Not Finitude but Countability: Implications of Imagination Positing Countability in Time

In this article, we will show how imagination and time are two sides of the same coin. To explain this, we require that imagination posits countability of alternatives. A countable set of alternatives can be sequenced on a timeline, for example the thinking human’s past, or it can be expressed as a countably infinite set of cycles such as a Fourier transform gives us. At the heart of our discussion is a technical argument arising from Cantor’s diagonal method. A conclusion that we arrive at is that the finite/infinite opposition, in particular in philosophy, is confusing at best. Instead we propose a countable/uncountable opposition as being a far clearer basis for understanding human imagination and as a basis for the philosophy of time. We discuss Kant, Heidegger and Gödel in this light. We draw out implications for “machine imagination,” and we propose a new basis for understanding human creativity and imagination.