The Observer in Physics, Part 1: History and Background of the Measurement Problem

Glen, physicist, mathematician and computer scientist, joins for an exploration of the role of the Observer in Physics. The history of the move from classical to quantum physics. If you want to do some homework before Part 2, links to everything are in the description to the YouTube version of this conversation: https://youtu.be/A5xtyRkp6HE

In the world of Alice in Wonderland, the role of the observer is the rabbit hole.

If the Observer can't be described quantum mechanically, what is it?

The paradoxes of entanglement

Before Schrodinger came up with the wave equation, what was he thinking about and looking at that led him to his conclusions?

Quantum mechanics - based on principle of least action Gave rise to la Grangian formalism which gave rise to Hamiltonian and then Poisson Brackets. Classical pushed to the limit leads to the quantum.

The wave function in a complex plane. Wave equation based on the principle of least action. Entanglement at the classic level needs a base of connection Einstein Podolsky Rosen paradox

Schrodinger's cat - entanglement affects the observer Wigner's Friends Paradox The observer can't be a quantum mechanical system Delayed Choice Quantum Eraser Experiment Correlations are products of wave functions Interference is sums of wave functions

Pierre Duhem wrote To Save the Phenomena and The Aim and Structure of Physical Theory Teaching should Edify, Explain and Encourage you to go deeper

Strong Free Will Theorem (Simon/Kochen) The future affects the past? Free choice should be called causal independence or causal decoupling