What is Causality: Definition and 186 Discussions

Causality (also referred to as causation, or cause and effect) is influence by which one event, process, state or object (a cause) contributes to the production of another event, process, state or object (an effect) where the cause is partly responsible for the effect, and the effect is partly dependent on the cause. In general, a process has many causes,
which are also said to be causal factors for it, and all lie in its past. An effect can in turn be a cause of, or causal factor for, many other effects, which all lie in its future. Some writers have held that causality is metaphysically prior to notions of time and space.Causality is an abstraction that indicates how the world progresses, so basic a concept that it is more apt as an explanation of other concepts of progression than as something to be explained by others more basic. The concept is like those of agency and efficacy. For this reason, a leap of intuition may be needed to grasp it. Accordingly, causality is implicit in the logic and structure of ordinary language.In English studies of Aristotelian philosophy, the word "cause" is used as a specialized technical term, the translation of Aristotle's term αἰτία, by which Aristotle meant "explanation" or "answer to a 'why' question". Aristotle categorized the four types of answers as material, formal, efficient, and final "causes". In this case, the "cause" is the explanans for the explanandum, and failure to recognize that different kinds of "cause" are being considered can lead to futile debate. Of Aristotle's four explanatory modes, the one nearest to the concerns of the present article is the "efficient" one.
David Hume, as part of his opposition to rationalism, argued that pure reason alone cannot prove the reality of efficient causality; instead, he appealed to custom and mental habit, observing that all human knowledge derives solely from experience.
The topic of causality remains a staple in contemporary philosophy.

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  1. N

    I Does this paper rule out the Transactional Interpretation?

    http://advances.sciencemag.org/content/2/8/e1600162.full They claimed to have shown that non local causaulity models of QM do not work. But does that include the Transactional interpretation, which is non local and retrocausal?
  2. FallenApple

    I Is Causality Relative in Black Holes?

    So in GR, for a classical black hole, if A is approaching the event horizon, to an observer far away, let say B, B would never observe A crossing the event horizon as B would observe A's time slow down in the limit to 0 and A's length contract in the limit to 0. In fact, according to B, A never...
  3. N

    Discontinuities in the time derivative of the magnetic field

    An inductor and resistor are arranged in parallel to a constant voltage source. There is a switch connected to a terminal on the inductor that can create a closed loop that includes either the voltage source, or the resistor. The switch is left connecting the source and inductor for a long...
  4. bohm2

    A Does this experiment truly rule out non-local causality?

    Experimental test of nonlocal causality http://advances.sciencemag.org/content/2/8/e1600162 Quantum mechanics trumps nonlocal causality http://physicsworld.com/cws/article/news/2016/aug/18/quantum-mechanics-trumps-nonlocal-causality Having just read the full paper it seems to that it doesn't...
  5. N

    I Does quantum mechanics obey causality?

    My intuition tells me that it does not given that physical phenomena don't obey the principle of sufficient reason under quantum mechanics (a dogma many still hold certain). A lucid definition of the PoSR can be found here. Meaning, that some events are non-localized and the distinction between...
  6. DuckAmuck

    I Causally separated regions in CMB?

    So I have heard it mentioned that there are causally separate regions in the CMB. For instance a point A and point B that we can see here on earth, but are outside of each other's light cones. My question is then, how far apart are these points A and B at minimum to be causally separate in this...
  7. R

    B Black Holes, Information Loss and Causality Query

    I take an interest in physics in my spare time (in IT during the day). I have a query regarding the 'problem' of information loss at a black hole, and would be grateful for some enlightenment. It seems generally regarded that any information going past the horizon of a black hole is...
  8. Grimble

    B Exploring Light Cones & Causality Diagrams in Relativity

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  9. Stephanus

    B Can FTL communication violate causality without one party moving?

