An Argument for the Semantic View

Abstract

The chapter advances an argument for the semantic individuation of computational states. Its first and central premise is the simultaneous implementation of automata by physical systems. Simultaneous implementation (also known as “the indeterminacy of computation”) is a phenomenon whereby a physical system implements multiple formal structures at the same time, at the same location, and even with the same physical properties. The next premises are that, in a given context, a computational taxonomy often takes into account one of the implemented formalisms, and that content determines, at least partly, the select formalism. The chapter then addresses two objections. One is that the computational structure of the system is always identified with a more basic structure. The second objection is that we need not appeal to content for the purposes of computational individuation because extrinsic yet non-semantic features would do the job just as well.