copenhagen interpretation

[jb_farley]

Two questions about the copenhagen shiznit.

(1) What are the most accepted challengers to the throne at this point?

(2) what’s up with the energy and mass and momentum of a particle when it’s not being observed- does a wavefunction have any of these attributes? If not, what is up with them?

thanks,
jb

[Zenster]

Everyone involved has finally agreed that all it takes is a pinch between the cheek and gum.

[edwino]

I’m reading The Wu Li Masters. If there are no replies to this thread, I’ll reply when I get to that part.

[edwino]

Of course, I meant The Dancing Wu Li Masters. Sorry.

[hawthorne]

[IANAP]

(2) what’s up with the energy and mass and momentum of a particle when it’s not being observed- does a wavefunction have any of these attributes? If not, what is up with them?

Isn’t the Copenhagen response to this “Who cares? As long as the model fits we don’t need to worry about it, so let’s keep all the metaphysical stuff under the carpet.”

[The_Ryan]

*Originally posted by jb_farley *
(2) what’s up with the energy and mass and momentum of a particle when it’s not being observed- does a wavefunction have any of these attributes? If not, what is up with them?

Yes. Every wavefunction has a specific energy, mass, and momentum (although the rest mass of a photon is zero). The problem is that every wavefunction has a different momentum, so if a particle is the superposition of more than one wavefunction, you don’t know which wavefunction’s momentum it has.

[RM_Mentock]

*Originally posted by picmr *
**Isn’t the Copenhagen response to this “Who cares? As long as the model fits we don’t need to worry about it, so let’s keep all the metaphysical stuff under the carpet.” B]

I’d disagree. The Copenhagen interpretation is about as metaphysical as you can get–remember Bohr’s retort to Einstein: Stop telling God what to do. It was an argument about determinism and nondeterminism, not just whether it worked or not.

David Bohm wrote the standard Copenhagen interpretation text in the early fifties, and then repudiated it and developed his own version of the underlying quantum mechanics. He had to leave the USA because of McCarthyism.

[mipsman]

The Pilot Wave hypothesis, which was severely dissed by von Neumann, has got new legs since von Neumann disproving proof has been invalidated.

[jb_farley]

*Originally posted by The Ryan *
**Yes. Every wavefunction has a specific energy, mass, and momentum (although the rest mass of a photon is zero). The problem is that every wavefunction has a different momentum, so if a particle is the superposition of more than one wavefunction, you don’t know which wavefunction’s momentum it has. **

So if there are (let’s say) three possible momentums (momenta?), by what mechanism does the universe cover herself? How is possible momentum conserved? If there is uncertainty in my pinky finger tip’s very tip electron, doesn’t that mean something else has to be uncertain to cover the fuzzy possible momentum?

Cuz the total momentum is always the same, right?
jb

[jmullaney]

There is the Transactional Interpretation

No idea if this is at all relevant, but I had it bookmarked.