Why Philosophers Should Care About Computational Complexity
E1002081
"Why Philosophers Should Care About Computational Complexity" is an influential essay by computer scientist Scott Aaronson that explores how concepts from computational complexity theory illuminate and challenge traditional problems in philosophy, such as knowledge, rationality, and the nature of mathematical truth.
All labels observed (1)
| Label | Occurrences |
|---|---|
| Why Philosophers Should Care About Computational Complexity canonical | 1 |
Statements (48)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
essay
ⓘ
philosophy of computation essay ⓘ |
| addresses |
decision theory
ⓘ
epistemology ⓘ nature of mathematical truth ⓘ philosophy of mathematics ⓘ philosophy of mind ⓘ rationality ⓘ |
| argues |
complexity theory informs debates about the nature of mathematical proof
ⓘ
complexity theory is relevant to decision theory ⓘ complexity theory is relevant to philosophy of mind ⓘ complexity theory is relevant to the analysis of knowledge ⓘ computational constraints are central to understanding rational behavior ⓘ epistemic notions should account for computational feasibility ⓘ idealized agents with unbounded computation are unrealistic ⓘ some philosophical paradoxes dissolve when computational costs are considered ⓘ |
| author | Scott Aaronson NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| creatorOccupation |
computer scientist
ⓘ
theoretical computer scientist ⓘ |
| critiques |
idealized omniscient reasoners in philosophy
ⓘ
philosophical accounts that ignore computational cost ⓘ |
| field |
computational complexity theory
ⓘ
philosophy ⓘ |
| genre | academic essay ⓘ |
| hasInfluenceOn |
computational models of rationality
ⓘ
formal epistemology ⓘ philosophy of computer science ⓘ |
| influencedBy |
Bayesian decision theory
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
classical epistemology ⓘ philosophy of mathematics ⓘ theory of computation ⓘ |
| intendedAudience |
philosophers
ⓘ
theoretical computer scientists ⓘ |
| language | English ⓘ |
| mainTopic | relationship between computational complexity and philosophy ⓘ |
| proposes | philosophers should incorporate complexity-theoretic constraints into their theories ⓘ |
| relatedTo |
Computational Complexity and the Philosophy of Mind
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
bounded rationality in economics ⓘ philosophy of artificial intelligence ⓘ |
| usesConcept |
P versus NP problem
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
bounded rationality ⓘ computational indistinguishability ⓘ computational intractability ⓘ efficient computation ⓘ interactive proofs ⓘ oracle machines ⓘ polynomial time ⓘ zero-knowledge proofs ⓘ |
Referenced by (1)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.