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SUMMARY:Separating Use from Usability in the Individuation of Computations
  - Mathew Smith
DTSTART;TZID=US/Central:20260716T154500
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DTSTAMP:20260726T090759Z
UID:pretalx-iacap-2026-HBUZC8@pretalx.iacapconf.org
DESCRIPTION:In this paper\, I develop the distinction between the problems
  a computation _can_ be used for and the problem a computation _is_ used f
 or\, if it is used at all. I argue that the identity of an algorithm is de
 termined solely by its _rule structure_\, independent of any intended or r
 ealized use. Whether an algorithm can be used successfully for a particula
 r problem is an extrinsic fact relating the algorithm and the problem\, no
 t an intrinsic feature of the problem. I go on to develop what this _usabi
 lity_ relation looks like: an algorithm is usable for a problem when there
  exists a _correct_ and _honest_ coding that translates between the proble
 m and the algorithm's computational states. With the _use/usability_ disti
 nction in hand\, I show how it exposes issues in arguments for extrinsic a
 ccounts of physical computation and how it clarifies computational explana
 tions on an intrinsic account. In particular\, I object to Shagrir's _mast
 er argument_—which exploits the phenomenon of simultaneous implementatio
 n to advance extrinsic accounts—by arguing that the extrinsic context Sh
 agrir appeals to does not individuate a computation at all\; rather\, it i
 ndividuates the _coding_ used to translate between the system and its cont
 ext.  Finally\, I provide a straightforward account of computational expla
 nations made available to intrinsic accounts by _usability_: a system’s 
 performing a task is explained by the fact that it performs a computation 
 that is _usable_ for that task. Importantly\, this account captures comput
 ationally relevant differences in how two systems perform the same task.
LOCATION:Apollo Auditorium
URL:https://pretalx.iacapconf.org/iacap-2026/talk/HBUZC8/
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