iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Steve Esser @steveesser.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

These pics would fit the meme of senior faculty profile pic vs. IRL

Steve Esser @steveesser.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

I was fortunate to have checked out the Less Wrong blog in 2009 where I saw EY bullying people about the interpretation of QM of all things (he was 100% off base). Never looked at it again.

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Steve Esser @steveesser.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

I have a blog post giving a short, informal overview of Relational Quantum Mechanics and its approach to the measurement problem. [I have begun writing a post about RQM and metaphysics, and I decided to lift out the intro so it could be an optional read.] #philsci #philsky

stephenesser.com

RQM and the Measurement Problem – Stephen Esser

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Steve Esser @steveesser.bsky.social · 21/09/2026

I'm sorry to hear that physicist Rafael Sorkin has passed away. perimeterinstitute.ca/news/perimet... I thought this video (attached) which features him was a good intro to his work on Casual Set Theory.

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Steve Esser @steveesser.bsky.social · 13/09/2026

After years of pain, they won it all. Then they did it again! It’s ok now.

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Steve Esser @steveesser.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

I was frustrated reading things that assumed current best of 3/best of 5 were the only possible formats. #USOpen

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Steve Esser @steveesser.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

Ok, people who know tennis better than me. I noticed the US Open used 4 game sets in the mixed doubles event. Why not best of 5 sets with 4 game sets for singles (men & women)?

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Steve Esser @steveesser.bsky.social · 20/08/2026

I blogged about another interesting paper concerning the philosophy of causal set theory by Sam Baron and @baptistelebihan.bsky.social. #philsci #philsky

stephenesser.com

More About the “Causal” in CST – Stephen Esser

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Steve Esser @steveesser.bsky.social · 29/07/2026

I have a short post that updates some notes on the topic of enactivist theories of biological autonomy and agency. It is about the notion of "constraint closure" and was prompted by my re-reading of @kathrynnave.eurosky.social 's excellent recent book. #philsci #philsky

stephenesser.com

Constraint Closure and Autonomy – Stephen Esser

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Reposted by Steve Esser

Steve Esser @steveesser.bsky.social · 07/07/2026

New Paper! Some argue that a process ontology is needed to accommodate biology. John Dupré also suggests that causal process theories are more applicable to biology than appreciated. "Turning Salmon's causal theory into process ontology" develops this idea further... (1/2) #philsci #philsky

link.springer.com

Turning Salmon’s causal process theory into process ontology - Synthese

There is a contemporary movement among philosophers, inspired by biology, to advocate for a process-based metaphysics. These theorists argue that standard approaches (object or substance-based) are in...

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Steve Esser @steveesser.bsky.social · 11/07/2026

Maybe of interest to @asmeincke.bsky.social and @djnicholson.bsky.social. I'm grateful for their work on the process approach.

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Steve Esser @steveesser.bsky.social · 07/07/2026

The paper offers a modified version of Salmon’s CP theory can meet the needs of contemporary process advocates. I also discuss how to maintain the connection Salmon sought between the process account and scientific explanation. (2/2) See my blog post for more background.

stephenesser.com

New Paper: Causation, Explanation and Process Ontology – Stephen Esser

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Steve Esser @steveesser.bsky.social · 07/07/2026

link.springer.com

Turning Salmon’s causal process theory into process ontology - Synthese

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Steve Esser @steveesser.bsky.social · 04/07/2026

Mind you, this was a significant upgrade over my usual 1970’s look.

Photo of boy with mismatched striped shirt and pants. A wall calendar says it is 1973.

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Steve Esser @steveesser.bsky.social · 04/07/2026

Looking thru old pics- I found Bicentennial me.

Faded old photo of a boy dressed in colonial era garb.

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Steve Esser @steveesser.bsky.social · 06/06/2026

Ecca Vandal's album is out with original and utterly contemporary-sounding music. There are 6 tracks in particular (2 thru 7) that I love: compelling punkish songs that go really hard. (The latter half of the album caters less to my tastes - less rock & more Ecca rapping over electronic beats).

i.eccavandal.com

Ecca Vandal - LOOKING FOR PEOPLE TO UNFOLLOW

OUT NOW

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Steve Esser @steveesser.bsky.social · 24/05/2026

Also: extremely grateful for open access books!

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Steve Esser @steveesser.bsky.social · 23/05/2026

I have a very brief post up about reading Frances Egan's book and side-quest musing on the mind-body problem. (Key graf is in screen-shot). stephenesser.com/note-on-egan... #philsky

But It got me wondering: what does even the minimal conclusion—that experience has a qualitative character—say about the mind-body problem? Not a whole lot, because it doesn’t speak to the other dimension of the so-called “hard problem of consciousness”, which is why there is subjective perceptual experience to begin with. It does not license dualism or panpsychism. On the other hand, even if you think, as I do, that the subjective/agential character of conscious experience will succumb to a naturalistic explanation, then we are left with the following: we can rule out a notion of physicalism that denies the world has any qualitative character (i.e. it can be exhaustively and satisfyingly explained by formal or mathematical treatment). Of course, “physicalism” doesn’t need to be committed to this, although most of the time this issue is not confronted head-on (Daniel Stoljar has what I found to be the clearest discussion of how this plays out when trying to offer positive definitions of physicalism).

