Q&A: Quanta
Quanta
Question
Hello Rabbi,
A. Why does a theory like "Schrödinger's cat" not contradict what the Rabbi said about the problematic nature of the theory of the "unity of opposites"?
B. Doesn't quantum theory help solve the question of the "intelligibility of the world"? You proposed the solution of "ideational seeing," but perhaps one could also suggest the opposite—that the world changes according to human consciousness, and therefore everything fits?
Thank you in advance
Answer
A. Those are not my words. The unity of opposites (in the sense of a logical contradiction) is a meaningless concept. Schrödinger's cat does not contradict this, because it does not include a logical contradiction. The cat is in a superposition of alive and dead, but it is not correct to say that it is both alive and dead. Metaphorically, one can say that it is half-alive and half-dead (not both alive and dead).
B. Even in quantum theory it is not clear that consciousness changes reality. The concept of measurement there is still unclear. Beyond that, quantum theory deals only with the micro level.
The solution you suggested is basically the Kantian solution. Not that measurement changes the world, but that the world is colored by the colors of the observer. There is also an idealist solution. If one of these seems plausible to someone—good for him. It doesn't seem right to me.
Discussion on Answer
The cat is not in a state to which death or life applies. It is a state of a wave function, not of a cat. The cat comes into being when there is a collapse, and then it is either alive or dead.
Rabbi Michi, you're trying to dance at two weddings at once. Your argument is in a state of superposition. (Which in itself proves that there is a logical contradiction.)
On the one hand, you use language and say that superposition is not a contradictory state. (And that's true, because it's a description in language.)
And on the other hand, you claim that in nature there is no logical contradiction. (How do you prove that? From language?)
So decide: either logic applies only to language, in which case the claim "there is a logical contradiction in nature" has no meaning at all.
Or logic applies to nature, in which case superposition is a contradictory state.
Greetings,
What is the meaning of the metaphorical description "half-alive and half-dead"?
I understand that there is a probabilistic wave function that will collapse into one of the possibilities when observation/measurement is performed.
If so, what does that mean? What is the cat's state of life/death?