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arXiv:1807.04126

Essays

James B. Hartle

Published Jul 1, 2018• 0 citations
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

A collection of short expository essays by the author on various topics in quantum mechanics, quantum cosmology, and physics in general.
DOI
10.48550/arxiv.1807.04126

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The Quantum Universe: Essays on Quantum Mechanics, Quantum Cosmology and Physics in General

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Introduction

Jeremy Butterfield, Constantine Pagonis

Physics is a vast discipline, rich with topics inviting philosophical analysis. In undertaking that analysis, the philosophy of physics can be pursued in different styles. There is a spectrum: ranging from the ‘theorem-proof’ style as used in expounding a piece of mathematical physics (though here the theorems will be motivated by philosophical ideas), through philosophical-cum-physical argument that adverts in detail to pieces of physics (e.g. in displayed equations), to purely philosophical argument that is in some way based on, or influenced by, physics. For the most part, the essays in this collection are examples of the second of these three styles: they aim to combine detailed presentation of some technicalities in theoretical physics with the dialectical rigour of analytic philosophy. The essays also have, with one exception, a common subject-matter: the philosophy, or if you prefer foundations, of quantum theory. The first six essays fall squarely in that subject-matter. The seventh and eighth broaden the discussion: they address, respectively, philosophical aspects of (i) the search for a theory of quantum gravity, and (ii) quantum theory's use of group theory. The final essay, by Abner Shimony, is much more speculative: it assesses the conjecture that the fundamental laws of nature are products of evolution. Arthur Fine's essay starts the volume, on a central topic in philosophy of quantum theory: proofs of quantum nonlocality. Fine analyses a proof by Lucien Hardy, which as Fine says, is a characteristic example of a new generation of proofs that apparently make less use of probabilities and thereby dispense with inequalities. However, Fine shows that this appearance is misleading.

Cambridge University Press eBooks•Dec 28, 1999•0 citations
Computability and physical theories / R. Geroch and J.B. Hartle -- Excess baggage -- Sources of predictability -- The no-boundary wave function of the universe -- Scientific knowledge from the perspective of quantum cosmology -- The physics of 'now' -- The quantum mechanics of closed systems -- The spacetime approach to quantum mechanics -- Quantum physics and human language -- Quantum pasts and the utility of history -- The quasiclassical realms of this quantum universe -- Living in a superposition -- The quantum mechanical arrows of time -- Why our universe is comprehensible -- Quantum cosmology : problems for the 21st century -- Anthropic reasoning and quantum cosmology -- Are we typical? / J.B. Hartle and M. Srednicki -- Science in a very large universe / M. Srednicki and J.B. Hartle -- The observer strikes back / J.B. Hartle and T. Hertog -- Quantum multiverses -- Quantum mechanics at the Planck scale -- The state of the universe -- The impact of cosmology on quantum mechanics -- Murray Gell-Mann : a short appreciation -- Working with Stephen Hawking
In this essay I survey recent developments in the theory of tunnelling times in quantum mechanics. The study of this concept is polarised depending on one’s interpretation of quantum mechanics, which require different approaches and yield starkly different results. I survey this topic through the lenses of the orthodox (Copenhagen) and de Broglie-Bohm (pilot wave) interpretations, presenting the requisite theory and definitions and expounding the literature of the original authors through proofs and figures. I do this in sections 2 and 3 respectively. Before embarking on tunnelling times as a topic, I survey the conceptual aspects of how time is treated in classical and quantum mechanics. This topic has many subtle aspects which have hindered progress in understanding tunnelling times in the past. In this essay I hope to demonstrate the success that has been achieved in recent years, but also that further theoretical and experimental work is required, if we are to arrive at a universally accepted definition of tunnelling times in quantum mechanics - if indeed such a definition exists.
Physics is a vast discipline, rich with topics inviting philosophical analysis. In undertaking that analysis, the philosophy of physics can be pursued in different styles. There is a spectrum: ranging from the ‘theorem-proof’ style as used in expounding a piece of mathematical physics (though here the theorems will be motivated by philosophical ideas), through philosophical-cum-physical argument that adverts in detail to pieces of physics (e.g. in displayed equations), to purely philosophical argument that is in some way based on, or influenced by, physics. For the most part, the essays in this collection are examples of the second of these three styles: they aim to combine detailed presentation of some technicalities in theoretical physics with the dialectical rigour of analytic philosophy. The essays also have, with one exception, a common subject-matter: the philosophy, or if you prefer foundations, of quantum theory. The first six essays fall squarely in that subject-matter. The seventh and eighth broaden the discussion: they address, respectively, philosophical aspects of (i) the search for a theory of quantum gravity, and (ii) quantum theory's use of group theory. The final essay, by Abner Shimony, is much more speculative: it assesses the conjecture that the fundamental laws of nature are products of evolution. Arthur Fine's essay starts the volume, on a central topic in philosophy of quantum theory: proofs of quantum nonlocality. Fine analyses a proof by Lucien Hardy, which as Fine says, is a characteristic example of a new generation of proofs that apparently make less use of probabilities and thereby dispense with inequalities. However, Fine shows that this appearance is misleading.