The nRules are empirical regularities that were discovered in macroscopic situations where the outcome is known. When they are projected theoretically into the microscopic domain they predict a novel ontology including the frequent collapse of an atomic wave function, thereby defining an nRule based foundation theory. Future experiments can potentially discriminate between this and other foundation theories of (non‐relativistic) quantum mechanics. Important features of the nRules are: (1) they introduce probability through probability current rather than the Born rule, (2) they are valid independent of size (micro or macroscopic), (3) they apply to individual trials as well as to ensembles of trials. (4) they allow all observers to be continuously included in the system without ambiguity, (5) they account for the collapse of the wave function without introducing new or using old physical constants, and (6) in dense environments they provide a high frequency of stochastic localizations of quantum mechanical objects.
The nRules are empirical regularities that were discovered in macroscopic situations where the outcome is known. When they are projected theoretically into the microscopic domain they predict a novel ontology including the frequent collapse of an atomic wave function, thereby defining an nRule based foundation theory. Future experiments can potentially discriminate between this and other foundation theories of (non‐relativistic) quantum mechanics. Important features of the nRules are: (1) they introduce probability through probability current rather than the Born rule, (2) they are valid independent of size (micro or macroscopic), (3) they apply to individual trials as well as to ensembles of trials. (4) they allow all observers to be continuously included in the system without ambiguity, (5) they account for the collapse of the wave function without introducing new or using old physical constants, and (6) in dense environments they provide a high frequency of stochastic localizations of quantum mechanical objects.
Standard quantum mechanics makes use of four auxiliary rules that allow the Schrodinger solutions to be related to laboratory experience, such as the Born rule that connects square modulus to probability. These rules (here called the sRules) lead to some unacceptable results. They do not allow the primary observer to be part of the system. They do not allow individual observations (as opposed to ensembles) to be part of the system. They make a fundamental distinction between microscopic and macroscopic things, and they are ambiguous in their description of secondary observers such as Schrodingers cat. The nRules are an alternative set of auxiliary rules that avoid the above difficulties. In this paper we look at a wide range of representative experiments showing that the nRules adequately relate the Schrodinger solutions to empirical experience. This suggests that the sRules should be abandoned in favor of the more satisfactory nRules, or a third auxiliary rule-set called the oRules. Keywords: brain states, consciousness, decoherence, epistemology, measurement, ontology, stochastic, state reduction, wave collapse.
Standard quantum mechanics makes use of four auxiliary rules that allow the Schrodinger solutions to be related to laboratory experience, such as the Born rule that connects square modulus to probability. These rules (here called the sRules) lead to some unacceptable results. They do not allow the primary observer to be part of the system. They do not allow individual observations (as opposed to ensembles) to be part of the system. They make a fundamental distinction between microscopic and macroscopic things, and they are ambiguous in their description of secondary observers such as Schrodingers cat. The nRules are an alternative set of auxiliary rules that avoid the above difficulties. In this paper we look at a wide range of representative experiments showing that the nRules adequately relate the Schrodinger solutions to empirical experience. This suggests that the sRules should be abandoned in favor of the more satisfactory nRules, or a third auxiliary rule-set called the oRules. Keywords: brain states, consciousness, decoherence, epistemology, measurement, ontology, stochastic, state reduction, wave collapse.
Quantum mechanics traditionally places the observer outside of the system being studied and employs the Born interpretation. In this and related papers the observer is placed inside the system. To accomplish this, special rules are required to engage and interpret the Schrodinger solutions in individual measurements. The rules in this paper (called the nRules) do not include the Born rule that connects probability with square modulus. It is required that the rules allow all conscious observers to exist inside the system without empirical ambiguity, reflecting our own unambiguous experience in the universe. This requirement is satisfied by the nRules. They allow both objective and observer measurements, so state reduction can occur with or without an observer being present. Keywords: brain states, consciousness, decoherence, epistemology, measurement, ontology, stochastic, state reduction, wave collapse.
The basic strategy underlying models of spontaneous wave function collapse (collapse models) is to modify the Schrödinger equation by including nonlinear stochastic terms, which tend to localize wave functions in space in a dynamical manner. These terms have negligible effects on microscopic systems—therefore their quantum behaviour is practically preserved. On the other end, since the strength of these new terms scales with the mass of the system, they become dominant at the macroscopic level, making sure that wave functions of macro-objects are always well-localized in space. We will review these basic features. By changing the dynamics of quantum systems, collapse models make predictions, which are different from standard quantum mechanical predictions. Although they are difficult to detect, we discuss the most relevant scenarios, where such deviations can be observed.
A non-relativistic quantum mechanical theory is proposed that describes the universe as a continuum of worlds whose mutual interference gives rise to quantum phenomena. A logical framework is introduced to properly deal with propositions about objects in a multiplicity of worlds. In this logical framework, the continuum of worlds is treated in analogy to the continuum of time points; both “time” and “world” are considered as mutually independent modes of existence. The theory combines elements of Bohmian mechanics and of Everett’s many-worlds interpretation; it has a clear ontology and a set of precisely defined postulates from where the predictions of standard quantum mechanics can be derived. Probability as given by the Born rule emerges as a consequence of insufficient knowledge of observers about which world it is that they live in. The theory describes a continuum of worlds rather than a single world or a discrete set of worlds, so it is similar in spirit to many-worlds interpretations based on Everett’s approach, without being actually reducible to these. In particular, there is no splitting of worlds, which is a typical feature of Everett-type theories. Altogether, the theory explains (1) the subjective occurrence of probabilities, (2) their quantitative value as given by the Born rule, and (3) the apparently random “collapse of the wavefunction” caused by the measurement, while still being an objectively deterministic theory.
Three qRules governing wave collapse are given in this paper that provide a foundation theory of quantum mechanics. They are empirical regularities that are known to be valid in macroscopic situations. When projected theoretically into the microscopic domain they predict a novel ontology, including the frequent collapse of atomic wave functions. Future experiments can potentially discriminate between this and other foundation theories of quantum mechanics. Important features of the qRules are: (1) they apply to individual trials not just to ensembles of trials, (2) they are valid independent of size or mass (microscopic or macroscopic), (3) they allow all observers to be continuously included in the system without ambiguity, (4) they account for the collapse of the wave function without introducing new or using old physical constants, (5) they allow energy and momentum to be conserved in an individual collapse, (6) they generate wave reductions that are independent of any outside observer or measuring device, (7) they provide a high frequency of stochastic localizations of microscopic objects independent of macroscopic objects, and (8) they are formulated in a covariant language that makes them useful beyond non-relativistic quantum mechanics. Keywords: foundation theory, measurement, qRules, state reduction, wave collapse.