Why is quantum physics so hard to understand?
82Schrödinger's Cat
Why it's Hard to Understand Quantum Physics
The reason why Quantum
Physics is so hard to understand is that the whimsical names of
discovered particles during the sixties simply adds to the confusion.
Humans think though development of a picture of the minds eye. So even
though spin, particle are just names that have nothing to what the
math equations are talking about. By simply naming - gives people the
idea
that these 'things' that the math equations are referring to actually
do have spin, and mass - which they don't.
That's why the names mislead the
ordinary person on the street with misconceptions. The odd names
just made matters worse. Quarks are known as flavors:
up, down, charm,
strange, top, and bottom. Doesn't help to understand it - does it?
That
because we are animals that instinctively used familiar ideas to graft
unknown and new idea upon them, inherently distorting with our brain's
lenses.
If you listen to just the first 5 minutes of the Leonard Susskind's
video
lecture 1, he will explain why as humans, quantum
theory is so hard to understand is because it is outside our
everyday experience.
The rest of the hour and a half of lecture 1 is about vectors and matrices. Lecture 2 start with an overview of imaginary numbers.
Leonard Susskind's video lecture 1
Why call it a particle?
Even the word quantum itself has been bastardized in popular parlance. Quantum means a infinity small jump. In every day language a quantum leap is understood to be a huge jump in time travel. Time travel paradoxes are thought experiments that lead to imaginative movies but further takes most people away from the original math equations.
Why? Because time is an illusion caused by the passage of history and history is an illusion caused by the passage of time. So to call it a particle and saying it is at two places at the same time is what is so confusing. No wonder it takes years to understand a single photon is at two places at the same time.
Math is the most precises language there is in describing the universe. It wasn't invented, it was discovered.
There are no discrete particles, only forces, but in the math equation, when someone says what does that number mean, it's thought as a separate entity - a particle. The reducing of a thing into separate parts is what lies in the problem of understanding quantum mechanics. Spooky action at a distance is easier thought of as a force and not as a particle. Looking for a graviton or the God particle just makes understanding that so much difficult. If listen to the first five minutes of Leonard Susskind's lecture part 3 then this will explain why everything is described as a 'particle' and not a force field.
The word particle is used in everyday language rather than tensor because then would have to explain what is a tensor.
Leonard Susskind's lecture part 3
No Math! Just Tell it in a Story!
We have all experienced spooky action at a distance. Remember your first magnets as a kid? Einstein was fascinated with magnetism as a child that eventually led him to E=MC2. Why is it easy to believe that fervent prayer will help heal a sick child but not that the quantum entanglement that suggests that the future affects the past?
That's because most people don't believe that is a 'prayer
particle' that travels to God. There isn't a ESP particle that give you
that gut feeling that cannot be vocalized into vertical thinking. The
force alluded to in 'Star Wars' is a culmination of all other forces
that can be separated by Fourier Analysis.
It's called Quantum Entanglement and trying to understand with math is
too hard. That's why I recommended only watching the first five minutes
of Leonard Susskind's videos. To understand in human terms then it's
best to tell it in a story, as a thought experiment. The first book that
I read on dimensional reality is called Flatland, written by E. A. Abbott in 1884.
It's a very small and skinny book that can be read in one sitting.
Instead of trying to picture in your mind's eye the fourth dimension,
it is much easier to imagine a world of only two dimensions.
Double Slit Experiment
Visualizations on physics with theoretical explanations
Quantum Physics
- First Bose-Einstein condensate of erbium: Quantum condensate of the thirteenth kind
Scientists have created a condensate of the exotic element erbium. Ultracold quantum gases have exceptional properties and offer an ideal system to study basic physical phenomena. Erbuim is a very exotic element, which due to its particular properties, offers new and fascinating possibilities to investigate fundamental questions in quantum physics. - 17 hours ago
Space-Time Foam
New Scientist - Physics & Math
- 'Impossible' material would stretch when compressed
A metamaterial that stretches when compressed and contracts when pulled could one day lead to materials that offer protection against blasts - 14 hours ago
Nobody understands it. Unless it's in a math equation. But that not 'knowing'. I love Flatland. The book is sexist and I'm sure the kiddie movie removed all that non-PC stuff.
There are a few books that help visualize with thought experiments such as what would it be like if Planck's # were closer to 1?
Great Hub. I love theory, I get lost at the math. I do not even trust math because you can make numbers do what you want them to. Ya, I know math works and there are all kinds of cool things because of it. I am thankful their are physics people who solve these problems so I do not have to. And I still do not trust it.
Keep up the good work.
Hi, this is the third hub that I have read tonight about quantum physics, and entanglement! lol it fascinates me, and I will be definetly back to read some more. I am all entangled out tonight! one of my atoms is upstairs and down at the same time, and it's pulling me towards my bed! ha ha thanks I will be back tomorrow, you have some good hubs here. thanks nell
Interesting Hub, very informative.
