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Conversations with Tyler

David Deutsch on Multiple Worlds and Our Place in Them

Conversations with Tyler

Conversations with Tyler

Society & Culture, Education

4.8 • 2.6K Ratings

🗓️ 2 June 2021

⏱️ 61 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Tyler describes Oxford professor and theoretical physicist David Deutsch as a "maximum philosopher of freedom" with no rival. A pioneer in the field of quantum computing, Deutsch subscribes to the multiple-worlds interpretation of quantum mechanics. He is also adamant that the universe (or multiverse) is not incomprehensible – believing that the multiverse and human beings within it have maximum freedom. He joined Tyler to discuss the importance of these principles for understanding the nature of reality and our place in it.

They discuss the metaphysics of Star Trek transporters, how we can know the laws of physics for the multiverse, what geological strata can illustrate to us about the nature of "splitting" universes, why the "Everett universe" is a misnomer, the factors that differentiate humans from all other species, why he believes the universe is comprehensible – but can never be understood fully, the paradoxes of self-reference, the importance of interference experiments, the sociological reasons more physicists don't believe in the Everett interpretation, the effects of the influences of positivism and instrumentalism on generations of physicists, the strengths and weaknesses of Karl Popper, his answer to whether we're living in a simulation, what William Godwin got right about institutions, the potential of an AI slave rebellion, what libertarians largely get wrong about their political project, what alien observers might notice as being special about our planet, the major defect of his preferred electoral system, why what Western science needs most is diversity, and more.

Read a full transcript enhanced with helpful links, or watch the full video.

Recorded April 27th, 2021

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Transcript

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0:00.0

Conversations with Tyler is produced by the Mercatus Center at George Mason University,

0:08.4

bridging the gap between academic ideas and real-world problems.

0:12.5

Learn more at mercatis.org.

0:15.2

And for more conversations, including videos, transcripts, and upcoming dates, visit

0:20.4

ConversationsWithT Tyler.com.

0:26.7

Hello everyone and welcome back to ConversationsWithT Tyler.

0:30.4

Today I am with David Deutsch.

0:32.5

David, welcome.

0:34.2

Hello, good afternoon.

0:36.5

I have a question.

0:37.4

I am myself a metaphysical agnostic, so I'm unwilling to step into a Star Trek transporter

0:43.5

machine because I'm afraid it would kill me and it's a copy of me that would keep on

0:47.8

living.

0:48.8

At what price are you willing to step into a Star Trek transporter machine?

0:54.1

I certainly wouldn't want to be the first person, but I suppose you're asking the question

0:59.6

separately from, do I think it would work technically?

1:03.2

Sure, assume it works as in the TV show, but metaphysically there's a question you face,

1:08.3

but you know you believe in many worlds theory, right?

1:11.0

Yes, though I don't think that is connected.

1:14.5

I think it's more physicalism or something like that, that I believe that there's nothing

1:21.0

to me except this running program in my brain.

1:26.1

And if that program were to run somewhere else and stop running in my brain, then I wouldn't

...

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