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To: GPS Info who wrote (284657)12/4/2015 4:53:09 PM
From: Sun Tzu  Read Replies (1) | Respond to of 541854
 
Does mathematics not count as an objective reality?


And old saying from my engineering school comes to mind:

Engineering is an approximation of physics
Physics is an approximation of reality
Reality is an approximation of math


So the answer is, no. Mathematics is an idealized representation of our reality. Consider for example that there is no such thing as an exact measurement. Although your desk has a finite length, no matter how hard you try, you will not be able to measure it exactly. Engineers learn very early on not to confuse math with reality :)

ST



To: GPS Info who wrote (284657)12/4/2015 10:55:24 PM
From: koan  Read Replies (1) | Respond to of 541854
 
There is a great irony in your question. There is no objective reality, as far as human perception goes. Our reality, is a virtual reality.

But what is ironic about your question regarding mathematics, is that as I understand it, there are two things that scientists really do not seem to be able to wrap their minds around. Time and math. They cannot figure out why math works as well as it does. And time, why does it work backward and forward perfectly well in the equations, but not in reality?

It may simply be, that they are too abstract for our puny little Homo sapien brains. Another area that only a few scientists are even willing to tackle, except adventurers like Lisa Randall, are dimensions.

In my opinion, there is a gigantic infinite reality out there beyond our human senses. An analogy I would probably use would be that we are like a fish at the bottom of the ocean 5 miles down that sees a beer bottle and out of that information has to construct the earth and all the cultures and biodiversity and technology it contains.

We know nothing, in my opinion. Our intellect is but the first green sprouts of a long dormant seed and we have no idea what it is capable of growing into, or what the big picture regarding the universe is?

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So in short there is no such thing as an objective reality or pure science.

Does mathematics not count as an objective reality?