AaS! 184: What is the Meaning of Quantum Mechanics? (Part 2: Quantum Mechanics 102)

Ask a Spaceman!

Paul M. Sutter

Astrophysics, Science, Cosmos, Holes, Black, Astronomy, Natural Sciences, Universe, Cosmology, Space, Physics

4.8 • 853 Ratings

🗓️ 20 September 2022

⏱️ 43 minutes

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Summary

Part 2! How do physicists understand quantum mechanics? What are the postulates and principles of quantum mechanics? How do the foundations of quantum mechanics compare to other theories? I discuss these questions and more in today’s Ask a Spaceman!

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Transcript

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0:00.0	For the three of you, tuning in
0:14.0	tuning in.
0:16.0	Welcome to Paul Sutter's Quantum Mechanics 102 class.
0:20.0	There will be a quiz on Friday and your essays on
0:23.3	what if I want to be Schrodinger's cat are due next week. So what do we have so far? This is part
0:30.3	two of a certain length of a series that has yet to be determined in the true quantum spirit on quantum
0:39.3	mechanics. Last time we saw where quantum mechanics fits into the larger tapestry of physics,
0:49.2	was the turf of quantum mechanics, was the domain or realm of quantum mechanics. Where does it apply and
0:56.1	where does it not apply? And why quantum mechanics is here and what we're going to do about it.
1:04.5	What do we have? Quantum mechanics is a set of math equations that tell us how to make predictions
1:10.6	about the behavior of the small and
1:12.7	slow part of the universe, namely subatomic particles doing their usual subatomic thing,
1:18.3	but not very quickly, as in not close to the speed of light. That's what quantum mechanics is.
1:25.9	That's it. It's a set of math equations. Now, we are going in this series to explore
1:32.1	the history and the connection to experiments and what this teaches us about the fundamental
1:38.8	nature of reality, at least at the subatomic level, but we're not there yet. First, we need to understand what quantum
1:47.5	mechanics actually is. What are these math equations? What are the predictions they make? How does a
1:53.5	physicist understand quantum mechanics? Now, I'm not going to literally read math equations to you,
1:59.6	because that wouldn't be productive for either of us, but I am going to tell you about the postulates of quantum mechanics.
2:08.7	Now postulates is a very special word.
2:11.0	It's one of the biggest word in physics.
2:13.3	It is the ground assumptions.
	...

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