Hard Problem of Scientific Evidence

The problem of underdetermination: For any given body of scientific evidence, there are always multiple, logically possible theories that can explain it equally well. Data alone cannot force us to choose one theory over another; extra-scientific criteria like simplicity, elegance, or compatibility with other established theories (paradigm loyalty) must be used. The hard problem is that these criteria are aesthetic and pragmatic, not purely empirical. Thus, the move from evidence to theory is never a strict logical deduction, but a creative, sometimes subjective, leap.

Example: Centuries of astronomical evidence (planetary motions) could be explained perfectly by either Ptolemy's complex earth-centered model (with epicycles) or Copernicus's simpler sun-centered model. The evidence alone didn't decide. The choice was made based on the principle of parsimony (simplicity), which is a philosophical preference, not a law of nature. Today, the weird results of quantum experiments are explained by both the Copenhagen interpretation and the Many-Worlds interpretation. The evidence fits both; our choice is a matter of metaphysical taste, not evidential compulsion. Hard Problem of Scientific Evidence.

by Enkigal January 24, 2026

Hard Problem of Controlled Studies

The problem of external validity (the "lab vs. world" gap). Controlled studies, especially randomized controlled trials (RCTs), are the gold standard for establishing causality. But to achieve control, you must isolate variables in an artificial, simplified environment. The hard problem is that this very act of control often strips away the real-world context, complexity, and interactions that determine how a treatment or phenomenon actually functions in the wild. What works perfectly in a double-blind RCT might fail or cause harm in a messy society because people aren't lab rats and the world isn't a sterile cage.

Example: A prestigious RCT proves a new antidepressant is highly effective. But the study excluded people with substance abuse issues, chronic pain, or more than two other medications—a large portion of real-world patients. When prescribed widely, the drug shows severe side effects and lower efficacy because it interacts with dozens of variables absent from the lab. The hard problem: The more perfectly you control a study to prove internal causality, the less it can tell you about external applicability. The quest for purity in evidence can render the evidence irrelevant to complex reality. Hard Problem of Controlled Studies.

by Enkigal January 24, 2026

Hard Problem of Law

The tension between certainty and justice. Law strives to be a system of clear, predictable, general rules applied equally to all (certainty). But justice often demands consideration of unique circumstances, intentions, and contexts (equity). The hard problem is that these two aims are in perpetual conflict. Applying the rule rigidly can lead to unjust outcomes in specific cases ("The letter of the law killeth"). Allowing too much discretion to judges to achieve equity destroys predictability and opens the door to bias and arbitrariness. The system can never fully satisfy both masters.

Example: A law says "No vehicles in the park," meant to ensure safety and tranquility. A rigid application would ban an ambulance entering to save a life, or a veteran's WWII jeep in a memorial display—both absurdly unjust outcomes. A judge allowing them uses discretion, but then where is the line? What about a skateboard? A remote-controlled car? The hard problem: The moment you write a rule, you create loopholes and hard cases. Law is an attempt to capture fluid human conduct in a net of fixed words, and much of what matters always slips through the holes. Hard Problem of Law.

by Enkigal January 24, 2026

Hard Problem of the Legal System

The problem of self-enforcement: The legal system's authority ultimately rests on the threat of state violence (police, prisons). But what legitimizes that violence? The law itself. This is a circular justification: the law is right because the law says it's right, and it will punish you if you disagree. The hard problem is that the system cannot provide a non-coercive, non-circular foundation for its own power. It assumes its legitimacy, and that assumption is backed by force. Any attempt to question the system's foundations from within is met with procedures defined by the very system being questioned.

Example: You are on trial. You argue the law is unjust. The judge says, "That's not a legal argument." You argue the court has no jurisdiction. The judge cites laws granting jurisdiction. You refuse to recognize the court. You are held in contempt—a charge defined by the court's own rules. The hard problem: The legal system is a closed loop. Its validity is a social agreement reinforced by its own operational success and monopoly on legitimate violence. To stand outside it and demand justification is to invite its force, not its reason. It is the ultimate "because I said so" backed by handcuffs. Hard Problem of the Legal System.

by Enkigal January 24, 2026

Hard Problem of Nation-States

The paradox of sovereignty: A nation-state claims absolute, indivisible authority within its borders. But in a globalized world, this sovereignty is fundamentally fictional. States are permeable to capital flows, digital information, climate effects, pandemics, and transnational corporations that operate beyond their control. The hard problem is that the nation-state, the primary unit of modern political organization, is simultaneously too small to solve global problems and too large to address local ones effectively. It is an increasingly dysfunctional container for human affairs, yet no agreed-upon alternative exists.

Example: A nation-state passes a strict data privacy law. A multinational tech company, based elsewhere, continues to harvest its citizens' data through servers in a third country. The state's sovereignty hits a wall. Conversely, a small town being poisoned by cross-border pollution is powerless because the solution requires an international treaty. The nation-state is caught in a pincer: its legal authority stops at a line on a map that viruses, carbon dioxide, and billionaires laugh at. It possesses the myth of total control while wrestling with problems that are inherently stateless. Hard Problem of Nation-States.

by Enkigal January 24, 2026

Hard Problem of the Individual

The tension between the self as a unique, autonomous agent and the self as a socially constructed node. We experience ourselves as free, coherent individuals with an inner essence ("me"). Yet neuroscience, sociology, and psychology reveal that our thoughts, desires, and identities are shaped by genes, culture, language, and circumstance. The hard problem is: Where is the "true" individual in that web of influences? If you remove all the social programming and biological determinism, is anything left? The concept of the sovereign individual may be a necessary fiction for law and morality, but a fiction nonetheless.

Example: You choose a career as an artist, feeling it's your authentic passion. But how did that "passion" form? Through childhood exposure to certain books, a teacher's encouragement, and societal messages about creative expression. Your "free choice" is the output of a million inputs. The hard problem: To hold you responsible for your actions, society must treat you as an indivisible, choosing self. But to understand you, science must dissolve you into constituent processes. The individual is both the foundational unit of modern life and a philosophical mirage that disappears upon close inspection. Hard Problem of the Individual.

by Enkigal January 24, 2026

Hard Problem of Money

The problem of its intrinsic valuelessness. Money is a collective hallucination with no inherent worth (a paper dollar, a digital bit). Its value derives solely from the shared belief that others will accept it for goods and services. The hard problem is maintaining this fragile consensus, especially as money becomes increasingly abstracted (from gold to paper to digits to cryptocurrencies). The entire global economy rests on a confidence game. If that faith evaporates, the "value" vanishes instantly, revealing money as a pure social construct of trust—the most powerful and volatile fiction ever created.

Example: A central bank performs "quantitative easing"—it creates billions of dollars by electronically altering numbers in bank accounts. No new goods or services exist, but the money supply grows. If people believe this new money is "real," inflation may be controlled. If they lose faith, hyperinflation ensues. The hard problem: Money's value isn't in the paper or the number; it's in the shared psychology of a population. It's a story we all tell each other, and the economy is the act of everyone continuing to believe the plot. It works until, suddenly, it doesn't. Hard Problem of Money.

by Enkigal January 24, 2026