Popper’s three worlds

In Popper’s theory, there is direct interaction between World 1 and World 2, and between World 2 and World 3, but there is no direct interaction between World 1 and World 3 – World 3 does affect World 1 but only indirectly, through the workings of World 2 with World 3 content and then World 2’s subsequent interaction with World 1.

In Popper’s theory, there is direct interaction between World 1 and World 2, and between World 2 and World 3, but there is no direct interaction between World 1 and World 3 – World 3 does affect World 1 but only indirectly, through the workings of World 2 with World 3 content and then World 2’s subsequent interaction with World 1.

Though it is part of Popper’s theory of knowledge, Popper’s theory of these three “Worlds” is also a cosmological theory. As is consistent with the known universe as presently described by the natural sciences, Popper maintains that the known universe did not contain any World 2 or World 3 from the outset – there was initially only a “World 1”, a realm where everything consisted of physical states and processes. Moreover, that “World 1” was for a long time devoid of any living matter and so during that time lacked any biological level. The biological level is a level within World 1 that emerged from its physical-chemical evolution over a vast tract of time, as a lifeless universe eventually gave rise to living organisms, such as those on earth. In a similar sense to this emergence of life within World 1 itself, Popper maintains that a “World 2″ of ”mental” life later emerged as a product of biological evolution, and that subsequently “World 3” emerged as a product of evolution within the human “World 2”. Just as there was no biological realm in the universe before the emergence of biological entities, so Popper views “World 2” and “World 3” as realms that only came into existence with the first World 2 and World 3 entities, respectively.

Though it is part of Popper’s theory of knowledge, Popper’s theory of these three “Worlds” is also a cosmological theory. As is consistent with the known universe as presently described by the natural sciences, Popper maintains that the known universe did not contain any World 2 or World 3 from the outset – there was initially only a “World 1”, a realm where everything consisted of physical states and processes. Moreover, that “World 1” was for a long time devoid of any living matter and so during that time lacked any biological level. The biological level is a level within World 1 that emerged from its physical-chemical evolution over a vast tract of time, as a lifeless universe eventually gave rise to living organisms, such as those on earth. In a similar sense to this emergence of life within World 1 itself, Popper maintains that a “World 2″ of ”mental” life later emerged as a product of biological evolution, and that subsequently “World 3” emerged as a product of evolution within the human “World 2”. Much as there was no biological realm in the universe before the emergence of biological entities, so Popper views “World 2” and “World 3” as realms that only came into existence with the first World 2 and World 3 entities, respectively.

This cosmological approach is directly opposed to any form of reductionism which claims that we can ”fully” explain (and perhaps predict) whatever comes later in the known universe from the character of what came before or that we can always ”completely” ‘reduce’ future characteristics of the universe to its past characteristics. Against such reductionist and deterministic views, Popper argues that we should view our universe as “creative” and indeterministic, especially in that it has given rise to genuinely new levels or realms – like biological life, “World 2” and “World 3” – that were not there from the beginning and which are not ‘reducible’ to what was there from the beginning.

This cosmological approach is directly opposed to any form of reductionism which claims that we can ”fully” explain (and perhaps predict) whatever comes later in the known universe from the character of what came before or that we can always ”completely” ‘reduce’ future characteristics of the universe to its past characteristics. Against such reductionist and deterministic views, Popper argues that we should view our universe as “creative” and indeterministic, especially in that it has given rise to genuinely new levels or realms – like biological life, “World 2” and “World 3” – that were not there from the beginning and which are not ‘reducible’ to what was there from the beginning.