The Pinnacle of Science or the End of Scientific Thought? —The Fifth Discussion of the Theoretical Contradictions between Quantum Mechanics and Relativity Using Cosmic Origin Philosophy
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.”
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.”
The previous three articles have discussed scientific ontology, resolving the contradictions between quantum mechanics and relativity using the cosmic origin philosophical framework, and interpreting the principles of natural philosophy through physics. Aristotle established material philosophy and material science, relegating the philosophical concepts of cosmic ontology and the cosmic origin to metaphysics and theology. As a result, philosophy was divided into first philosophy and second philosophy as scientific considerations. When material science developed into the ontology of the universe, able to explain the cosmic origin principle, a major issue arose: after 2500 years of development, humanity has only grasped the meaning of “matter.” Yet, what are “energy” and “information”? We still haven’t figured that out. Modern physics has brought both benefits and contradictions to humanity. To resolve these contradictions, we need to redefine the scientific consideration of “philosophy” and its philosophical concepts. This article continues to explore the contradictions between quantum mechanics and relativity using the principles of cosmic origin, reflecting on the basic concepts of philosophy and human thought.
The previous article “Scientific Cosmological Ontology” discussed that the “theoretical contradictions” between quantum mechanics and relativity may become a joke in the history of human existence. It is believed that human philosophical thinking, from Socrates, Plato, to Aristotle, was a turning point. For more than 2000 years, we have been developing in the direction of material philosophy and material science according to Aristotle, and we have reached the peak of human thinking. Modern physics is a great achievement at this peak. According to the principles of dialectical materialism, this “theoretical contradiction” has opened the door to the original thinking of the universe. We have to go back 2500 years to pick up the great banner of cosmic origin that humanity has abandoned, and human thinking. This article continues to analyze the “theoretical contradictions” between quantum mechanics and relativity, and to design the philosophical framework of modern physics according to the thought of cosmic origin.
The philosophical Framework of modern physics puts forward a philosophical solution to the contradiction between relativity theory and quantum mechanics theory, aiming to break through the restriction of material philosophy on human thought and solve the artificial contradiction generated by material philosophy. This scheme is the physical principle of natural philosophy. Newton discovered the mathematical principles of natural philosophy, he expressed the principles of the universe’s natural philosophy through mathematics, discovering universal gravitation, the mutual perception and motion of material mass. This line of thought continued with the discovery of electromagnetism by Faraday and Maxwell, and quantum mechanics by Einstein, Planck, Born, Bohr, and Dirac many scientists. This represents the completion of the great natural theology of the universe, a credit to these great scientists. However, we have not recognized this as natural theology. Newton and Leibniz jointly discovered absolute space, but due to insufficient scientific information, we lost an opportunity. Today, modern physics has given us another chance; by combining scientific information with the Cosmic origin principles left by our ancestors, we can understand absolute space. Starting with an analysis of the “theoretical contradictions” in quantum mechanics and relativity, reflecting on the concept and essence of physics, and recognizing the Cosmic origin principle is the natural philosophy principle of physics.
Electromagnetism is a transitional phenomenon on way to quantum reality and relativity, a link, which considerably expands the new world picture. It is surprising that many scientists are influenced deeply by the philosophy of Immanuel Kant. There are considerable differences in the way mechanics and electromagnetism conceptualize energy. The new image of the world consisting of field and electromagnetism conveys a very different mindset compared to the ‘force and work‘ framework. New discoveries are being made in all the sciences, as also in the social sciences. Some interesting problems have been discussed by Paul Davies and John Gribbin on the nature of matter and materialism today. Industrial revolution was a time of triumph of materialism and of human confidence. Electromagnetism and quantum have changed our concept of matter, in physical sense, and considerably in the philosophical sense. The relationship between the mental and physical realities/poles has reached interesting phase with the EM and quantum mechanics.
License: CC BY-NC-ND 1. Introduction and epistemological framework Despite extraordinary empirical successes, modern natural science faces a fundamental explanatory gap. The General Theory of Relativity (GTR) describes the macroscopic structure of space, time and gravitation with unrivalled precision, whilst quantum mechanics (QM) governs the probabilistic laws of the microscopic world. However, both theoretical foundations are based on incompatible mathematical and ontological assumptions: GR assumes a continuous, deterministic space-time continuum; QM operates on discrete, non-local state spaces and is inextricably linked to the unsolved measurement problem. Holistic Information Theory (HIT) proposes a formal extension of the physical frame of reference. It begins one step prior to spatio-temporal localisation and poses the fundamental question regarding the a priori condition under which physical quantities can arise, be distinguished and measured in the first place. Every scientific description necessarily begins with a distinction; every distinction encodes a difference, and every difference is, at its core, pure information. From this methodological premise, GIT deduces that information is not a secondary product of biological evolution or technical data processing, nor is it merely a property of matter. Information is the primary ontological quantity of existence. Space, time, gravity, light, energy and matter are established as secondary forms of organisation and manifestation of an all-encompassing, evolutionary information process. In this system, cognition and physical manifestation are not passive processes, but active acts of information creation, initiated by a directed ‘question’ – understood as a physical interaction or systemic coupling.
For over nine decades, quantum mechanics has profoundly shaped our understanding of nature, offering explanations for the stability of atoms, the formation of mole cules, the properties of materials, and phenomena such as light or radioactivity. It is essential to modern technologies—from microchips to lasers—and underpins the physics of elementary particles. Yet, despite its successes, it remains a deeply mysterious theory, confronting a central enigma: why does the quantum world behave so differently from everyday reality? Elements such as superposition and quantum entanglement—which allow particles to exist simultaneously in multiple states or remain interconnected regardless of distance—contradict classical world intuitions. This gap between microscopic and macroscopic behavior has given rise to what is known as the “measurement problem,” raising fundamental questions about the nature of reality. Diverging interpretations have led to two major schools of thought: anti-realism, promoted by Niels Bohr, which holds that reality depends on the observer and their interaction with measurement instruments; and realism, supported by Albert Einstein, which argues that quantum mechanics is incomplete and that eality exists independently of observation. Bohr’s complementary philosophy and Heisenberg’s uncertainty principle were central to the formulation of the “Copenhagen interpretation,” which became dominant in the 20th century. However, the persistent opposition of scientists like Einstein and Schrödinger inspired generations of physicists to seek a unification between quantum mechanics and relativity, culminating in new theories such as loop quantum gravity and string theory. Thus, the debate between realism and anti-realism remains alive, and philosophy continues to play a crucial role in exploring the new foundations of physics.