Members

Here is a list of members’ posts.

Beyond Bell?

In a recent archive post ([1]) Shan Gao has argued that quantum theory is incompatible with relativity. He calls this a new proof beyond Bell’s theorem, arguing elsewhere ([2]) that it closes the superdeterminism loophole in Bell’s theorem. Such strong claims must be backed up by irrefutable arguments. My aim in this post to the workshop “Beyond Bell’s theorem” is to refute Gao’s “proof”… Read more →

The Meaning of the Wave Function: In Search of the Ontology of Quantum Mechanics

Reviewed by Peter J. Lewis, Dartmouth College Shan Gao (2017), The Meaning of the Wave Function: In Search of the Ontology of Quantum Mechanics. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Shan Gao has written an exemplary book on the nature of the wave function—its theoretical role, the ontology it represents, and how understanding this ontology can contribute to solving the measurement problem…. Read more →

Reply to a Comment on “Role of Potentials in the Aharonov-Bohm Effect”

Lev Vaidman Preceding Comment challenged my claim that potentials might be just auxiliary mathematical tools and that they are not necessary for explaining physical phenomena. The Comment did not confront my explanation without potentials of the Aharonov-Bohm effects appeared in the original paper, but stated that I cannot apply this explanation for seven other examples. In my reply I provide… Read more →

Comment on “Role of potentials in the Aharonov-Bohm effect”

Yakir Aharonov, Eliahu Cohen, and Daniel Rohrlich Are the electromagnetic scalar and vector potentials dispensable? Vaidman [Phys. Rev. A 86, 040101(R) (2012)] has suggested that local interactions of gauge-invariant quantities, e.g., magnetic torques, suffice for the description of all quantum electromagnetic phenomena. We analyze six thought experiments that challenge this suggestion. All of them have explanations in terms of local interactions of gauge-dependent quantities, and,… Read more →

An argument against the realistic interpretation of the wave function

Carlo Rovelli Testable predictions of quantum mechanics are invariant under time reversal. But the change of the quantum state in time is not so, neither in the collapse nor in the no-collapse interpretations of the theory. This fact challenges the realistic interpretation of the quantum state. On the other hand, this fact follows easily if we interpret the quantum state… Read more →

What’’s wrong with the wave function?

The call to supplement the wave function with local beables is almost as old as quantum mechanics. But what exactly is the problem with the wave function as the representation of a quantum system? I canvass three potential problems with the wave function: the well-known problems of incompleteness and dimensionality, and the lesser known problem of non-locality introduced recently by… Read more →

Towards an Objective Physics of Bell Non-Locality: Palatial Twistor Theory

Roger Penrose Submitted to “Quantum Nonlocality and Reality – 50 Years of Bell’s theorem” In 1964, John Stewart Bell famously demonstrated that the laws of standard quantum mechanics demand a physical world that cannot be described entirely according to local laws.  The present article argues that this non-locality must be gravitationally related, as it comes about only with quantum state… Read more →

Lessons of Bell’s Theorem: Nonlocality, yes; Action at a distance, not necessarily.

Wayne C. Myrvold Submitted to “Quantum Nonlocality and Reality – 50 Years of Bell’s theorem” Fifty years after the publication of Bell’s theorem, there remains some controversy regarding what the theorem is telling us about quantum mechanics, and what the experimental violations of Bell inequalities are telling us about the world. This chapter represents my best attempt to be clear… Read more →