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The relative facts interpretation and Everett's note added in proof

2012; Elsevier BV; Volume: 43; Issue: 2 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1016/j.shpsb.2012.03.001

1879-2502

Christina Conroy,

Philosophy and History of Science

In the published version of Hugh Everett III's doctoral dissertation, he inserted what has become a famous footnote, the "note added in proof". This footnote is often the strongest evidence given for any of various interpretations of Everett (the many worlds, many minds, many histories and many threads interpretations). In this paper I will propose a new interpretation of the footnote. One that is supported by evidence found in letters written to and by Everett; one that is suggested by a new interpretation of Everett, an interpretation that takes seriously the central position of relative states in Everett's pure wave mechanics: the relative facts interpretation. Of central interest in this paper is how to make sense of Everett's claim in the "note added in proof" that "all elements of a superposition (all "branches") are "actual," none any more "real" than the rest."