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Philosophical Problems in Science (Zagadnienia Filozoficzne w Nauce)

Fakty fizyki na tle przymiarek filozofii

Jerzy A. Janik

Published Dec 19, 2015• 0 citations
Publisher

Abstract

This article is drafted on the basis of three complementary essays by Professor Jerzy Janik. The author takes a look at selected issues in the field of quantum mechanics – especially the problem of quantum superposition and supersymmetry – from perspective of great philosophical systems. The author draws attention to the fact that some of these issues reflect old philosophical problems (e.g., empiricism vs rationalism), and – in some cases – philosophical perspective may save interpretations of quantum mechanics from paradoxes.

DOI
10.59203/zfn.59.184

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This article is drafted on the basis of three complementary essays by Professor Jerzy Janik. The author takes a look at selected issues in the field of quantum mechanics – especially the problem of quantum superposition and supersymmetry – from perspective of great philosophical systems. The author draws attention to the fact that some of these issues reflect old philosophical problems (e.g., empiricism vs rationalism), and – in some cases – philosophical perspective may save interpretations of quantum mechanics from paradoxes.
Quantum theory has been a subject of interpretational debates ever since its inception. The Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen paradox, the empirical violation of Bell’s inequalities, and recent activities to exploit quantum entanglement for technological innovation only exacerbate a long-standing philosophical debate. Despite no-signaling theorems and theories of decoherence, deep-rooted conflicts between special relativistic principles and observed quantum correlations as well as between definite measurement outcomes and quantum theoretical superpositions persist. This collection of papers, first presented at an international symposium at the University of Bern in 2011, highlights some recent approaches to the old problems of a philosophy of quantum mechanics. The authors address the issues from a variety of perspectives, ranging from variations of causal theory and system theoretic interpretations of the observer to an empirical test of whether entanglement itself can be entangled. The essays demonstrate that the discussion about the foundations of quantum mechanics is as lively and interesting as ever.
The current 50th issue of Philosophical Problems in Science (Zagadnienia Filozoficzne w Nauce) summarizes the efforts of both philosophers and scientists to understand how a broader philosophical context sets the stage for the development of scientific research, with physics playing a leading role. In particular, the paper reviews the content of the last twenty-five issues of the journal with an emphasis on the philosophical problems that arise in the practice of physics. The overview reveals that these problems reflect the main conceptual division in physics between the treatment of the micro-world described by quantum mechanics and the macro-world governed by the general theory of relativity. Both of these theories, taken separately, generate a host of philosophical concerns such as their proper interpretation (Bell’s Theorem and its consequences) or the meaning and the eventual validity of the notions of space and time. Other philosophical problems in physics, such as chaos and determinism, are also considered. The authors are well aware that the formulation of the future theory of quantum gravity will be a demanding task requiring profound philosophical reflection.
The philosophy of physics is continuous with physics itself. Just as certain issues in the Foundations of Mathematics have been discussed by both mathematicians and by philosophers of mathematics, so certain issues in the philosophy of physics have been discussed by both physicists and by philosophers of physics. And just as there are issues of a more epistemological kind that tend to concern philosophers of mathematics more than they do working mathematicians, so there are issues that concern philosophers of physics more than they do working physicists. In this brief report I shall try to give an account of the present state of the discussion in America of both kinds of issues, starting with the problems of quantum mechanics, which concern both physicists and philosophers, and ending with general questions about necessary truth and the analytic-synthetic distinction which concern only philosophers. The problem of ‘measurement’ in quantum mechanics Quantum mechanics asserts that if A and B are any two possible ‘states’ of a physical system, then there exists at least one state (and in fact a continuous infinity of states) which can be described as ‘superpositions of A and B ’. If A and B are the sorts of states talked about in classical physics – definite states of position, or momentum, or kinetic energy, etc. – then their superpositions may not correspond to classically thinkable states.
Quantum theory underpins much of modern physics and its implications draw the attention of industry, academia and public funding agencies. However there are many unsettled conceptual and philosophical problems in the interpretation of quantum mechanics which are a matter of extensive debate. These hotly debated topics include the meaning of the wave function, the nature of the quantum objects, the role of the observer, the non-locality of the quantum world, and the emergence of classicality from the quantum domain. Containing chapters written by eminent researchers from the fields of physics and philosophy, this book provides interdisciplinary, comprehensive and up-to-date perspectives of the problems related to the interpretation of quantum theory. It is ideal for academic researchers in physics and philosophy working on the ontology of quantum mechanics.
Nearing a century since its inception, quantum mechanics is as lively as ever. Its signature manifestations, such as superposition, wave-particle duality, uncertainty principle, entanglement and nonlocality, were long confronted as weird predictions of an incomplete theory, paradoxes only suitable for philosophical discussions, or mere mathematical artifacts with no counterpart in the physical reality. Nevertheless, decades of progress in the experimental verification and control of quantum systems have routinely proven detractors wrong. While fundamental questions still remain wide open on the foundations and interpretations of quantum mechanics, its modern technological applications have captured the fascination of the general public and are having a transformative impact on society. This brief article acts as Introduction to a Special Issue in the Philosophical Transactions of Royal Society A, following from a dedicated Scientific Discussion Meeting where these fascinating topics were explored, giving rise to stimulating debates among speakers and audience. The present issue thus aims at conveying the spirit of those discussions.