How to Unsplit the World: Quantum mechanics, cognitive science, and the subject-object divide (Amanda Gefter)

The distinction between subject and object is so baked into the foundations of modern science that it’s rarely questioned. But the subject-object divide has a history. It was contingent, it was Descartes' fault, and science needn’t have straddled its wake. The fact that it did has profoundly shaped the evolution of science as a whole. It has led to seemingly intractable puzzles and paradoxes—such as the measurement problem in quantum mechanics and the hard problem in cognitive science—with catastrophic side effects for humanity’s attitude toward the environment.

By recognizing the subject-object split as a faulty foundation for science, we can begin to rethink our basic assumptions and forge new paths ahead. The QBist interpretation of quantum mechanics and the enactive approach to cognitive science provide examples of how we might move beyond the split. more...