    Dear PF Forum, I've tried to googled how causality can happen by FTL communcation (I use communication, because if it "travels", I'm having trouble calculating ##\gamma## imaginer). But from all examples that I've found it can violate causality if one of the party is moving relative to the...
  10. E

    Covariant Characterization of Causality in Continuum: T^{ik}v_k

    Hi! Let ##T^{ik}## be the stress-energy-tensor, and ##v_k## some future-pointing, time-like four vector. How can I see that the object ##T^{ik}v_k## is future-pointing and not space-like? Thank you for your help!
  11. P

    A Superluminal Energy Transport & Causality: Does It Violate Relativity?

    In superluminal light pulse experiments, as shown in Fig. 4 of the Letter [Nature 406 (2000) 277], the whole pulse intensity profile observed is advanced by 62 ns nearly without any distortions, and the light pulse energy must be transported faster than the speed of light in vacuum...
  12. entropy1

    I Causality in Quantum Mechanics: Exploring Meaning & Timing

    I am wondering about the meaning of 'preservation of causality' in quantum mechanics. Is there causality in QM? And does it act back in time? I have some ideas of myself, but want to learn about the general accepted view first.
  13. T

    Complex integral for z-transform causality

    This relates to z-transform causality, but I'll try to phrase it as a complex analysis question. Suppose I have a function ##X(z)## whose poles are all inside the unit circle, and which has the property \lim_{|z|\to\infty} \frac{X(z)}{z} = 0 Is that sufficient to guarantee that \frac{1}{2\pi...
  14. K

    Why does warping space time still violate causality?

    I am having a tough time getting my head around this. I get that traveling faster then c in itself has an effect on the the flow of time from the reference of external observation and the person doing it (isn't actual FTL velocity causing backwards time?). But in a "warp bubble" for lack of a...
  15. T

    B How Does Quantum Entanglement Not Violate Causality?

    Suppose I have an apparatus A that is entangled with apparatus B. In my reference frame, I observe apparatus A, which simultaneously causes apparatus B to do its thing. However, because there exists a reference frame where apparatus B does its thing before apparatus A, it follows that there...
  16. D

    What is the difference between locality and causality?

    This has been causing some confusion to me as the two concepts seem very similar, if not the same (especially when taking special relativity into account). As far as I understand, even in classical physics (i.e. even before considering QFT and the like), one requires that interactions are...
  17. Coffee_

    Causality of the wave equation

    Consider the wave equation ##\nabla^{2} f - \frac{1}{c^{2}} \frac{\partial ^{2} f}{\partial t^{2}} = \delta(r) \delta(t) ## where there is no wave before ##t=0## The solution will be something up to a constants like ##f=\frac{\delta(r-ct)}{r}##. So we have a dirac delta function that...
  18. Clueless

    How are space-like intervals important?

    Time-like and light like separations between events make sense, because a particle or a light flash can travel between them. However, how can you have a space-like interval when even light cannot travel such an interval (because its velocity is not greater than c). Obviously the first event...
  19. L.E.N

    The Alice and Bob example of the FTL violates causality

    As many, I wondered why FTL communication has problems with causality. Went over many posts here in PF, and wasn't satisfied. And then I read this explanation, by Richard Baker: (2015-4-2, link is still active) http://www.theculture.org/rich/sharpblue/archives/000089.html His explanation is a...
  20. S

    Hypothetical FTL communication black-boxes and causality

    I found the thread "SR, LET, FTL & Causality Violation", looked through through all of it and read large parts. I believe I found my answer there, but to make sure, I'm asking the question here: Suppose we had some "magical" black-boxes that allow us to communicate information in both...
  21. P

    Causality in Relativity: Examining the Illusion of Simultaneous Cause and Effect

    I have heard some philosophers state that cause and effect can be simultaneous with each other. Kant for example apparently claimed that when a bowling ball rests on a pillow creating a depression that the cause and the effect are simultaneous. It seems to me this is forbidden in relativity...
  22. 5

    Fundamentally why require causality?

