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UID:16229@events.macalester.edu
DTSTART;TZID=US/Central:20120224T153000
SUMMARY:Joint Philosophy and Physics Seminar
LOCATION:Room 150\, Olin-Rice Science Center
DTSTAMP:20121023T113527
DESCRIPTION:Of Cats\, Mice\, and Measurement The Role of the Observer in the Many-Worlds Interpretation of Quantum Mechanics  \nProf. Arthur Cunningham Department of Philosophy St. Olaf College \nOne of the most puzzling aspects of quantum mechanics is the central role of observation in the theory. The postulate that an observation results in a discontinuous collapse of the quantum state of the observed system raises serious worries about the status of the quantum state and the adequacy of the theory as a description of reality. The famous thought experiment of Schr&ouml\;dinger&rsquo\;s cat was devised to highlight such worries\; Einstein once expressed a related concern by asking\, &ldquo\;When a person such as a mouse observes the universe\, does that change the state of the universe?&rdquo\; One of the best-known&mdash\;and most controversial&mdash\;interpretations of quantum mechanics\, the so-called &ldquo\;many-worlds interpretation\,&rdquo\; was offered by its founder\, Hugh Everett\, as a way to reformulate the theory in such a way that its basic principles would make no reference to observation. The notion of an observer must eventually be introduced\, on Everett&rsquo\;s view\, but only in order to evaluate the correspondence between the theory and experience. A family of influential criticisms of the many-worlds interpretation charge that Everett&rsquo\;s discussion of observers is not theoretically innocuous. Physicist John Bell argues that Everett&rsquo\;s appeal to the notion of an observer actually saddles his interpretation with conceptual problems similar to those facing textbook quantum mechanics. Other critics charge that Everett&rsquo\;s interpretation can be made sense of only by making substantive\, suspect assumptions about the relationship between sentient minds and physics. \nThis talk will examine the role that the notion of the observer plays in Everett&rsquo\;s interpretation. I aim to provide some clarification about what Everett himself intended\, and I will argue that some influential criticisms of his interpretation are misplaced. I will close with some remarks relating Everett&rsquo\;s account of collapse\, and the appearance of classically definite properties in a quantum universe\, to current ideas drawn from decoherence theory. \n&nbsp\; Sponsored by Philosophy and Physics & Astronomy
URL:http://events.macalester.edu/event.cfm?id=16229
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