Challenges
Datasets
Workspaces
Papers
Discussions
Leaderboard
Log inSign up
Challenges
Datasets
Workspaces
Papers
Discussions
Leaderboard
Blog
Job Board
Q3AS

© 2026 Aqora Quantum S.A.S.

TermsPrivacyLegal Notice

arXiv:physics/0701155

Why our human-sized world behaves classically, not quantum-mechanically: A popular non-technical exposition of a new idea

C. L. Herzenberg

Published Jan 13, 2007• 4 citations
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

This article provides a popular, largely non-technical explanation of how large objects can behave classically while smaller objects behave quantum mechanically, based on the effect of the presence of cosmic expansion velocities in extended objects. This article is intended to provide a more accessible presentation of concepts introduced in earlier papers that address this long-standing enigma in physics.

DOI
10.48550/arxiv.physics/0701155

Related papers

A possible cosmological effect on the quantum-to-classical transition

C. L. Herzenberg

Although cosmic expansion at very small distances is usually dismissed as entirely inconsequential, these extraordinarily small effects may in fact have a real and significant influence on our world. A calculation suggests that the minute recessional velocities associated with regions encompassed by extended bodies may have a role in creating the distinction between quantum and classical behavior. Using the criterion that the uncertainty in position should be smaller than the size of an object together with estimates based on the range of Hubble velocities extending through the object lead to a threshold size that could provide a fundamental limit distinguishing the realm of objects governed by classical laws from those governed by quantum mechanics.

arXiv:physics/0603136•Mar 16, 2006•3 citations

Macroscopic quantum objects

Alastair I. M. Rae

For about ten years now there has been considerable interest in the general problem of the applicability of quantum mechanics to large-scale objects. This arises both because a breakdown of quantum principles in this regime could have profound implications for our understanding of fundamental questions like the quantum measurement problem and because of the possibility that devices operating on new principles might result.

Physics World•Jun 1, 1991•5 citations

Becoming Classical: A Possible Cosmological Influence on the Quantum-Classical Transition.

C. L. Herzenberg

Although cosmic expansion at very small distances is usually dismissed as entirely inconsequential, it appears that these extraordinarily small effects may in fact have a real and significant influence on our world. Calculations suggest that the minute recessional velocities associated with regions encompassed by extended bodies may have a role in creating the distinction between quantum and classical behavior. Using an uncertainty in position estimated from the spread in velocities associated with its size, the criterion that the uncertainty in position should be smaller than the extension of the object leads to a threshold size that could provide a fundamental limit distinguishing the realm of objects governed by classical laws from those governed by quantum mechanics.

arXiv:physics/0602161•Physics Essays•Dec 1, 2006•8 citations

Does Hubble expansion cause classical behavior in large quantum objects

C. L. Herzenberg

Bulletin of the American Physical Society•May 2, 2011•0 citations

How Quantum Mechanics Forces Matter in Bulk to Occupy Such a Large Volume and Prevents It from Collapsing Around Us

Edward B. Manoukian

Springer eBooks•Jan 1, 2020•0 citations

FSPS Collected Papers (January 2026) On World Construction, Classical Impossibility, and Placement

Shunsuke Kato, (D-Life / FSPS Co-Creator) Ria

This volume collects a set of foundational papers developed within the FSPS (Foundational Structure / Projected Structure) framework, focusing on the structural conditions that make world construction possible. Rather than introducing new physical laws or axioms, the papers address three closely related questions: why purely classical descriptions are structurally impossible, how observable worlds must be constructed through projection and stabilization, and how the concept of placement resolves long-standing interpretational ambiguities in relativity and foundational physics. The collected works emphasize conceptual necessity over formal derivation. They argue that worldhood is not given, but must be placeable, and that physical description fails when placement conditions are underspecified. Classical impossibility is treated not as a dynamical failure, but as a structural constraint arising from projection and non-bijective description. This volume is intended as an accessible conceptual entry point into FSPS-related thinking. It can be read independently of formal axiomatic developments (such as FSPS–00), while remaining fully compatible with them for readers who wish to pursue a more formal reconstruction.

•Jan 30, 2026•0 citations
This article provides a popular, largely non-technical explanation of how large objects can behave classically while smaller objects behave quantum mechanically, based on the effect of the presence of cosmic expansion velocities in extended objects. This article is intended to provide a more accessible presentation of concepts introduced in earlier papers that address this long-standing enigma in physics.
Although cosmic expansion at very small distances is usually dismissed as entirely inconsequential, these extraordinarily small effects may in fact have a real and significant influence on our world. A calculation suggests that the minute recessional velocities associated with regions encompassed by extended bodies may have a role in creating the distinction between quantum and classical behavior. Using the criterion that the uncertainty in position should be smaller than the size of an object together with estimates based on the range of Hubble velocities extending through the object lead to a threshold size that could provide a fundamental limit distinguishing the realm of objects governed by classical laws from those governed by quantum mechanics.
Although cosmic expansion at very small distances is usually dismissed as entirely inconsequential, it appears that these extraordinarily small effects may in fact have a real and significant influence on our world. Calculations suggest that the minute recessional velocities associated with regions encompassed by extended bodies may have a role in creating the distinction between quantum and classical behavior. Using an uncertainty in position estimated from the spread in velocities associated with its size, the criterion that the uncertainty in position should be smaller than the extension of the object leads to a threshold size that could provide a fundamental limit distinguishing the realm of objects governed by classical laws from those governed by quantum mechanics.
This volume collects a set of foundational papers developed within the FSPS (Foundational Structure / Projected Structure) framework, focusing on the structural conditions that make world construction possible. Rather than introducing new physical laws or axioms, the papers address three closely related questions: why purely classical descriptions are structurally impossible, how observable worlds must be constructed through projection and stabilization, and how the concept of placement resolves long-standing interpretational ambiguities in relativity and foundational physics. The collected works emphasize conceptual necessity over formal derivation. They argue that worldhood is not given, but must be placeable, and that physical description fails when placement conditions are underspecified. Classical impossibility is treated not as a dynamical failure, but as a structural constraint arising from projection and non-bijective description. This volume is intended as an accessible conceptual entry point into FSPS-related thinking. It can be read independently of formal axiomatic developments (such as FSPS–00), while remaining fully compatible with them for readers who wish to pursue a more formal reconstruction.