In “Meeting the Universe Halfway” Karen Barad connects quantum mechanics to the ideas in continental and feminist traditions. She so creates a reference work in new materialism, specifically referencing Bohr’s views on the interpretation of quantum mechanics. What we (with philosophical, ethical, cognitive science and history of physics backgrounds) wonder is whether this affords to bridge the gap that people with an ‘exact-scientific’ worldview, or with an ‘analytic mindset’, often experience with respect to work in continental philosophy. A gap that has less to do with the conclusions on diversity and the importance of reports of lived experience as with the way it is phrased in this tradition. The way we approach this is to try to read chronologically on the debates between quantitative science and experience, or qualitative, data. As a starting point, Rob Sips proposed reading of Bergson’s “Time and Free Will” essay. As an endpoint we fix on reading of Karen Barad’s “Meeting the Universe Halfway”. In between we will see plot a course over the Einstein-Bergson debate and over the various interpretations of quantum mechanics of Bohr and Whitehead.
Below is the read-out of the first session discussing Bergson’s “Time and Free Will”.
Read moreFrom Bergson over Bohr to Barad 1: Bergson’s Time and Free Will