    I have been wondering for some time now why causality is a prerequisite for every "good theory" all the way from classical mechanics, to QM, even in QFT the correlators for spacelike separated interactions cancel out. Now, since we usually take make a general theory and then usually simplify...
  23. T

    Nonrelativistic free particle propagators

    This type of integration is a special case of something that occurs over and over in QM and QFT (it's everywhere in Peskin and Schroeder), but I am having a bit of trouble working out the details. Set \hbar=1 and consider the propagation amplitude for a free, nonrelativistic particle to move...
  24. A

    Causality and quantum entanglement

    I have a quick question about what is going on with the following scenario: There are three planets: A, B, and C. They are arranged in the following manner: A is 4 light years away from B and 2 light years from C; the distance between B and C is 3 light years. Now suppose that there are two...
  25. S

    FTL & Causality: Understanding Time Travel

    I understand that the questions behind causality and FTL have been brought up numerous times, and I have read several of the old threads. My question isn't with how is causality violated, it is always assumed that any signal sent would appear to travel backwards in time from one point of...
  26. I

    Exotic stress-energy tensor and causality

    Hello everybody. I would like to kindly ask your help with a hypothetical hairy question about which I think a lot recently. It is known fact, that it is not possible to construct a wormhole without exotic mass that violates the weak energy condition. It is also known that many quantum fields...
  27. M

    Quantum Causality: Pauli's Definition Explained

    In a 1940 article in the Physical Review Wolfgang Pauli provides a definition for quantum causality: it is 'implemented microscopically by the requirement that observables commute at spacelike separations'. I find this confusing. Doesn't spacelike separation by definition exclude causal...
  28. A

    Exploring Collision and Causality in SR: Examples and Questions Answered

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  29. H

    Does QM violate the causality principle?

    Hello, As written, I am wondering if the causality principle gets violated in QM. Do virtual particles violate the causality principles? Do instantaneous events violate the causality principle? Thank you in advance.
  30. D

    Can Warp Speed Violate Causality? The Debate Among Physicists

    I have heard many physicists (ex:- Michio Kaku) saying "Warp speed" from Star Trek doesn't violate any known physical laws. But doesn't it violate causality? Say, we make warp speed possible and get on it and travel towards Alpha Centauri (4.22 light years away) in warp speed and reach there...
  31. G

    Quantum Causality: Investigating Uncaused Events

    I will bare in mind that causes may simply not be known today, however I would like to enquire about current non classic causality examples such as uncaused events; more specifically outcomes of experiments or matter to appear or change in an uncaused manner.
  32. R

    Gibbs phenomenon and ringing in square waves: causality?

    A seemingly good way to understand the overshoot and decay (ringing) of a square wave on a scope is that it is the result of bandwidth limiting. In that case, the Fourier series of a square wave \Pi(t) = \frac{1}{2 \pi} \sum_{n=-\infty}^\infty \frac{\sin(n \omega/2)}{n \omega/2} \exp(i n \omega...
  33. J

    Causality and FLT a time reference consideration

    excuse my lack of understanding! Is there anything in physics which directly suggests that if FLT was possible, you would travel back in time? does anything forbid the possibility that instead you gradually change your time reference to keep causality? With the example of a very fast train, a...
  34. S

    Determinism, causality and field theory

    hi i read some text about causality and determinism, but i can't exactly distinguish between them. what's really difference between them? does not quantum mechanics respect one of them? i read this phrase in article of S.Carlip about quantum gravity "Quantum field theory includes...
  35. R

    Causality and its maths, is it too general to be useful ?

    I have been asked to write a couple of papers with a mathematician who has made extensive use of casual theory in his career and done pretty well. All i will be providing is neuroscience knowhow but obviously as a co-author i need to accept some responsibility for his product. Without...
  36. O

    What does local causality mean?

    Also how can local causality be violated?
  37. thenewmans

    What interpretations break causality instead of locality?

    By Bell’s theorem, an interpretation of QM must break either locality or causality. Linked below is the only interpretation I know of that chooses to maintain locality. (I don't know many.) Do you know of any others? CAUSALLY SYMMETRIC BOHM MODEL...
  38. V

    Is Electromagnetism's Causality Consistent with Special Relativity?

