tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3891434218564545511.post4566109502120055387..comments2024-03-28T13:23:50.623-05:00Comments on Alexander Pruss's Blog: Can presentists say someone will have infinitely many descendants?Alexander R Prusshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05989277655934827117noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3891434218564545511.post-85227081377762176672012-02-06T10:54:11.205-06:002012-02-06T10:54:11.205-06:00How about a meta-linguistic move?
First, define a...How about a meta-linguistic move?<br /><br />First, define a predicate D_n(x) which says that x has at least n descendants. It's messy, but can be done. E.g., assuming that at some point the parent is contemporaneous with the child (not exactly true, but I think one can just add the necessary complications), D_1(x) says that there is a time t such that at t there was, is or will be a y and x existed, exists or will exist at t, and at t x is a parent of y. D_2(x) says that there is a time t such that at t there was, is or will be a y and x existed, exists or will exist at t, and at t both x was, is or will be a parent of y and D_1(y). And so on.<br /><br />Now, our truth conditions for (1) are: "There is an x that satisfies every predicate D_n."<br /><br />It's odd that one needs to go metalinguistic, though.<br /><br />Next question: Can we form a presentist-friendly sentence that says that x has uncountably infinitely many descendants?Alexander R Prusshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05989277655934827117noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3891434218564545511.post-65030011332077802272012-02-06T09:27:35.106-06:002012-02-06T09:27:35.106-06:00If haecceitism is true, then it's easy. The pr...<i>If haecceitism is true, then it's easy. The presentist just replaces talk transtemporal talk of individuals with talk of haecceities.</i><br /><br />What about: "someone will have infinitely many descendants, who will be non-identical with their infinitely many haecceities"?Heath Whitehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13535886546816778688noreply@blogger.com