Special Science Laws and the PDA

Abstract

Abstract This chapter discusses how laws of special sciences like thermodynamics, chemistry, biology, economics, and so on can be accommodated by the PDA. The central idea is that plausible candidates for optimal scientific systematizations of our world include statistical mechanics. The best formulation of statistical mechanics developed by David Albert and me posits a law specifying that the macroscopic state of the early universe is of very low entropy (the Past Hypothesis) and a probability distribution of all microstates compatible with this law. It is shown that this entails conditional probabilities P(B/A) for all pairs of macroscopic propositions where P(A) > 0. This results in a probability map of the universe called “The Mentaculus.” The chapter develops an account of special science laws that is a modification of Callender and Cohen’s “Better Best Systems Account” on which special science laws are optimal systematizations of propositions expressed in a special science vocabulary where the probability of the consequent given the antecedent is sufficiently high.