The Temporal Asymmetry of Causation

Download or read book The Temporal Asymmetry of Causation written by Alison Fernandes and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2023-06-01 with total page 153 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Causes always seem to come prior to their effects. What might explain this asymmetry? Causation's temporal asymmetry isn't straightforwardly due to a temporal asymmetry in the laws of nature—the laws are, by and large, temporally symmetric. Nor does the asymmetry appear due to an asymmetry in time itself. This Element examines recent empirical attempts to explain the temporal asymmetry of causation: statistical mechanical accounts, agency accounts and fork asymmetry accounts. None of these accounts are complete yet and a full explanation of the temporal asymmetry of causation will likely require contributions from all three programs.