Pure shape dynamics, self-subsisting structures, and the nature of time
arXiv:2407.21132 · doi:10.1007/s10838-024-09690-9
Abstract
The paper discusses the possible implications of the relational framework of Pure Shape Dynamics for the metaphysics of time. The starting point of the analysis is an interpretation of shapes in ontic structural realist terms, which gives rise to the notion of self-subsisting structure. The relational version of a Newtonian-particle toy model is introduced and discussed as a concrete example.
25 pages, 3 figures. Forthcoming in the special issue "On time in the foundations of physics" of the Journal for General Philosophy of Science