Reality and the Physicist

Reality and the Physicist PDF Author: Bernard D'Espagnat
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 9780521338462
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 284

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Book Description
This book investigates the nature of reality from the viewpoint of a physicist.

Reality and the Physicist

Reality and the Physicist PDF Author: Bernard D'Espagnat
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 9780521338462
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 284

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Book Description
This book investigates the nature of reality from the viewpoint of a physicist.

Physics

Physics PDF Author:
Publisher: PediaPress
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 375

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Book Description


The Creative Power of Chance

The Creative Power of Chance PDF Author: Rémy Lestienne
Publisher: University of Illinois Press
ISBN: 9780252066863
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 220

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Book Description
In 1859, Charles Darwin used chance to introduce random mutations and selection as the basis for his theory of evolution. Since then, chance has invaded every corner of scientific inquiry. French scientist Remy Lestienne argues that chance is a real creative force and cites scientific evidence for the presence of true chance in the world.

Quantum Theory: Concepts and Methods

Quantum Theory: Concepts and Methods PDF Author: A. Peres
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 0306471205
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 463

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Book Description
There are many excellent books on quantum theory from which one can learn to compute energy levels, transition rates, cross sections, etc. The theoretical rules given in these books are routinely used by physicists to compute observable quantities. Their predictions can then be compared with experimental data. There is no fundamental disagreement among physicists on how to use the theory for these practical purposes. However, there are profound differences in their opinions on the ontological meaning of quantum theory. The purpose of this book is to clarify the conceptual meaning of quantum theory, and to explain some of the mathematical methods which it utilizes. This text is not concerned with specialized topics such as atomic structure, or strong or weak interactions, but with the very foundations of the theory. This is not, however, a book on the philosophy of science. The approach is pragmatic and strictly instrumentalist. This attitude will undoubtedly antagonize some readers, but it has its own logic: quantum phenomena do not occur in a Hilbert space, they occur in a laboratory.

The Scientist as Philosopher

The Scientist as Philosopher PDF Author: Friedel Weinert
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 3540270310
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 346

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Book Description
Clearly written and well illustrated, the book first places the scientist-philosophers in the limelight as we learn how their great scientific discoveries forced them to reconsider the time-honored notions with which science had described the natural world. Then, the book explains that what we understand by nature and science have undergone fundamental conceptual changes as a result of the discoveries of electromagnetism, thermodynamics and atomic structure. The author concludes that the dance between science and philosophy is an evolutionary process, which will keep them forever entwined.

Quantum Theory and Pictures of Reality

Quantum Theory and Pictures of Reality PDF Author: Wolfram Schommers
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 3642955703
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 352

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Book Description
Schommers introduces the foundations, mostly from a histori- cal point of view. Eberhard gives an introductory account of the Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen paradox and Bell's celebrated inequalities. D'Espagnat discusses realism andseparability and concludes that contemporary physics does not lead to a definite conception of the world. Eberhard shows how a model consistent with Bell's theorem can be constructed by ad- mitting faster-than-light action at a distance. Schommers discusses the structure ofspace-time and argues that physi- cally real processes do not take place in but are projected on space-time. Selleri discusses the idea that objectively real quantum waves exist and could in principle be detected.

The Arrow Of Time

The Arrow Of Time PDF Author: Roger Highfield
Publisher: Random House
ISBN: 0753551799
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 567

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Book Description
In our century, the subject of time has become an area of serious inquiry for science. Theories that contain time as a simple quantity form the basis of our understanding of many scientific disciplines, yet the debate rages on: why does there seem to be a direction to time, an arrow of time pointing from past to future? In this authoritative and accessible Sunday Times bestseller, physical chemist Dr Peter Coveney and award-winning science journalist Dr Roger Highfield demonstrate that the common sense view of time agrees with the most advanced scientific theory. Time does in fact move like an arrow, shooting forward into what is genuinely unknown, leaving the past immutably behind. The authors make their case by exploring three centuries of science, offering bold reinterpretations of Newton’s mechanics, Einstein’s special and general theories of relativity, quantum mechanics, and advancing the insights of chaos theory. In their voyage through science the authors link apparently irreconcilable subjects, from Einstein’s obsession with causality to chaos theory, from Marvell’s winged chariot to that Monday morning feeling. Finally, drawing together the various interpretations of time, they describe a novel way to give it a sense of direction. And they call for a new fundamental theory to take account of the Arrow of Time. Foreword by Ilya Prigogine, Nobel laureate.

Do We Really Understand Quantum Mechanics?

Do We Really Understand Quantum Mechanics? PDF Author: Franck Laloë
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1139561081
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 409

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Book Description
Quantum mechanics is a very successful theory that has impacted on many areas of physics, from pure theory to applications. However, it is difficult to interpret, and philosophical contradictions and counterintuitive results are apparent at a fundamental level. In this book, Laloë presents our current understanding of the theory. The book explores the basic questions and difficulties that arise with the theory of quantum mechanics. It examines the various interpretations that have been proposed, describing and comparing them and discussing their success and difficulties. The book is ideal for researchers in physics and mathematics who want to know more about the problems faced in quantum mechanics but who do not have specialist knowledge in the subject. It will also interest philosophers of science, as well as all scientists who are curious about quantum physics and its peculiarities.

Understanding Quantum Mechanics

Understanding Quantum Mechanics PDF Author: Roland Omnès
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 0691221928
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 326

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Book Description
Here Roland Omnès offers a clear, up-to-date guide to the conceptual framework of quantum mechanics. In an area that has provoked much philosophical debate, Omnès has achieved high recognition for his Interpretation of Quantum Mechanics (Princeton 1994), a book for specialists. Now the author has transformed his own theory into a short and readable text that enables beginning students and experienced physicists, mathematicians, and philosophers to form a comprehensive picture of the field while learning about the most recent advances. This new book presents a more streamlined version of the Copenhagen interpretation, showing its logical consistency and completeness. The problem of measurement is a major area of inquiry, with the author surveying its history from Planck to Heisenberg before describing the consistent-histories interpretation. He draws upon the most recent research on the decoherence effect (related to the modern resolution of the famous Schrödinger's cat problem) and an exact formulation of the correspondence between quantum and particle physics (implying a derivation of classical determinism from quantum probabilism). Interpretation is organized with the help of a universal and sound language using so-called consistent histories. As a language and a method, it can now be shown to be free of ambiguity and it makes interpretation much clearer and closer to common sense.

Becoming Pedagogue

Becoming Pedagogue PDF Author: Liselott Mariett Olsson
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
ISBN: 1315461757
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 296

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Book Description
Returning to the origins of education, Becoming Pedagogue explores its role in today’s society by reuniting philosophy with pedagogy. It investigates the aesthetics, ethics and politics of childhood, education and what a teacher really does, enabling educators to define and perform their profession as per its historical and intellectual roots. Reflecting on the practice, science and knowledge tradition of pedagogy as well as abstract and formalist discourse at all levels, Olsson’s work evokes real, becoming and free aspects of educational experiences and events. Through a close reading of French philosopher Henri Bergson’s major works, historical and contemporary pedagogical resources as well as the pedagogy developed in the early childhood centres in Reggio Emilia, Italy, it develops a critical-cum-creative methodology that both analyses the present educational situation as well as creates new pedagogical alternatives. Using brand new perspectives as well as practical examples of what teachers do, Becoming Pedagogue will provide students, educators and researchers tools for critiquing simplified ideas of what a teacher is as well as giving them inspiration to experiment with alternative ways of teaching.