Holes (1996-2025)
7 hours ago
- Holes present an ontological puzzle: they are commonly treated as real spatiotemporal particulars like material objects, yet they are immaterial and made of nothing.
- Perception of holes raises problems for causal theories of perception, as immaterial holes cannot cause sensations; some argue we perceive absences directly.
- Identity and individuation of holes is difficult: they can change hosts, have no constituting matter, and their mereology (e.g., disconnected holes) is unclear.
- Various theories attempt to explain holes: eliminativism (paraphrasing away hole-talk), holes as spacetime regions, as hole-linings (material parts), as negative parts of hosts, as disturbances, or as properties/absences.
- Each theory faces challenges, such as accounting for hole mobility, co-location with fillers, topological diversity, and ontological dependence on hosts.
- The choice among theories depends on one's general metaphysical commitments and views on space, spacetime, and common-sense ontology.