Lecture on Ontology and Existence

Introduction

• Presenter: Michael from Vsauce
• Discussing questions about existence: What really exists? Do ordinary objects like chairs or spoons truly exist?

Key Concepts and Questions

• Ontology: Philosophy of existence.
• Ordinary Objects: Common items like chairs, spoons, and rocks.
  • Questions their existence through philosophical skepticism.
  • Could all be part of a dream or simulated reality?

Existence and Constitution

• Constitution: The relationship where one thing constitutes another (e.g., paper constituting a crane).
• Composition: Matter composed of smaller subatomic particles.
• Simples vs. Gunky Universe:
  • Simples: Objects with no parts.
  • Gunky: Endless smaller substructures.
  • Junky: Everything part of something bigger.

Ontological Reductionism

• Belief that objects are nothing more than their parts.
• Challenges arise with objects like cranes and paper.
• Existence defined as "more than zero of it."

Properties and Nouns

• Properties: Characteristics like "floppy" or "salty" used to describe objects.
• Questioning whether nouns like "island" truly inventory the universe or human-made constructs.

Realism vs. Anti-realism

• Ontological Realists: Believe in a mind-independent reality.
• Ontological Anti-realists: Reality is a human construct.

Special Composition Question

• Explores when parts compose a whole.
• Examples: Bikinis as composed objects, books stacked on each other.

Mereology

• The philosophy of parts and wholes.
• Mereological Universalism: Any collection of things, no matter how strange, composes a thing.
• Eliminativism: Some composites are real, some are not.

Nihilism vs. Deflationism

• Mereological Nihilism: Only simples exist, no composites.
• Deflationism: All positions agree on existence of simples, hence chairs exist in that context.

Over-Determination and Over-Counting

• Over-Determination: Objects like chairs being redundant to their atomic explanation.
• Over-Counting: Problem of counting both parts and the whole.

Sorites Sequence and Vagueness

• Sorites Sequence: The paradox of destroying an object through gradual removal of parts.
• Vagueness: Ordinary objects are inherently vague.

Ship of Theseus Paradox

• Explores identity and transformation over time.

Conclusion: Ontological Innocence

• Chairs should be seen as independent yet not over-and-above their parts.
• Thomasson's argument for "sortal" as a meaningful way to define existence.
• Ontological Parasitism: Objects and selves seen as disturbances in matter.
• Philosophy of Language: Influence of language and perspective on existence.

Final Thoughts

• Challenges of determining existence using philosophical frameworks.
• Encouragement to rethink ordinary objects as patterns or arrangements, not solid entities.
• Importance of understanding the universe as a series of interactions and qualities rather than distinct objects.