dorsal/arxiv
View SchemaEverett and Structure
| Authors | David Wallace |
|---|---|
| Categories | |
| ArXiv ID | quant-ph/0107144 |
| URL | https://arxiv.org/abs/quant-ph/0107144 |
| Journal | Studies in the History and Philosophy of Modern Physics 34 (2003), pp. 87-105 |
Abstract
I address the problem of indefiniteness in quantum mechanics: the problem that the theory, without changes to its formalism, seems to predict that macroscopic quantities have no definite values. The Everett interpretation is often criticised along these lines and I shall argue that much of this criticism rests on a false dichotomy: that the macroworld must either be written directly into the formalism or be regarded as somehow illusory. By means of analogy with other areas of physics, I develop the view that the macroworld is instead to be understood in terms of certain structures and patterns which emerge from quantum theory (given appropriate dynamics, in particular decoherence). I extend this view to the observer, and in doing so make contact with functionalist theories of mind.
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"abstract": "I address the problem of indefiniteness in quantum mechanics: the problem\nthat the theory, without changes to its formalism, seems to predict that\nmacroscopic quantities have no definite values. The Everett interpretation is\noften criticised along these lines and I shall argue that much of this\ncriticism rests on a false dichotomy: that the macroworld must either be\nwritten directly into the formalism or be regarded as somehow illusory. By\nmeans of analogy with other areas of physics, I develop the view that the\nmacroworld is instead to be understood in terms of certain structures and\npatterns which emerge from quantum theory (given appropriate dynamics, in\nparticular decoherence). I extend this view to the observer, and in doing so\nmake contact with functionalist theories of mind.",
"arxiv_id": "quant-ph/0107144",
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"David Wallace"
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"journal_ref": "Studies in the History and Philosophy of Modern Physics 34 (2003),\n pp. 87-105",
"title": "Everett and Structure",
"url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/quant-ph/0107144"
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