What is Quantum Theory? - Ask a Spaceman!

Part 1! Where does quantum theory fit in the larger tapestry of physics? What is the domain of quantum mechanics? And most importantly, what are the limits of quantum physics? I discuss these questions and more in today’s Ask a Spaceman!


Keep those questions about space, science, astronomy, astrophysics, and cosmology coming to #AskASpaceman for COMPLETE KNOWLEDGE OF TIME AND SPACE! Music by Jason Grady and Nick Bain.

[larnotlars]

IDK. Heisenberg seems to describe my attempts at bowling... knowledge of vector and location of the ball seem to be mutually exclusive...

[ARWest-bpyb]

So quantum physics is confusing, thank you so much for clarifying that! 😁👍👍

[KaiseruSoze]

When you're searching for answers you can think of your search as a many branching tree of alternatives. The key to finding answers in this tree is to reduce your search pattern heuristically. I.e., consider back tracking as well as progressing as a way to avoid mistakes made by others. (see breadth first, depth first, and heuristic searching and the A* algorithm)

[petesouthall]

Would it be more accurate to say that a particle is the expression of the interaction between fields?
Quantum physics is weird stuff.

[bizpo]

My theory is that the reason quantum mechanics is counter intuitive is because we still don’t understand the true nature of space time. And when we look at space time at the pixel level (plank levels) it’s confusing. However if we were to discover the true nature of space time all of these strange behaviors will make sense and we will see how at the macro level the strange behaviors disappear. This is what happened when relativity was discovered. I have two theories - one based on information theory and one based on extra dimensions that might explain quantum behavior. However I’m an engineer not a mathematician or physicist - so I can’t go beyond speculation - but someone will figure this out. That is my belief. Don’t give up future geniuses!

P.S. Thank you for another great video Paul!

[Demane]

Hi Paul. I read your article on Voids being a possible source for Dark Energy and it's affects. Am I correct with this following visualization? If voids are the force spreading out the cosmic web, it implies that it's not a web and is more like a foam. Take soap foam/bubbles for example as an analogy for baryonic matter (the soap film) and the air bubbles are voids. If air bubbles in a foam expand for some reason, the film that divides the bubbles will stretch. Any single point in the foam forming a bubble would therefore see everything not nearby (stuck to their local film) expanding. The problem with soap bubbles is they pop, and the film joins whatever film that is left around another bubbles as long at the bubbles can support it. The bubbles eventually reduce and the film eventually condenses back into larger and larger portions of remaining soap. You end up with larger bubbles, thinner film and larger pools of soap no longer supported or stretched by bubbles.

If our Universe is like this, it implies it's expansion is finite and lasts only as long as the mechanics that hold the foam together and allows the bubbles to exist. In the case of Baryonic matter being spread apart by voids, this could mean gravity and possibly the very integrity of space/time (I suspect these 2 things are connected anyway). In this thought experiment, I can't help but consider that cosmic voids are the cause of the cosmic "web" (an inaccurate term in this case as a web supports itself) and the cause of the expansion of the universe from our perspective. It also implies that, like soap film, the structure of the cosmic "web" may also reach a point where it thins and possibly breaks down entirely over time.

Questions arise: can voids effectively burst the cosmic web? Can the cosmic web thin too much? What happens when baryonic matter falls back into larger collected pools if a void "pops"? Is this a cyclic pattern of the instant forming of a universe and potentially an instant death of it? Is this analogy applicable to any degree with the reality of our universe if cosmic voids do indeed impact it far more than previously thought? In space, depleted foam would try to collected to a single point after all bubbles pop suggesting the creation of the ultimate singularity, a theory that aligns with the creation of the Universe, The Big Bang. I'm not predicting a time scale for this (as time is a part of this), but voids, like air bubbles against soap film, seem to be the driving force for where baryonic matter ultimately ends up. Foam is pretty when it expands. Not so pretty when it collapses, especially when one doesn't even understand what it collapses into.

Damn I hope this makes any sense. lol

[TomAJohnson]

So much better than Fermilab or Arvin Ash or others. Glad my search led me to here!

[louisgiokas]

You know what Feynman said: Shut up and calculate. That was an admission that he did not understand the "meaning" either.

[KafshakTashtak]

I still don't understand the Bell Test and the superposition thing until it's tested.

[wcsxwcsx]

The fact that it's so counterintuitive and incomprehensible shows that we're on the right track. Be suspicious of anything that makes perfect sense. Our brains weren't evolved to fully comprehend what we can calculate.

[madderhat]

I want to see the quanturm theory gangs have a West Side Story dance off.

[js]

A very good description of what Quantum Theory is NOT!

[rebellion-starwars]

I know some people that enjoy in the quantum mechanics 😉

[frankshort]

paul every one who watches appreciates the heck out of every video
i know i do
the things that intested me most are the things science are clueless about
could i be so bold to ask you too mull something over
yes
thanks ;)
could space itself be exotic matter

because if yes i think matter and space could be 1 and the same

as matter may just be the manifestation of SPACE exotic matter so a black hole would just be a very concentrated space location the fact that its matter

where empty space lets call that infinite 0 zero
wheras black hope is infinite 1

would love to hear your rhought in a video

[sookendestroy]

A lie we tell ourselves is that magic isnt real, magic is real but it only acts on the subatomic scale, If we were to be able to perform the feats of the subatomic on the macro scale we would be wizards

[aforementioned]

Many Worlds interpretation seems promising yet absolutely absurd at the same time. Help! 😅

[bentationfunkiloglio]

Paul, love your podcasts. This one, not so much. Too generic, no interesting ideas, facts, etc. ... Just sharing a bit of tough love, brother. You are better than this. Cheers.

[tmcd]

The comment section is full of moronic ideation and an appalling degree of illiteracy . so sad

[fattyfat-fat]

Spaceman?? U mean space-case!! He spent the entire first 5 minutes literally telling us how confusing QM is rather than explaining any of it for the layman. Somebody remind him that he's addressing an audience - not his bathroom mirror!!
--Total waste of time. Find another source if yer interested in QM.

[zeroonetime]

Q.M.Telepathy I.S. Information System - 010 GPS - Gravitational Propulsion System.