Skip to main content
Log in

Classical physics and Penrose's thesis

  • Published:
Foundations of Physics Letters

Abstract

We expose and discussPenrose's thesis: “Nature produces harnessable noncomputable processes, but none at the classical level.” We then suggest a partial counterexample to it, based on aGedanken experiment about an undecidable family of integrable Hamiltonian systems that could lead to a sort of idealized solution to the Halting problem for Turing machines.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. N. C. A. da Costa and F. A. Doria, “Suppes predicates for classical physics,” to be published inProceedings, 1990 San Sebastián Congress on Scientific Structures, A. Ibarra, editor, Kluwer (1992).

  2. N. C. A. da Costa and F. A. Doria, “Undecidability and incompleteness in classical mechanics,” preprint (1990).

  3. J. P. Jones,J. Symbol. Logic 47, 549 (1982).

    Google Scholar 

  4. C. Moore,Phys. Rev. Lett. 64, 2354 (1990).

    Google Scholar 

  5. R. Penrose,The Emperor's New Mind (Oxford University Press, Oxford 1989).

    Google Scholar 

  6. M. B. Pour-El and I. Richards,Adv. Math. 39, 215 (1981).

    Google Scholar 

  7. D. Richardson,J. Symbol. Logic 33, 514 (1968).

    Google Scholar 

  8. H. Rogers Jr.,Theory of Recursive Functions and Effective Computability (McGraw-Hill, New York 1967).

    Google Scholar 

  9. B. Scarpellini,Z. Math. Logik & Grundlagen Math. 9, 265 (1963).

    Google Scholar 

  10. J. Shoenfield,Mathematical Logic, (Addison-Wesley, Reading, 1967).

    Google Scholar 

  11. J. Stolfi, personal communication.

  12. P. Wang,J. ACM 21, 586 (1974).

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Additional information

1. Partially supported by a Fulbright/CNPq-Brazil grant. Permanent address after November 5, 1990: Center for the Study of Mathematical Theories of Communication, IDEA/School of Communications, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Av. Pasteur 250, 22290 Rio de Janeiro, RJ Brazil.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

da Costa, N.C.A., Doria, F.A. Classical physics and Penrose's thesis. Found Phys Lett 4, 363–373 (1991). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00665895

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00665895

Key words

Navigation