derogatory. And surely some physics will turn out not to have been about or in search of anything that could reasonably be believed to be real or to exist, as has happened many times before.
That seems like a really tortured definition/interpretation/understanding of ’belief
If there is an ambiguity in natural language, then an attempt unpick it will look unnatural.
Consider a situation where two theories are equally supported by evidence. If a physicist backs theory A over theory B that would be the kind of belief that Sabine is rejecting.. I think.
I agree with respect to classification but not for demarcation – if it’s unclear how to demarcate two entities isn’t it unclear whether two entities exist (versus one or none)?
In this and your other examples, one can adopt an arbitrary classification scheme, and then the question of whether the posits of the scheme exist can be settled straightforwardly. So problems of existence are not problems of existence per se but problems of classification.
That seems like a really tortured definition/interpretation/understanding of ‘belief’. What’s the motivation for that? To distinguish these “claims-to-accuracy” as different than religious belief? I’m confused why this rhetorical stance is useful or interesting given that even religious belief is based on evidence and subject to revision, and even very few religious believers claim total or complete certainty.
I agree with respect to classification but not for demarcation – if it’s unclear how to demarcate two entities isn’t it unclear whether two entities exist (versus one or none)?
And generally, because of the seemingly inevitable issues with demarcating individual entities of a given class, it’s less clear that they exist, or the reality of their existence (as entities of that class) seems less obvious, i.e. they are ‘less real’.
I’m suggesting that ‘is real’ and ‘exists’ are not binary values but rather magnitudes. Unicorns seem pretty clearly ‘not real’ and that it is true that they ‘do not exist’ (and never existed). But the magnitude of their reality or non-existence is not perfectly un-real or non-existent, as even something folk tales that mention them is (very) weak evidence that they might be real or might have existed (or might still exist somewhere).
Here are two of my favorite examples of categories of entities that are somewhat unreal or less ‘existential’:
Tectonic plates
The species of dogs, wolves, and coyotes
For tectonic plates, it’s not obvious how many exist, thus the existence of some possible plates is uncertain. Obviously the components of plates exist but, at least for some (possible) plates, it’s not clear that they do exist or are ‘real’ – as tectonic plates.
And dogs, wolves, and coyotes can all interbreed, and produce sexually fertile offspring, and genetic evidence of existing (individual) dogs, wolves, or coyotes indicate that they are all genetically intermixed. Are those species real? Do those species exist? Surely, in general, the individual members of those species exist, but do the species themselves exist? Are those species ‘real’? It seems clear to me that the ‘reality’ of those three species is strictly less than the reality of any members of those species.
Note that I am not defending Sabine’s usage, just trying to understand it.
I wasn’t trying to attack you, or Sabine or shminux either, so I’m sorry if seemed that way to you.
I think I understand their position pretty well – all of the questions they supposedly face about whether the objects of study are ‘real’ or whether they ‘exist’ are almost certainly frustrating. Obviously all of those objects are real enough, or likely enough to exist, in the sense that a sufficient cumulative weight of evidence exists and is accepted, for it to be almost entirely uncontroversial for professional physics to study them. On one end of professional practice of their field, just studying the relevant mathematics is a perfectly accepted practice in and of itself. On the other end, there’s sufficient observational evidence, especially given the corresponding (accepted) theoretical interpretations, that the study of these objects is by itself relatively mundane and unremarkable.
The annoying real/exists questions are almost certainly interpreted as critical, if not negative, judgements implying that the physicists at whom the questions are addressed are either stupid or naive, or maliciously deceptive, for believing the objects of study as being (sufficiently) real or existing. So I’d expect an almost overwhelming urge for them, the physicists, to want to avoid dealing with such questions or otherwise to be able to themselves imply or aver that such questions are stupid or naive, or even unanswerable (and thus not ‘scientific’, i.e. worthy of their consideration).
And I’m sure some (small) degree of ill will, on both the part of physicists and the real/exist questioners, is warranted. Asking whether the object of someone’s studies are real or whether they exist is almost unavoidably derogatory. And surely some physics will turn out not to have been about or in search of anything that could reasonably be believed to be real or to exist, as has happened many times before.
If there is an ambiguity in natural language, then an attempt unpick it will look unnatural. Consider a situation where two theories are equally supported by evidence. If a physicist backs theory A over theory B that would be the kind of belief that Sabine is rejecting.. I think.
In this and your other examples, one can adopt an arbitrary classification scheme, and then the question of whether the posits of the scheme exist can be settled straightforwardly. So problems of existence are not problems of existence per se but problems of classification.