--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "authfriend" <jstein@...> wrote: > > --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "shanti2218411" <shanti2218411@> wrote: > <snip> > [Xeno wrote:] > > > An acquaintance of mine recently emailed this link to me. > > > Some interesting work on the nature of the quantum wave > > > function: > > > http://phys.org/news/2012-04-quantum-function-reality.html > > This is one of the clearest articles on quantum mechanics > for the layperson that I've seen. > > > > And the abstract of the original paper: > > > http://prl.aps.org/abstract/PRL/v108/i15/e150402 > > > (If you want to get the original paper online, it costs > > > US$25. I declined.) > > > > I would think that the statement "based only on the > > assumption that measurement settings can be chosen freely," > > maybe problematic i.e exactly what does "freely" mean in > > that sentence(see abstract). > > So would the researchers think, according to the article at > the first link: > > "'Our result is based on the assumption that an experimenter can, > in principle, "freely" choose which measurements he would like > to carry out,' Renner said. 'Hence, if one is ready to accept > this assumption, our answer can be considered final. However, it > is certainly legitimate to question this "free choice" > assumption (as well as the way "free choice" is defined). We are > currently working on a proof that the assumption can be replaced > by a weaker one (which one might term "partial freedom of > choice").'" > > > I think that part of the problem with trying to resolve > > questions regarding what is the nature of reality has to do > > with the likelihood that assumptions must be made in any > > explanation that are themselves unprovable. > > Good point. Wonder how one would go about proving "partial > freedom of choice"? >
I think we first have to understand what they really mean by "freedom of choice." Terms used in theoretical physics/mathematics generally overload common English words, but trying to apply the common English definition to the mathematical term almost always eventually leads to false conclusions about the implications of a theory. L
