In reply to Jones Beene's message of Tue, 26 Oct 2010 13:09:47 -0700: Hi, [snip] >Zeno, the master of the paradoxical dialectic, and both "immeasurably subtle >and profound" gives his name to a special effect. > >A. The quantum Zeno effect is the situation in which an unstable >particle, as long as it is "observed", will not decay. Seriously. This is >one reason why QM is so controversial, yet profound.
..."a watched pot never boils"? ....;) >B. Wheeler's "quantum foam" is better known. > >http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quantum_foam > >C. What happens when A meets B, and the "observer" is a laser beam? > >The implication - say with Wheelers "quantum foam" - if and when one can >irradiate virtual positronium in our 3-space for even a very short time - is >that annihilation will happen, releasing lots of energy. > >According to Wiki the wiseacre: "One can nearly 'freeze' the evolution of a >system by measuring it frequently enough in its initial state . The quantum >Zeno effect is the suppression of unitary time evolution caused by quantum >decoherence in quantum systems provided by a variety of sources: >measurement, interactions with the environment, stochastic fields, and so >on.. As an outgrowth of study of the quantum Zeno effect, it has become >clear that applying a series of sufficiently strong and fast pulses with >appropriate symmetry can also decouple a system from its decohering >environment." > >So, if the above is not QBS <g> ...now there's a term I can appreciate. :) >then the dialectic is to ask: why doesn't >applying a laser beam to any area in 3-space produce the anomalous energy of >positron annihilation ? > >Answer: the emphasis is on "sufficiently strong and fast pulses with >appropriate symmetry" but apparently the doubters may be learning, today, >just how "sufficiently strong and fast" we must be, in order to >paradoxically do the impossible deed .. ...let me guess 1.02 MeV? (Just enough to create a positron-electron pair). Regards, Robin van Spaandonk http://rvanspaa.freehostia.com/Project.html
