(March 2, 2020 at 3:50 am)Belacqua Wrote: Do we know that?
It's important not to confuse act/potency with simple efficient cause. Things may happen in the quantum level with no apparent efficient cause, but this doesn't affect the fact that certain conditions must apply for change to occur.
Yes, we do.
Things happen 'At' the quantum level that effect the macro world.
These quantum effects have no 'Cause'. Nothing acts upon them... they just 'Do', counter to the Aristotle ideas.
Uranium falls apart at a sub atomic level, througt varous other states of matter, to eventually resolve as the element lead.
(I often make the joke that if uranium turned into gold, we'd have a fek ton more reactors in the world. )
It's not that there's "No apparent cause". As other far smarter than myself have pointed out before, there is no cause. The falling apart can't even be acuratly predicted it's so 'random'. Only that, after a known amount of time 'X' amount of Uranium just isn't there any more and 'Y' amount of what ever element simply 'Is'.
It doens't matter about anything ecternal, either. The atoms are going to 'Do their thing' regardless.
Cheers.
Not at work.