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Routledge eBooks

Glimpsing Reality

Paul F David Buckley Peat

Published Apr 15, 2013• 0 citations
Publisher

Abstract

Originally published in 1979. This reprints the revised and expanded edition of 1996. In this volume, physicists, biologists and chemists, who have been involved in some of the most exciting discoveries in modern scientific thought explore issues which have shaped modern physics and which hint at what may form the next scientific revolution. The major issues discussed are the understanding of time and space, quantum and relativity theories and recent attempts to unite them and related questions in theoretical biology.

DOI
10.4324/9780203706503

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Originally published in 1979. This reprints the revised and expanded edition of 1996. In this volume, physicists, biologists and chemists, who have been involved in some of the most exciting discoveries in modern scientific thought explore issues which have shaped modern physics and which hint at what may form the next scientific revolution. The major issues discussed are the understanding of time and space, quantum and relativity theories and recent attempts to unite them and related questions in theoretical biology.
Abstract Quantum theory has presented scientists and philosophers of science with a series of perplexing questions. It seems to many that any attempt to comprehend a world described by quantum theory will require revision in our understanding of the nature of things far more radical than the revision in our understanding of the nature of space and time demanded by the theories of relativity. It has been claimed that to comprehend quantum theory we must revise our very understanding of such matters as the objective nature of reality and its independence from our perception of it, the nature of a complex system and its relation to its components, and the nature of causal and other kinds of determination in the world.
In this book, important conceptual developments of the two major revolutions of modern physics - the quantum and relativity theories - are presented in a nonmathematical, dialectical form of dialogue. The implications of conflicting philosophical attitudes of these revolutions in physics and applications to topics such as cosmology/astrophysics and high energy physics are emphasized. It is argued that for any substantial progress in our understanding of 21st century physics, it will be necessary to resolve these 20th century conflicts. These richly rewarding dialogues provide a starting point
This novel text directly addresses common claims and misconceptions around quantum mechanics and presents a fresh and modern understanding of this fundamental and essential physical theory. It begins with a non-mathematical introduction to some of the more controversial topics in the foundations of quantum mechanics. For those more familiar with the theoretical framework of quantum mechanics, the text moves on to a general introduction to quantum field theory, followed by a detailed discussion of cutting-edge topics in this area such as decoherence and spontaneous coherence. Several important philosophical problems in quantum mechanics are considered, and their interpretations are compared, notably the Copenhagen and many-worlds interpretations. The inclusion of frequent real-world examples, such as superconductors and superfluids, ensures the book remains grounded in modern research. This book will be a valuable resource for students and researchers in both physics and the philosophy of science interested in the foundations of quantum mechanics.
These are volumes II and III of Sir Karl Popper's hitherto unpublished Postscript to the Logic of Scientific Discovery. In addition to the Postscript itself, which was largely completed twenty years after L.S.D. in 1954, about a third of each volume is devoted to more recent writings. Volume II, The Open Universe , subtitled “An argument for Indeterminism”, has three “addenda”: a reprint of Popper's 1973 essay, “Indeterminism is not enough”, a revised version of his 1974 “Scientific Reduction and the essential incompleteness of all science”, and a brief essay, “Further remarks on reduction”, written in 1981. Volume III, Quantum Theory and the Schism in Physics , has a lengthy 1982 preface, and contains a revised and expanded version of Popper's 1967 “Quantum mechanics without the observer”. It was not Popper's original intent that the work should appear in separate volumes. Volume II, though primarily about classical physics, bears importantly on his views of the quantum theory, and further discussions of classical concepts (notably entropy and irreversibility) are in Volume III. I shall therefore discuss the two books as a single coherent work. (Volume I, Realism and the Aim of Science , was unavailable at the time this review was written.) Popper argues with wit, ingenuity, and passion, that the prevailing “Copenhagen” interpretation of the quantum theory is a mistake. Heisenberg, he says, “led a generation of physicists to accept the absurd view that one can learn from quantum mechanics that ‘objective reality has evaporated’” (III p. 9). According to Popper, there really are particles out there, not “wavicles”, and each particle has both a position and a momentum.
Quantum mechanics and relativity spurred the Third Industrial Revolution, presenting no contradictions in applied engineering but significant theoretical discord. The electronic computer, another major achievement of this era, transformed humanity through the rise of information networks, marking information science as another critical outcome of the revolution. Matter transforms into energy, energy into matter, and mechanics serve as profound conduits for information, even enabling the creation of robots. Modern physics now faces interpretative divides, having seemingly overlooked philosophy and information science’s foundational roles. Human intellect, while reaching new heights through material philosophy, finds itself tangled in confusion. Has science achieved the apex of thought, or does it face an intellectual dead end? This question hints at a revolutionary awakening in human thought. This paper delves deeply into these questions by analyzing and reflecting on the “Scientific Cosmological Ontology,” “Modern Physical Philosophy Framework,” “The Physical Principles of Natural Philosophy,” and “Reflections on the Philosophy of Science.”