From pure effects and observations to social theories
Philosophy in computer science Sometimes philosophers ask questions that seem of little use, for example: "If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound?" While pointless to most of us, this is in fact a central question for computer scientists. Let's rephrase for them: "If effects happen, and are never observed, did these effects really happen?" The simple answer from a computer science perspective is "No, effects only exist when observed". The more complex answer would have us questioning things. We might ask: What does it mean to "observe"? What is an effect? Can an effect sometimes be real, and sometimes not? Is a virtual effect still an effect? Is a virtual observation still an observation? What about the heat generated by effects that are not observed? What has this to do with security vulnerabilities like Spectre and Meltdown? ... I will not ask these questions, or at leas...