Two paradoxes of semantic information
pp. 3719-3730
Abstract
Yehoshua Bar-Hillel and Rudolph Carnap’s classical theory of semantic information entails the counterintuitive feature that inconsistent statements convey maximal information. Theories preserving Bar-Hillel and Carnap’s modal intuitions while imposing a veridicality requirement on which statements convey information—such as the theories of Fred Dretske or Luciano Floridi—avoid this commitment, as inconsistent statements are deemed not information-conveying by fiat. This paper produces a pair of paradoxical statements that such “veridical-modal” theories must evaluate as both conveying and not conveying information, although Bar-Hillel and Carnap’s theory accommodates these statements without inconsistency. Moreover, the paradoxes are independently interesting as the mode in which they self-refer bears on their evaluation.
Publication details
Published in:
Jantzen Benjamin C., Mayo Deborah G., Patton Lydia (2015) Ontology & methodology. Synthese 192 (11).
Pages: 3719-3730
DOI: 10.1007/s11229-015-0717-1
Full citation:
Macaulay Ferguson Thomas (2015) „Two paradoxes of semantic information“. Synthese 192 (11), 3719–3730.