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Steve Esser @steveesser.bsky.social · 13/05/2026

Give Daryl one more paycheck to consult on the draft.

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Steve Esser @steveesser.bsky.social · 10/05/2026

Maxey’s hand has been compromising his shot severely in this series.

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Steve Esser @steveesser.bsky.social · 10/05/2026

Shooting 90% from 3 will run anyone off the floor.

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Steve Esser @steveesser.bsky.social · 06/05/2026

This is a good contribution. I don't think you need to be a fan of phenomenology to understand the nature of LLMs, but it seems to help! #philsky

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Steve Esser @steveesser.bsky.social · 03/05/2026

I was a college freshman last time the #76ers beat the Celtics in the playoffs. Heart rate still elevated.

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Steve Esser @steveesser.bsky.social · 02/05/2026

Because keys to cognition are in the biological details, I think enactivists may see many of the cog sci approaches as missing important things b/c the models used (whether computational or dynamical) abstract or “coarse-grain” from these details.

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Steve Esser @steveesser.bsky.social · 30/04/2026

Very rich and interesting paper. I especially found useful the discussion of how dynamical models typically abstract away from the important features that underlie biological autonomy.

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Steve Esser @steveesser.bsky.social · 25/04/2026

I guess I wouldn’t like ‘intrinsic’ either if it means ‘inexplicable’ I think functional and reductive need to be understood in a very broad way tho.

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Steve Esser @steveesser.bsky.social · 25/04/2026

I would need to think more about definition of mental properties. But I think there is an (explicable!) notion of autonomy/agency that supports genuinely intrinsic intentions/values at the level of the bio. individual. And our cognition & intelligence is built on top of this.

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Steve Esser @steveesser.bsky.social · 25/04/2026

I strongly disagree. I’ve come to agree with the enactivists. We have all these things. The basis is in the biological autonomy we share with all living things, conferred by a special self-producing and sustaining causal organization.

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Steve Esser @steveesser.bsky.social · 17/04/2026

Someone close to me is relocating soon to Raleigh (from greater Philly). Any opinions on it as a place to live?

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Steve Esser @steveesser.bsky.social · 14/04/2026

We didn’t see this lingering price level effect in sentiment in the 80’s after the sharp drop in the inflation rate, correct? I wonder what accounts for the difference.

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Steve Esser @steveesser.bsky.social · 10/04/2026

My idea about how to interpret the ‘causal’ part of this differs from the brief discussion from the CST theorists offered here— I will write that up at some point.

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Steve Esser @steveesser.bsky.social · 10/04/2026

Nice to have a digestible video all about Causal Set Theory. #physics #quantumgravity #philsci youtu.be/5EoZE1rOHAo?...

youtu.be

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Steve Esser @steveesser.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

Coming into the season with him in that spot shows a lack of seriousness.

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Steve Esser @steveesser.bsky.social · 15/03/2026

Much needed new album from Surfbort! Dani Miller and the gang deliver catchy punk with lyrics that are droll, sometimes silly, but with tons of heart. #punkrock www.todomusic.net/release/5555...

todomusic.net

SURFBORT - Reality Star. TODO.

Buy Reality Star by SURFBORT on TODO.

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Reposted by Steve Esser

Giving Green @givinggreen.earth · 02/03/2026

📽️ UPCOMING WEBINAR Biodiversity loss is accelerating. How can limited philanthropic funding have an outsized impact? Join us on Mar. 17 for the launch of our new biodiversity giving research to find out. FT. @gfi.org, @fairrinitiative.bsky.social & more. Sign up: us06web.zoom.us/webinar/regi...

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Steve Esser @steveesser.bsky.social · 18/02/2026

I think that work tracing the causal structure involved in the biological basis of agency/subjectivity is giving us a shot at this. (I think trying to conceptualize qualities using formal/math models is a different kettle of fish - separating hard problem into 2 parts is helpful).

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Steve Esser @steveesser.bsky.social · 13/02/2026

In an area (Q interps) where consensus is rare, there seems to be wide agreement that decoherence alone does not solve the measurement problem. I can’t quite tell if there is a new twist here?

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Steve Esser @steveesser.bsky.social · 01/02/2026

Amazing that most of my favorite albums of the last 2 years were produced by this Philly guy!

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Steve Esser @steveesser.bsky.social · 13/01/2026

This is a great event if you know any undergrads that might want to participate. #philsky

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