Quantum Physics: Illusion or Reality?

Bol Partner

In this book the author sets out to describe and discuss the philosophical foundations and conceptual problems encountered in the theory of quantum physics. This theory was developed in the early part of the twentieth century to account for experimental measurements on atoms that could not be explained in traditional terms and has been spectacularly successful mn this field. This success, however, is matched by the revolutionary conceptual implications of the theory which predict, among other things, that subatomic entities such as electrons should be thought of as either particles or waves, depending on how they are observed, and that in certain circumstances two particles several metres apart seem to exert an influence on each other although there is no known interaction between them. The latter prediction has been confirmed by experiments carried out in the last few years. The present book describes the basic ideas of quantum physics and discusses both the longstanding and the more modern conceptual problems. It then goes on to discuss the ‘measurement problem’ which arises when quantum physics is taken to be the fundamental theory of physics, applicable to large-scale physical systems as well as to atomic phenomena. Various attempts to resolve the resulting contradictions have led some physicists to suggest that human consciousness plays a unique role in the physical world and others to postulate that the physical universe is continually splitting into a huge number of copies of itself. Other possible explanations seem to imply that quantum physics is not the final universal theory it is thought to be and that at least one more revolutionary change in our thinking about the fundamental nature of the physical world is required. Recent suggestions that quantum physics might be capable of explaining so-called paranormaal phenomena are critically reviewed. The author assumes only a very little knowledge of physics, and uses only a minimum of quite elementary mathematics. As a result, this book will appeal to anyone interested in the ideas of modern physics, as well as to students of physics and philosophy. The cover wHlustrates a thought experment known as Schrödinger's cat, which highlights one of the paradoxes that emerge from quantum physics. It is discussed in Chapter 4.

Bol

Quantum physics is believed to be the fundamental theory underlying our understanding of the physical universe. However, it is based on concepts and principles that have always been difficult to understand and controversial in their interpretation. This book aims to explain these issues using a minimum of technical language and mathematics. After a brief introduction to the ideas of quantum physics, the problems of interpretation are identified and explained. The rest of the book surveys, describes and criticises a range of suggestions that have been made with the aim of resolving these problems; these include the traditional, or 'Copenhagen' interpretation, the possible role of the conscious mind in measurement and the postulate of parallel universes. This new edition has been revised throughout to take into account developments in this field over the past fifteen years, including the idea of 'consistent histories' to which a completely new chapter is devoted.

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Pagina's: 153, Editie: 2 Revised edition, Paperback, Cambridge University Pr.