A Theory of Causation

Causae Causantes (Originating Causes) as Inus Conditions in Branching Space-Times

Datos Bibliográficos

ID8397358
AutoresNuel Belnap (University of Pittsburgh, autor de correspondencia)
Año2005
Volumen56
Número2
Páginas221-253
Fecha de publicación2005-06-01
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessNo
TipoARTICLE
RevistaThe British Journal for the Philosophy of Science (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 0007-0882 • E-ISSN: 1464-3537
EditorialOxford University Press (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1093/bjps/axi115
OpenAlexW2145275850
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas14
Referencias citadas7

Branching space-times (BST) theory, as developed elsewhere, permits a sound and rigorously definable notion of ‘originating cause’ or causa causans—a type of transition event—of an outcome event. Mackie has famously suggested that causes form a family of ‘inus’ conditions, where an inus condition is ‘an insufficient but non-redundant part of an unnecessary but sufficient condition’. In this essay the needed concepts of BST theory are developed in detail, and it is then proved that the causae causantes of a given outcome event have exactly the structure of a set of Mackie inus conditions. The proof requires the assumption that there is no EPR-like ‘funny business’. This seems enough to constitute a theory of ‘causation’ in at least one of its many senses. 1. Introduction 2. The cement of the universe 3. Preliminaries 3.1 First definitions and postulates 3.2 Ontology: propositions 3.3 Ontology: initial events 3.4 Ontology: outcome events 3.5 Ontology: transition events 3.6 Propositional language applied to events 4. Causae causantes 4.1 Causae causantes are basic primary transition events 4.2 Causae causantes of an outcome chain 4.3 No funny business 5. Causae causantes and inns and inus conditions 5.1 Inns conditions of outcome chains: not quite 5.2 Inns conditions of outcome chains 5.3 Inns conditions of scattered outcome events 5.4 Inus conditions for disjunctive outcome events 5.5 Inns and inus conditions of transition events 6. Counterfactual conditionals 7. Appendix: Tense and modal connectives in BST

Causation · Counterfactual thinking · Epistemology · Event (particle physics) · Mathematical economics · Outcome (game theory) · Quantum mechanics · Computer Science · Mathematics · Philosophy · Philosophy and Theoretical Science · Quantum Mechanics and Applications · Space Science and Extraterrestrial Life