Infinity is Absurd? Finitism is a Dogma?
A short interview with Manuel Bremer on finitism
Introduction
I sent a few questions to the author of a scientific article about finitism that I enjoyed very much. The author, Manuel Bremer, is currently a professor at the University of Düsseldorf.
My interaction with him was polite yet direct. I sent him my questions, compliments, and asked if I could turn them into a story. He accepted, and this is the result.
A little bit of context
It seems easy to appeal to finite circumstances when formulating hypotheses about the world. We can, for example, focus on specific contexts, or particular groups like biological species to make science (while always being mindful of the risks involved in generalizing our ideas).
However, anyone acquainted with the history of mathematics, logic, and philosophy knows that it’s not that simple. Consider whether we should arbitrarily choose how many numbers we want from the entire set of numbers. Such arbitrariness is a good thing?
If we don’t choose the numbers we want, then infinity simply occur? Is infinity a part of reality, or should it be considered an absurdity?