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Bill, maybe you could rephrase your question as: "Is there a reality 'out there', or is there only (my) mind?". Does it make a difference to you? I think not. Either way you are aware of a self-consistent universe.



I think the most reasonable position to take is that there is a reality out there but that we are compelled to interpret it in terms of our mental 'lens'; we have no choice. Our species has evolved over time to deal with the everyday world of 'big' objects and this is reflected in our psychological make-up. We use concepts in science which originate from our set of mental skills shaped by evolution but the problem is we will always be constrained by our limited ability to 'map' reality. Even maths is a kind of analogy, when you think about it.