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To: tortoise
I have a question regarding your post. You said:

Unlike science, mathematics is observer independent (both inside AND outside our universe, as it happens).

How did you arrive at the conclusion: AND outside our universe?

In other words, how can you presume the physical laws or logic of any other universe or domain outside this universe?

149 posted on 10/27/2002 8:58:38 AM PST by Alamo-Girl
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To: Alamo-Girl
In other words, how can you presume the physical laws or logic of any other universe or domain outside this universe?

You misunderstand. Physical laws and science in general is highly context dependent i.e. it only applies to the universe we happen to live in. Mathematics can be applied to all possible universes, and is regularly. There is some application for proving mathematics in spaces that don't exist in our universe, so it isn't purely mental masturbation. Things like logic, which is grounded purely in mathematics, are transferable to all spaces and would work as well outside our universe as inside it. The presumption that most people have that mathematics only extends as far as the boundaries of our universe is wrong, and leads to idle speculation of dubious value.

The "how"s and "why"s are serious esoterica, so I won't go there. The only thing to remember is that physical laws only apply to our universe, but mathematics apply everywhere. Trying to get around inconvenient mathematics is a fool's errand in any universe/space. This means, among other things, that there can exist no universe where "liberal logic" is actually valid in any kind of mathematical sense.

152 posted on 10/27/2002 9:24:31 AM PST by tortoise
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