A Rigorous Definition of Causality

In philosophical discussions, causation is often described using counterfactual conditionals—statements about what would have happened if certain events had or had not occurred. Traditionally, this is articulated through possible-world semantics. Here, we offer a rigorous definition of counterfactual implication within the framework of the Quantum Branching Universe (QBU).

Clarifying Traditional Counterfactual Logic

In conventional logic, counterfactual implication means:

If event "a" had occurred, event "b" would necessarily have occurred.

Formally, this means examining "the nearest possible worlds"—or closest alternative timelines—in which event "a" happens and verifying that event "b" also occurs in these scenarios.

Translating to the Quantum Branching Universe

In the QBU, reality is represented by a structured set of branching quantum timelines, each diverging at discrete quantum events. Each timeline consists of a sequence of causally-linked events identified by Pattern Identifiers (PIs). This provides a natural structure for evaluating counterfactuals rigorously:

• Each branching event acts as a decision node, from which timelines diverge based on different outcomes.

• Timelines share common ancestors, allowing precise definitions of "closest timelines."

Formal QBU Definition of Counterfactual Implication

Given two events, "a" and "b," consider their nearest common ancestor event E₀ in the QBU. We define counterfactual implication as follows:

where:

• “E₀ precedes T” denotes that E₀ is an ancestor event of timeline T.

• “a in T” indicates that event a happens within timeline T.

This explicitly means:

Starting from the common ancestor event E₀, every descendant timeline containing event a necessarily also contains event b.

Practical Example

Consider a scenario where:

• Event "a" is "Alice flips a switch at time t."

• Event "b" is "The lamp turns on at time t plus Δt."

In QBU terms, we have:

• All descendant timelines from the ancestor event E₀ containing Alice flipping the switch also contain the lamp turning on.

• Timelines branching from E₀ where Alice does not flip the switch do not include the lamp turning on.

Thus:

Why This Matters

This QBU-based formulation of counterfactual implication:

• Clearly preserves the asymmetric nature of causation.

• Precisely integrates the branching structure inherent in quantum interpretations.

• Facilitates rigorous philosophical and scientific analyses of causality, especially in quantum decision theory and philosophical ontology.

By leveraging QBU's explicit representation of branching timelines, we achieve a well-defined, logically consistent, and practically useful definition of causation.