Quantum physics isn't so hard after all.If you understand the basics it becomes easy :)
Newton was wrong, click my name.
Why is quantum physics so hard to understand, because the mind thinks in pictures, and the words used does not create pictures - complicated indeed!
Or the words themselves confuse - some of the words were thought up in the 60's , charm, up, down, strange - I think for job security sake!
Quantum physics is so hard to understand becasue it goes against our everyday sense of reality!
@ Ptosis I'd have to disagree "Nobody understands it. Unless it's in a math equation. But that not 'knowing'"
With quantum mechanics the only way to 'know' it is mathematically we can explain in images experiments and images but to actually make useful predictions and use of quantum processes one must undertand the math or more specifically the probabilities ;)
Nicely written hub though enjoyed it. :)
I do agree 100% that the names make it more dificult to understand however this is just physicists silly sense of not so funny humor ;)
Thanx dipless (does that mean you don't chew snuff anymore?)
watch nassim haramein s work (free on google vid), it shows why quantum physics, and even traditional physics are eroneous
Quantum Physics is so hard to understand because it is believed we have not learned how to control it yet.
I suspect that has changed with True Cures. I believe I can demonstrate controlled quantum entanglement, I simply need to find a quantum physicist interested in taking the science and research to a new level.
Being able to control quantum entanglement will surely destroy a lot of popular quantum theories and as such most likely threatening to quantum physicist.
ptosis, do you know any open minded quantum physicist?
Interesting stuff. When some of this is proven, can you imagine the hell some kids will have in classrooms, learning this.
This is all good general information, I do not know if everyone needs the capability to understand quantum mechanics as its just plain out all a theory. If at any time the quantum theories are proven true, I believe that it should be thought in the classroom and just in a medium that would be understand, like you have laid out here. Its humerus that you are such a big fan of Leonard Susskind, because he is kind of a third-party in the quantum mechanical research, he is really good at explaining in colloquial terms though. Wonderful resource for those wanting to start their knowledge base.
Thanks Etarip for the big compliment!
This is an awesome article about the science of quantum physics. It's a very confusing but yet very interesting subject.
Ok, several things. First, your thesis is incorrect and you give no evidence for it in your article:
"The reason why Quantum Physics is so hard to understand is that the whimsical names of discovered particles during the sixties simply adds to the confusion."
The discovered particles are nuclear physics. What does their names have to do with the foundations of quantum mechanics? They are arbitrary! The important concepts are the complex nature of the wavefunction, the forbidden and allowed energy levels, the time evolution operator, the uncertainty principle, and the nature of particles being nothing more than clouds of "probablility" that only "decide" on their state the instant when we observe them. Quantum mechanics really has MUCH more to do with statistics and matrix algebra, and even music than particle names, really.
You have an error in the definition of the word "quantum". It is not "a infinity small jump" - that is meaningless; are you thinking of an infinitesimal change operator dx? A quanta is instead, "fundamental unit" and its definition is fuzzy at that. It could refer to an electron in an atomic orbital, or it could refer to a single magnetic vortex in a material that displays the quantum hall effect. It depends what you're talking about.
The fundamental reason why people give up trying to understand quantum mechanics is the same reason people give up trying to fix a car or learn a programming language or learn how to mend their own clothes- unless you are REALLY dedicated and/or it comes easy to you, you just won't bother because of all the extra effort you have to put into it and it doesn't come up often enough in daily life for that knowledge to make a difference.
Fortunately for us, that "fundamental reason" is flawed logic! Technology nowadays can really get a lot of foundational quantum concepts across by simulation applets and visualizations, and the ease of access is unprecedented. For example, here's a great one: http://www.falstad.com/qm1d - it's a particle in a one-dimensional box! Bizarrely different than a basketball in a suitcase, but palatable and epiphany-inducing if one spends the effort to learn about it.
One of my life goals is to improve quantum mechanics education. I think it can possibly be done with a junior-high-level education with gaming, visualizations, and . Kids are curious as heck and they WANT to learn about this stuff, but us dumb adults don't know where to point them because, as you said, we're confused by it and can't get past the buzzwords. I've got ideas but I'm p
And OP, I'm not trying to heckle you, I'm just trying to do my part to improve the state of education on this; I'm trying to answer your question with more questions of my own, to you: are you curious enough to do some (java applet) thought experiments? That IS how Einstein got into this whole business ;)
Richard Feynman famously said, "If you think you understand quantum mechanics, you don't understand quantum mechanics" To be honest he is right, working with it is one thing understanding it from a fundamental level is another, although it is a nicely written hub good job.
This Hub is an absolute, animalistic joke!
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shazwellyn Level 4 Commenter 23 months ago
Umm... I understand it all now...errr.... ummmm...
Thanks for trying :)