Mitchell_Porter comments on How to think like a quantum monadologist - Less Wrong

-14 Post author: Mitchell_Porter 15 October 2009 09:37AM

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Comment author: Mitchell_Porter 29 October 2009 07:14:54AM 1 point [-]

Are you saying, then, that the meaning of a computation depends on what the user thinks or the programmer intends, rather than being intrinsic to the computation?

Comment author: JamesAndrix 29 October 2009 09:14:07AM 1 point [-]

Well, it could depend on what the computation thinks.

But my point was that the brick wall doesn't keep track of the ball.

Whether a robot tennis player keeps track of the ball or not doesn't depend on what I think it does or how I thought I designed it. It is a fact of the matter.

Comment author: Mitchell_Porter 29 October 2009 10:07:59AM 1 point [-]

Suppose I dip the ball in paint before I start hitting it against the wall, so it leaves paintmarks there. Is the wall keeping track of the ball now?

Comment author: JamesAndrix 29 October 2009 02:49:07PM 0 points [-]

You can't keep track of sheep by dropping pebbles down a well.