What is economic rationality?

What exists, besides rationality?

  • Even with bizarre things such as quantum mechanics, I'm stuck with this Cartesian idea that the universe is controlled by logic, rationality, and is basically mathematics. Who developed further than this?

  • Answer:

    Your idea of a world governed by mathematical rules is widely shared within the scientific community. My personal opinion as a physicist (not a philosopher) is different. We can't really know whether any rule is in the world or in our mind. The world is just the way it is. We observers look at a specific part of it (let's call it the SYSTEM under study) and create a network of concepts and simplifications (the MODEL) in a consistent form, by artificially removing the rest of the universe that is in fact connected to it (strictly speaking there are no isolated systems). Then we choose a suitable language for handling its properties, that happens to be mathematics (the FORMAL REPRESENTATION), introducing yet a new level of simplification and approximation. In this logical chain from System to Model to Formal Representation, we *always* loose something, so that in the end we are no longer looking at the real world but at a part of our mind. In this sense, I personally don't trust statements such as "the world is governed by mathematics" or similar, although I think that this belief is useful to the scientific research as a main drive for researchers' personal motivation.

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No, sometimes, life is beyond the logic. Can you explain when you feel a little uneasy in the night when you walk alone? Can you explain how wide is the universe? Can you explain why must we separate into cultures and ethnics? Can you explain why hatred, anger and other vices exist even people know they're not good? So, this life is beyond the logic. But, logic is a must, and imagination too.

Fique

coincidence, fate, falsehoods. I would love to believe the logic theory, but that would require logic aptitude in all and as we can plainly see from the US current administration, Logic plays no part in any kind of decision making and it's this decision making that will affect the world for many generations to come....

Sidoney

Can you PROVE rationality exists? Or is this one of those "I think there for it is" things? I do agree with your rationality idea, but no one ever said it would be rational to us. It may be quite insane by the time we get the big picture.

Just passing through.

Rationality is what led us to quantum, and would lead us to more correct explanations. Rationality loves trial and error and developing itself into something better and better. Rationality isn't embodied in a theory, let it be relativity or evolution or quantum or religion or whetever..rationalty's core and main message is simply this:Keep thinking and developing your thoughts for ever.

bunkushbunkush

We can lose sight of the primary purpose of thought, logic, mathematics, reasoning etc., in pursuing the limits of these respective inroads to learning. It's like the proverbial scientific genius who neglects to put on his pants before making that days journey to the laboratory. The fundamental basis for our exploration and research is what the products of these endeavors can provide that will secure and enhance human survival, development and progress. Ignoring the human perspective and the responsibility to see that the products of the human mind are delivered only into the hands of people who have the best interest of humanity in mind can have and has had severe consequences. We need to remember that part of rationality is being cognizant of that other existent, the irrational caveman mentality that believes that the purpose of technology and civilization is to bring about its own destruction.

Dmstifk8ion

what exists for you is what you think exists and don't believe in all that you are told.

gpctman

To my knowledge none have succeeded. The ontological argument stands in the way of further developing the proposition. Empiricist thinking has a lot trouble resolving any event which does not behave in a manner consistent with natural laws. Miracles, though few, are a sort of phenomena which give trouble to proposition. The most significant problem inherent to Rationalist Theory is the nagging and troublesome question as to the existence of God. Aquinas states in, SUMA THEOLOGICA, that God cannot be "rationalized". As God can not be reduced to rational definition his existence must needs be denied. Therefore any non extractable event [ non-extractable event is one which can through deduction and analysis be determinable as to its nature and cause] must be denied and deliberately omitted. Through the agency of deliberate denial the truth of the conviction is weakened. So it appears to me that you, also, are at the point of impass.

tasagi

Actually, the Cartesian premise of mind and body dualism went out with the 19th century. The universe depends as much upon chaos as it does upon order. Check out Stephen Hawking. Check out Heisenberg's theory of indeterminacy. To make it all more easily understood read some Deepak Chopra. He does a good job of explaining the new physics to lay people. What about intuition? What about the absurdity that constitutes the evening news? Are these things reasonable or rational? Human behavior is anything but rational. To prove the point, here's my challenge to you: Strap a video cam onto your arm tomorrow morning and let it record everything you say and do, plus...everything others around you say and do for the whole day. Analyze this 'data'. Now you can answer your own question.... is anyone controlled by logic?

Shalimar

this is a diffrent point of view thats why I like to use this form to learn things about people

moms]

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