The Beginning of Infinity: Explanations That Transform the World (80 page)

and universality
133
–
4

and the evolution of memes
390
–
93

mini-enlightenments
23
,
31
,
216
–
21

and our view of the Earth
443

utopian (Continental)
65
–
6
,
313

entanglement
284
–
5
,
293
,
295
,
296
–
7
,
303
,
308

entanglement information
281
,
289
–
90
,
307

protection of qubits from
295

time as an entanglement phenomenon
299

environment
see
biosphere

epidemics/pandemics
196
,
208
,
418
,
436

see also
Black Death

epistemology
225
,
412

and ‘a dream of Socrates’
226
–
43
,
245
,
252
–
3

empiricism
see
empiricism

inductivism
5
–
7

see also
knowledge

equivocation
309
,
318
,
325
,
448

Eratosthenes of Cyrene
443
,
458

error correction
94
,
136
,
140
–
42
,
147
,
192
,
209
,
210
,
211
,
222
,
271
,
302
,
322
,
323
,
328
,
389
,
395
,
409
,
411
–
12

and convergence
350

requires digital information
140
–
42

in plurality voting
348

and universality
147

see also
fooling ourselves

Euclid

Euclidean space
164
,
183

theory of geometry
42
,
183
,
184

Euripides
216

europium
433
,
434

Everett, Hugh
310

interpretation of quantum theory
310

evidence
22
,
25
,
27
–
8
,
39
,
49
,
73
,
75
,
103

circumstantial
10

as an essential requirement for knowledge creation
61
,
67

we are inundated with
61
–
2
,
66

literally within arm’s reach
62

in philosophy
209

of our senses
4

is the same throughout the universe
62
,
67
–
9

evils
199
–
200
,
212
,
213
,
221
,
319
,
395
,
435

evil of death
213

problem of evil
80
,
199

evolution
48
–
9
,
52

artificial
158
–
63

and attraction
360
–
65

co-evolution
360
–
62
,
400
,
414
–
15

convergent
95

of creativity
see
creativity: evolution of

of culture
see
cultural evolution

Darwinian
105

of the human species
48
,
55
,
394
,
412
–
13

and knowledge
77
,
78
–
105

natural selection
52
,
56
,
78
,
87
,

not necessarily adaptive
91

of non-explanatory knowledge
94

‘survival of the fittest’
91
,
371

see also
adaptation
;
Lamarckism

evolutionary cosmologies
178
–
9

ex nihilo
creation
104
,
345

see also
regress, infinite

expectations
4
,
17
–
19

experience, sensory
see
sensory experience

experimental testing
13
–
14
,
26

essence of
16
–
18

falsification through
26

Galileo and
14

principle of testability
14
,
26
,
111

explanationless theories
15
,
16
,
158
,
210
,
316
,
318
–
19
,
320
–
23
,
325

see also
philosophy, bad
;
inexplicability
;
rules of thumb

explanations
30

of abstractions
114
–
24

bad (easy to vary)
19
–
22
,
25
–
6
,
29
,
31
,
53
–
4
,
64
,
80
,
83
,
97
,
101
–
2
,
150
,
154
,
174
,
199
–
200
,
260
,
264
,
282
,
311
,
324

and bad philosophy
311
–
25

are conjectural
2
,
9
,
10
,
17
,
26
,
191
–
3

creating new problems
64
,
76
,
350
,
422

creativity and
7
–
8
,
342

and decision-making
341

discrete options between
342

and elegance
355

evolution of explanatory theories
94

falsified
26

good (hard to vary)
vii
,
6
,
24
,
25
,
28
,
31
,
78
–
9
,
94
,
156
,
209
,
257
,
306
,
341
,
342
,
353

and imagination
26
,
264
–
5

imitation and
410

instrumentalist conception of
13

mythical
19
–
21
,
24
,
25

open-ended stream of explanatory knowledge
60
–
65
,
67
,
69
,
81
,
175
,
450
,
457
–
9

the quest for good explanations
vii
,
22
–
3
,
26
,
39
,
314

reach of
1
–
33
,
59
–
60
,
75
,
78
–
9
,
105
,
118
,
123
,
166
–
7
,
197
,
220
,
458
–
9

and reality
6

reductive
109
–
10
,
116
,
361
,
371
,
429

scientific theories as
3
,
14
,
113

of seasons
19
–
21
,
23
–
5
,
26
–
9
,
42
,
44
,
458

simplicity is inadequate
25
–
6

and technology, fundamental link with
55
–
6
,
58

‘ultimate’
425
–
8

universal explainers
123
,
157
,
415

explicability
53
–
4
,
60
,
64
,
103
,
108
,
111
,
121
,
146
,
193
,
200
,
213
,
260
,
264
–
5
,
270
,
272
,
282
,
300
–
301
,
358
,
445
–
6
,
459

extinction of species
48
,
49
,
90
,
95
–
6
,
428
,
436
,
437

caused by their own evolution
49
,
55
,
92

hedge against extinction of human species
62
–
3

human escapes from
49
,
196
–
7
,
204
–
5
,
206
–
7

mass extinction events
49
,
95
–
6

and storing the genes of endangered species
95

extraterrestrials
2
,
60
,
145
,
322
,
414

art and
354

dangerous
60
,
202
–
3

detecting life on distant planets
68
,
73

extraterrestrial civilizations
79
,
101
,
202
–
4
,
399

search for intelligent (SETI)
72
–
3
,
179
–
80

see also
Fermi’s problem

eyes
1
,
2
,
3
,
11
,
37
,
40
,
46
,
52
,
54
–
5
,
59
,
68
,
80
,
83
–
4
,
85
,
226
,
229
,
231
,
240
n,
241
,
252
,
261
,
294
,
316
,
355
,
383

Fabric of Reality, The
(Deutsch)
109
–
10
,
450
,
460

fairness

apportionment paradoxes
326
–
33
,
334

impartiality
330
,
331
,
334

misconceptions in social-choice theory
345
–
6

Fall from Grace
52

fallibilism
9
,
32
,
64
,
65
,
193
,
211
,
232
,
233
,
395
,
446
,
448

fallibility
66
,
135
,
192
,
226
,
233
–
5
,
240
,
242
,
252
–
3
,
254
–
5
,
311
,
317
,
413

see also
fallibilism

farming
see
agriculture

Fascist ideologies
371

see also
Nazism

fashion
314
,
354
,
356

fads
379
,
394

Fatherland
(Harris)
259

FDP (Free Democratic Party, Germany)
339
–
40

Fermi, Enrico
101

Fermi’s problem
101
,
453

Feynman, Richard
22
,
39
,
101
,
209
,
305
,
355
,
444

fiction
26
,
294

see also
science fiction

fine-tuning of the universe/laws of physics
96
–
103
,
104
,
105
,
106
,
111
,
113
,
294
,
434

problems with anthropic explanation of
177
–
80
,
195
,
452
,
453

finitism
165
–
6

fire
12
,
50
,
111
,
202
,
207
,
400

see also
elements, ancient theory of

first-past-the-post (plurality) voting system
346
–
50
,
352

flagellants
385

Flew, Antony
97

Florence
218
–
21
,
386

flowers, and the objectivity of beauty
360
–
64

food

and co-evolution
360

production
205
,
206
,
208

supply
11
,
48
,
89
,
206
,
400
,
408

see also
agriculture

fooling ourselves, keep from
22
,
209
,
301
,
317

forests

deforestation
418
,
420
–
21
,
422