Thread by @ESpacewalk

Science and mathematics may never fully capture the physical universe.

Are there hard limits to human intelligence?

Here are ten questions to ask via David H. Wolpert from #SanteFeInstitute in @aeonmag
aeon.co/essays/ten-que…

1. On some ill-defined objective scale, are we smart or are we stupid?

2. Why does there appear to be a major chasm between the cognitive capabilities of our hominin ancestors and the cognitive capabilities of modern scientists, artists and philosophers?

3. Even aided by our extended minds, can we ever create entirely new forms of science and mathematics that could access aspects of physical reality beyond our conception, or are we forever limited to merely developing the forms we already have?

4. Is it possible for an entity that exists only in a computer simulation to run an accurate computer simulation of the ‘higher’ entity that simulated them?

5. Does the form, rather than the content, of our science and mathematics suggest that the cognitive abilities of humans are also severely constrained?

6. Are these finite strings of symbol sequences – the form of our mathematics and languages – necessary features of physical reality, or do they instead reflect the limits of our ability to formalise aspects of reality?

7. How would our perception of reality change if human mathematics were expanded to include infinite strings of symbol sequences?

8. Lucky coincidence that mathematical & physical reality can be formulated in terms of our current cognitive abilities, or is it, tautologically, we cannot conceive any aspects of mathematical & physical reality that cannot be formulated in terms of our cognitive capabilities?

9. Just as the notion of a question is forever beyond a paramecium, are there cognitive constructs that are necessary for understanding physical reality, but that remain unimaginable due to the limitations of our brains?

10. Is there any way that we could imagine testing whether our future science and mathematics can fully capture physical reality?

Full paper

arxiv.org/pdf/2208.03886…

CC: @michaelgarfield @jim_rutt @JakeOrthwein