Quantum Ontology: A Guide to the Metaphysics of Quantum Mechanics [Book Review]

Abstract

The revolution in physics that brought us to a quantum picture of the world was so radical that it does not merely force a rethinking of physics, but metaphysics as well. Quantum physics may imply that the world is fundamentally indeterministic, that it is fundamentally indeterminate, that causes are not always local to their effects, that there are many more than three spatial dimensions, that wholes are not simply sums of their parts, that our world is just one among many, etc. According to Peter J. Lewis, "we can say quite confidently that quantum mechanics is metaphysically revisionary even if it is not clear what form the revisions should take." (p. xvii) The reason it is so hard to say what the implications of quantum mechanics are for metaphysics is that physicists and philosophers have developed a variety of alternative theories that all attempt to explain why quantum experiments turn out the way they do. These theories disagree on what exists and what rules that stuff obeys. That is, they disagree about the ontology of quantum mechanics and the physical laws that govern that ontology. Understanding the various alternatives and their metaphysical implications is not easy, but Lewis makes it remarkably accessible. Quantum Ontology is an outstanding guide to contemporary philosophy of quantum mechanics. The book's intended audience is philosophers who are knowledgeable about metaphysics and curious about the relevance of quantum mechanics to metaphysical debates. For this audience, the book is ideal. Lewis relentlessly avoids overly technical presentations of the physics, using simple examples and helpful visualizations to get to the heart of the matter at hand. The questions that drive the text are questions of metaphysics and the metaphysical motivation for whatever is being discussed is always made clear.

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