Strong Determinism

TL;DR

This paper introduces a formal concept of strong determinism in physics, demonstrating its feasibility through a simple theory and discussing profound implications for metaphysics, free will, and scientific explanation.

Contribution

It provides a precise definition of strong determinism, presents a toy example, and introduces the Everettian Wentaculus as a realistic strongly deterministic physical theory.

Findings

Strong determinism can be achieved in simple physical theories.

The Everettian Wentaculus exemplifies a strongly deterministic universe.

Empirical evidence may be insufficient to determine if our world is strongly deterministic.

Abstract

A strongly deterministic theory of physics is one that permits exactly one possible history of the universe. In the words of Penrose (1989), ''it is not just a matter of the future being determined by the past; the entire history of the universe is fixed, according to some precise mathematical scheme, for all time.'' Such an extraordinary feature may appear unattainable in a world like ours. In this paper, I show that it can be achieved in a simple way and discuss its implications for metaphysics and philosophy of science, including natural properties, free will, explanation, and modality. First, I propose a precise definition of strong determinism. Next, I discuss its philosophical ramifications and a toy example. Finally, I provide a realistic example of a strongly deterministic (and simple) physical theory -- the Everettian Wentaculus. A surprising consequence is that whether or not our world is strongly deterministic may be empirically underdetermined.