Quote:"Given the value placed on material goods, the view that everything is reducible to matter acting upon matter ('folk materialism'), and more nuanced varieties of 'physicalism' in modern philosophy, it might be thought that we have a clear and distinct idea of what 'matter' actually means. Yet matter turns out to be surprisingly elusive. Attempts to specify matter in terms of things with mass and volume fail to encompass the more exotic scenarios and paradigms of modern physics. More generally, priority has long been given in scientific theory and practice to formal and mathematical relations in the study of the physical world, with philosophy and theology often reflecting this emphasis. Such approaches paradoxically make it unclear what matter does, other than exemplify form imperfectly, rather like the dough that more or less reproduces the shape of the biscuit (or cookie) cutter.
In this seminar, I look at developments in recent decades, especially in the simulation of complex systems, which suggest the need for a principle of continuity under substantial change that cannot be reduced to form. This principle can be understood as 'matter', but only as part of a broader neo-Aristotelian understanding of causation that also includes teleology (not mere teleonomy) and an 'arrow of time'. I review briefly some of the implications of a renaissance of a worldview in which matter genuinely matters, not only in science, but also in philosophy and theology. "
'Historically, we may regard materialism as a system of dogma set up to combat orthodox dogma...Accordingly we find that, as ancient orthodoxies disintegrate, materialism more and more gives way to scepticism.'
- Bertrand Russell
- Bertrand Russell