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Register a new userReality, No Matter How You Slice It
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Authors
Ken Wharton
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In order to reject the notion that information is always about something, the It from Bit idea relies on the nonexistence of a realistic framework that might underly quantum theory. This essay develops the case that there is a plausible underlying reality: one actual spacetime-based history, although with behavior that appears strange when analyzed dynamically (one time-slice at a time). By using a simple model with no dynamical laws, it becomes evident that this behavior is actually quite natural when analyzed all-at-once (as in classical statistical mechanics). The It from Bit argument against a spacetime-based reality must then somehow defend the importance of dynamical laws, even as it denies a reality on which such fundamental laws could operate.
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Unperformed measurements have no results. Unobserved results can affect future measurements.
Can normal science-in the Kuhnian sense-add something substantial to the discussion about the measurement problem? Does an extended Wigners-friend Gedankenexperiment illustrate new issues? Or a new quality of known issues? Are we led to new interpretations, new perspectives, or do we iterate the previously known? The recent debate does, as we argue, neither constitute a turning point in the discussion about the measurement problem nor fundamentally challenge the legitimacy of quantum mechanics. Instead, the measurement problem asks for a reflection on fundamental paradigms of doing physics.
The axion, originated from the Peccei-Quinn mechanism proposed to solve the strong-CP problem, is a well motivated and popular dark matter candidate. Experimental searches for this hypothetical particle are starting to reach theoretically interesting sensitivity levels. However, only a small fraction of the allowed parameter space has been explored so far, mostly in the $mu$eV (GHz) region, relying on large volume solenoid magnetic fields and microwave resonators with signals read out by quantum noise limited amplifiers. There have been intensive experimental efforts to widen the search range by devising various techniques as well as to enhance sensitivities by implementing advanced technologies. The developments and improvements in these orthogonal approaches will enable us to explore most of the parameter space of the axion and axion-like particles within the next five to ten years. We review the experimental aspects of axion physics and discuss the past, present and future of the individual search programs.
The notorious Wigners friend thought experiment (and modifications thereof) has in recent years received renewed interest especially due to new arguments that force us to question some of the fundamental assumptions of quantum theory. In this paper, we formulate a no-go theorem for the persistent reality of Wigners friends perception, which allows us to conclude that the perceptions that the friend has of her own measurement outcomes at different times cannot share the same reality, if seemingly natural quantum mechanical assumptions are met. More formally, this means that, in a Wigners friend scenario, there is no joint probability distribution for the friends perceived measurement outcomes at two different times, that depends linearly on the initial state of the measured system and whose marginals reproduce the predictions of unitary quantum theory. This theorem entails that one must either (1) propose a nonlinear modification of the Born rule for two-time predictions, (2) sometimes prohibit the use of present information to predict the future -- thereby reducing the predictive power of quantum theory -- or (3) deny that unitary quantum mechanics makes valid single-time predictions for all observers. We briefly discuss which of the theorems assumptions are more likely to be dropped within various popular interpretations of quantum mechanics.
For a variety of inter-related cultural, organizational, and political reasons, progress in climate science and the actual solution of scientific problems in this field have moved at a much slower rate than would normally be possible. Not all these factors are unique to climate science, but the heavy influence of politics has served to amplify the role of the other factors. Such factors as the change in the scientific paradigm from a dialectic opposition between theory and observation to an emphasis on simulation and observational programs, the inordinate growth of administration in universities and the consequent increase in importance of grant overhead, and the hierarchical nature of formal scientific organizations are cosidered. This paper will deal with the origin of the cultural changes and with specific examples of the operation and interaction of these factors. In particular, we will show how political bodies act to control scientific institutions, how scientists adjust both data and even theory to accommodate politically correct positions, and how opposition to these positions is disposed of.
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