Quantum Contextuality and Einsteinian Realism

François-Igor Pris

Michel R. P. Planat

François-Igor Pris

We argue that the formalism of quantum mechanics can be fruitfully applied to the modeling of phenomena and systems beyond the domain of physics—particularly in the social sciences and humanities. As is well known, this is indeed the case; Andrei Khrennikov’s quantum-like modeling (QLM) offers a prominent example. In this chapter, we propose a philosophical grounding for QLM within the framework of contextual realism (CR). When applied to quantum physics, this framework takes the form of contextual quantum realism (CQR). At the heart of CR lies the idea that ontology is sensitive to context, and that contextuality is inseparable from normativity. We offer a brief overview of CR and focus on its relevance to the foundations and potential of QLM.

A. K. Pan, Dipankar Home, Dipankar Home +2 more

In recent times, there is an upsurge of interest in demonstrating the quantum contextuality. In this proceedings, we explore the two different forms of arguments that have been used for showing the contextual character of quantum mechanics. First line of study concerns the violations of the noncontextual realist models by quantum mechanics, where second line of study that is qualitatively distinct from the earlier one, demonstrates the contextuality within the formalism of quantum mechanics.

Jayne E. Thompson, Paweł Kurzyński, Su‐Yong Lee +2 more

Our everyday experiences support the hypothesis that physical systems exist independently of the act of observation. Concordant theories are characterized by the objective realism assumption whereby the act of measurement simply reveals preexisting well-defined elements of reality. In stark contrast quantum mechanics portrays a world in which reality loses its objectivity and is in fact created by observation. Quantum contextuality as first discovered by Bell [1] and Kochen-Specker [2] captures aspects of this philosophical clash between classical and quantum descriptions of the world. Here we briefly summarize some of the more recent advances in the field of quantum contextuality. We approach quantum contextuality through its close relation to Bell type nonlocal scenarios and highlight some of the rapidly developing tests and experimental implementations.