    We are usually told in an introduction to general relativity that when special relativity was completed, there was a contradiction with Newtonian physics. The Newtonian gravitational force of M on m is F_g = -G \frac{M m}{r^2} \hat{r} where \vec{r} is the spatial vector from M to m. This...
  39. D

    Speed of light - causality - etc

    I've seen other posts about this, but would appreciate an explanation if anyone knows. I've read that traveling faster than the speed of light could affect causality. Example: item I traveling in a tube could be seen arriving at end B before it ever left end A. A=======I=B Is this an...
  40. K

    Help understand FTL causality implication

    First of all, I am fairly new to relativity, but not clueless. I am not saying that FTL is possible. I am not denying relativity principles. I am stating that FTL may be plausible. Relativity gives flexibility to how you can synchronize clocks and that does not affect outcomes of most...
  41. C

    How is causality proven when it's impossible to change the IV?

    How is causality usually proven when it's impossible to change the independent variable? Also, why is correlation often treated as a very reliable hint to causation, even in various respected journals? Here's an example...
  42. C

    Can Causality and Operators Explain the Limitations of Quantum Field Theory?

    Hi. I'm reading David Tong's notes (Causality at page 36: http://www.damtp.cam.ac.uk/user/tong/qft/two.pdf ) on QFT and I'm currently trying to understand the causality requirement that [O_1(x), O_2(y)] = 0 \ \ \forall \ \ (x-y)^2 < 0. For two operators O1 and O2. He then states that this...
  43. F

    Can SR be derived from causality alone?

    I'm wondering if causality is enough to derive the Minkowski metric and the Lorentz transformations. It seems to me that in order to ensure that some set of events maintain a causal relationship to each other under a transformation to a moving frame of reference, that there must be some...
  44. J

    Causality Violation in Extended Newton's Cradle?

    I wanted to post a small thought experiment that has been really bugging me. Let's say you could build a Newton's cradle the length of 1 AU, all the balls are elastic, there is no loss of energy due to friction, and you are standing at one end and your friend is standing at the other. At the...
  45. N

    Interesting New FQXi Contest Essay re: Signal Causality

    "Quantum measurement predictions are consistent with relativity for macroscopic observations, but there is no consensus on how to explain this consistency in fundamental terms. The prevailing assumption is that the relativistic structure of spacetime should provide the framework for any...
  46. G

    Does Traveling Faster Than Light Violate Causality? | V>c

    It is well known that traveling at superluminal speeds violates causality, this can be shown by a space time diagram, where two frames would disagree on which event came after the other. My question is, if such particle were to exist (called tachyons), what would they see in their frame? Since...
  47. T

    Causality with time invariance

    Assume u:R\rightarrow C^n and define shift operator S(\tau) with S(\tau)u(t)=u(t-\tau) and truncation operator P(\tau) with P(\tau)u(t)=u(t) for t\leq\tau and 0 for t>\tau Then P(\tau)S(\tau)=S(\tau)P(0) for every \tau>=0. Can someone please prove last statement..
  48. S

    FTL, causality, QE - some questions

    There are numerous posts on (attempting) FLT information via QE and whether causality is violated. I believe that there are definite answers to them and are buried (out there somewhere) in the gazillion posts/replies in the forum. FTL = faster than light, QE = quantum entanglement I hoping...
  49. S

    Iterative methods - causality violation?

    Consider a partial differential equation describing the evolution of some function of a system which varies with time and space. A set of initial conditions and boundary are absolutely necessary for solving the equation. However, there are some numerical iterative methods for solving...
  50. J

    Is there a logical way of understanding how randomness could agree with causality

    not to be impolite, but i truly view randomness in reality as something you can trick your kids into accepting along with santa, the tooth fairy etc. when compared to causality the idea of true randomness existing in reality seems incredibly weak to me. is there any logical way to...
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