Entanglement as the world-making relation: distance from entanglement

Publikation: Bidrag til tidsskriftTidsskriftartikelForskningfagfællebedømt

Distance, it is often argued, is the only coherent and empirically adequate world-making relation that can glue together the elements of the world. This paper offers entanglement as an alternative world-making relation. Entanglement is interesting since it is consistent even with quantum gravity theories that do not feature space at the fundamental level. The paper thereby defends the metaphysical salience of such non-spatial theories. An account of distance (space) is the predominant problem of empirical adequacy facing entanglement as a world-making relation. A resolution of this obstacle utilizes insights from the Ryu–Takayanagi formula (a holographic relation between entanglement and spacetime) and Susskind and Maldacena’s related ER = EPR conjecture (a relation between bell pairs and wormholes). Together these indicate how distance can be recovered from entanglement and thus carves the way for entanglement fundamentalism.

OriginalsprogEngelsk
TidsskriftSynthese
Vol/bind198
Udgave nummer10
Sider (fra-til)9661-9693
Antal sider33
ISSN0039-7857
DOI
StatusUdgivet - 2021
Eksternt udgivetJa

Bibliografisk note

Funding Information:
Open Access funding provided by NTNU Norwegian University of Science and Technology (incl St. Olavs Hospital - Trondheim University Hospital). I would like to express my gratitude to Michael Esfeld, Simon Saunders, James Ladyman, Hans Halvorson, Andreas Bartels, Frida Trotter, Lucy James, Niels Linnemann, Andrea Oldofredi, Vera Matarese, Jan Faye, and three anonymous reviewers of Synthese for their valuable feedback on and helpful discussion of earlier drafts of this paper. I also send my thanks for constructive comments to the audiences in Geneva, Lausanne, Stockholm, Uppsala, Bristol, and Bonn where earlier versions of this paper were presented.

Publisher Copyright:
© 2020, The Author(s).

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