Every now and then it becomes necessary to write "a load of old bullocks".There I've done it.
Did I spell that right? Not that,"that".
Monday, 14 February 2011
Wednesday, 2 February 2011
Theories
Theories are based on tested and testable observations,they are informed by those observations and must conform to those observations.
Monday, 24 January 2011
Release Schrodingers cat
If an experiment is so badly constructed that it is not fit to carry out the purpose for which it was designed,then we should not trust any conclusions that are reached by carrying out that experiment.The same should apply to thought experiments as well as to real experiments.
Schrodinger's cat in the box experiment is an example of a thought experiment that is so badly flawed in its construction that it can yield no useful information whatsoever.The constructional flaws can be summarised under two headings,isolational requirements and observational limitations.
ISOLATION REQUIREMENTS
It is a requirement of the experiment that during the time the box is closed its contents should be isolated from the surroundings.This raises an important question:
What degree of isolation is actually needed?
If total isolation is needed then the contents of the box should have no interactions at all,not even gravitational interactions,with the surroundings.The only way to achieve total isolation is if the contents of the box and the rest of the universe became completely detached from eachother.Such a scenario defies common sense,it does not conform to the laws of physics and it does not permit any meaningful conclusions to be reached.
It may be argued that some thought experiments are carried out because it is impossible to run the experimental scenario in the real world and therefore it is perfectly acceptable to consider imaginary cases such as total isolation.Such arguments can certainly be applied to some types of thought experiment but only productively to those experiments where the results obtained can be extrapolated usefully into the real world.Such extrapolations are disallowed in the Schrodinger experiment due to the design necessity of isolation.Expressing this differently,it can be stated that any conclusions reached within Schrodingers imaginary world of total isolation have no meaning at all within the real world where total isolation is not achievable.
It may also be argued that isolation does not need to be total but only partial.Such an argument,however,demands that "partial isolation" be defined along with an explanation of how such isolation can be achieved whilst conforming to the laws of physics.
The undefined or unachievable need for isolation is a major problem with Schrodinger's design,but there is an even bigger problem which is related to observational limitations.
OBSERVATIONAL LIMITATIONS
All scientific theories and predictions are informed by observations and jst as importantly they must conform to observations.If new predictions are made,then for these to gain any acceptance it should be possible,even if just in principle,to gain empirical evidence to back them up.Herein lies the major flaw with Schrodingers design,any predictions about happenings within the closed box can never be verified by observations because the experiment is designed in such a way that observations cannot be made within the closed box.It may be said that Schrodingers experiment suffers from a severe case of catch twenty two.
SO WHAT DOES HAPPEN IN THE CLOSED BOX?
If pressed to give an answer I would say review the evidence revealed upon opening the box and then come to your own common sense conclusion.Personally I would respect the conclusion reached by any person carrying out a forensic examination.
I would like to finish by saying that although it may be worthwhile carrying out real investigations of the type carried out,for example,at Delft and Stony Brook it is time to close the book on that old macroscopic cat.
Schrodinger's cat in the box experiment is an example of a thought experiment that is so badly flawed in its construction that it can yield no useful information whatsoever.The constructional flaws can be summarised under two headings,isolational requirements and observational limitations.
ISOLATION REQUIREMENTS
It is a requirement of the experiment that during the time the box is closed its contents should be isolated from the surroundings.This raises an important question:
What degree of isolation is actually needed?
If total isolation is needed then the contents of the box should have no interactions at all,not even gravitational interactions,with the surroundings.The only way to achieve total isolation is if the contents of the box and the rest of the universe became completely detached from eachother.Such a scenario defies common sense,it does not conform to the laws of physics and it does not permit any meaningful conclusions to be reached.
It may be argued that some thought experiments are carried out because it is impossible to run the experimental scenario in the real world and therefore it is perfectly acceptable to consider imaginary cases such as total isolation.Such arguments can certainly be applied to some types of thought experiment but only productively to those experiments where the results obtained can be extrapolated usefully into the real world.Such extrapolations are disallowed in the Schrodinger experiment due to the design necessity of isolation.Expressing this differently,it can be stated that any conclusions reached within Schrodingers imaginary world of total isolation have no meaning at all within the real world where total isolation is not achievable.
It may also be argued that isolation does not need to be total but only partial.Such an argument,however,demands that "partial isolation" be defined along with an explanation of how such isolation can be achieved whilst conforming to the laws of physics.
The undefined or unachievable need for isolation is a major problem with Schrodinger's design,but there is an even bigger problem which is related to observational limitations.
OBSERVATIONAL LIMITATIONS
All scientific theories and predictions are informed by observations and jst as importantly they must conform to observations.If new predictions are made,then for these to gain any acceptance it should be possible,even if just in principle,to gain empirical evidence to back them up.Herein lies the major flaw with Schrodingers design,any predictions about happenings within the closed box can never be verified by observations because the experiment is designed in such a way that observations cannot be made within the closed box.It may be said that Schrodingers experiment suffers from a severe case of catch twenty two.
SO WHAT DOES HAPPEN IN THE CLOSED BOX?
If pressed to give an answer I would say review the evidence revealed upon opening the box and then come to your own common sense conclusion.Personally I would respect the conclusion reached by any person carrying out a forensic examination.
I would like to finish by saying that although it may be worthwhile carrying out real investigations of the type carried out,for example,at Delft and Stony Brook it is time to close the book on that old macroscopic cat.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)