Book contents
- Causal Powers and the Intentionality Continuum
- Causal Powers and the Intentionality Continuum
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Figures
- Preface
- Acknowledgments
- Abbreviations
- Introduction
- Part I Why Powers?
- Part II What Are Powers Like?
- Chapter 3 Powers from the Inside
- Chapter 4 A Defense of Physical Intentionality
- Chapter 5 A Defense of Physical Intentionality
- Chapter 6 Powers from the Inside
- Chapter 7 Powers from the Outside
- Chapter 8 Nature’s Intentionality Continuum
- Works Cited
- Index
Chapter 6 - Powers from the Inside
Information
from Part II - What Are Powers Like?
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 13 October 2022
- Causal Powers and the Intentionality Continuum
- Causal Powers and the Intentionality Continuum
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Figures
- Preface
- Acknowledgments
- Abbreviations
- Introduction
- Part I Why Powers?
- Part II What Are Powers Like?
- Chapter 3 Powers from the Inside
- Chapter 4 A Defense of Physical Intentionality
- Chapter 5 A Defense of Physical Intentionality
- Chapter 6 Powers from the Inside
- Chapter 7 Powers from the Outside
- Chapter 8 Nature’s Intentionality Continuum
- Works Cited
- Index
Summary
This chapter continues exploring powers from the inside. The Informational Thesis claims that powers carry representational, nonpropositional, map-like information geared toward their potential manifestations. First, this chapter motivates an ontological connection between information and powers via two arguments, one based on physics and one based on causation. Second, the modality of powers from the inside is illuminated using the blueprinting metaphor advanced by Neil Williams, which centrally involves an informational component. This prompts a more detailed discussion of the nature of information. Third, some important implications of the Informational Thesis are discussed, including its relation to the dispositional modality posited by Rani Lill Anjum and Stephen Mumford, the analysis of powers (dispositions), and the power/quality (dispositional/categorical) distinction. The chapter’s conclusion explores how the three d’s of the 3d account are interrelated and form a rich, novel account of powers.
Keywords
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Causal Powers and the Intentionality Continuum , pp. 141 - 164Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2022