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AGPhil: Arbeitsgruppe Philosophie der Physik

AGPhil 7: Quantum Gravity 1

AGPhil 7.3: Talk

Thursday, September 2, 2021, 12:15–12:45, H7

Composing Spacetime Out of Nowhere — •Baptiste Le Bihan — University of Geneva

According to a number of approaches in theoretical physics spacetime does not exist fundamentally. Rather, spacetime exists by depending on another, more fundamental, non-spatiotemporal structure. A prevalent opinion in the literature is that this dependence should not be analysed in terms of composition. We should not say, that is, that spacetime depends on an ontology of non-spatiotemporal entities in virtue of having them as parts. But is that really right? On the contrary, a mereological approach to dependent spacetime is not only viable, but promises to enhance our understanding of the physical situation.