June 2, 2009
What is Schrödinger’s Cat?
Not Schrödinger's cat
You may have heard the phrase “Schrödinger’s cat,” but like me, you may not have entirely understood what it meant. But I get it now, having watched the video below. It’s from scientists at the University of Nottingham in England, and in their Sixty Symbols project (a companion to the Periodic Table of Videos) they are producing videos explaining various symbols used in physics and astronomy. Schrödinger’s cat isn’t a symbol in the traditional sense, such as the Greek letters that often pop up in physics equations, but it definitely could benefit from some explanation.
Austrian physicist Erwin Schrödinger used the cat in a thought experiment to demonstrate that it was ridiculous to apply a feature of quantum mechanics to everyday objects like a cat. That feature is that an object can be in two different states simultaneously. And while this may be possible at the quantum mechanical level, it is not with a cat, for example, which cannot be both dead and alive.
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This is the best explanation of this thought experiment I’ve ever seen! Thanks for linking to it.
It’s really overcomplicating matters. The cat is not both alive and dead, it’s DEAD! How many cats do you know that can survive inside a sealed metal box, with or without cyanide, explosives, or other dismal options?
Best. Explaination. Evar.
http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/113/the-story-of-schroedingers-cat-an-epic-poem
This is by far the best explination of this interesting and complex topic, you should take a look.
http://hubpages.com/hub/Quantum-Physics—Schrodingers-Cat
this is the link to the above statement by the way
@Doug
“It’s really overcomplicating matters. The cat is not both alive and dead, it’s DEAD! How many cats do you know that can survive inside a sealed metal box, with or without cyanide, explosives, or other dismal options?”
Yes, it SEEMS really simple until you ACTUALLY research it.
[...] Write a 250-word introduction to an RP* concerning the “Virus Experiment” described in The Economist. Include two references based on your own research of the subject matter. You may want to start by watching the video at this link. [...]
The cat like all of life is pure potential and positively neutral… it’s the zero point between this or that.. that undefined singularity. It can sing a happy or sad tune.. Yet it’s never been this or that.. always been this AND that.. The quantum is the AND, it is inclusive of all opposition. We are all Alive and Dead. Living is Dying. We are dying to live. It’s a blank white page… what shows up is what you write on it. It’s not mind over mater… it’s Mind Maters. There are TWO aspects to the quantum ONE. Everything is Stardust, powered by Starlight. Is it stardust or starlight? It’s point of view that determines what you see. What you water in your garden will grow,, what you look at will show.. what you see is what you get.If you expect to see a dead cat the radioactive isotope might activate the position of a dead cat. If you expect to see a live cat it may not activate.. The cat was alive when you put it in the box and could come out happy or sad. Kind of like what you choose to see in life… Is certs a breath mint or a candy? It’s both. Is it live or evil? Depends on POV. Write LIVE on a piece of paper and hold it up to a mirror, and you will see EVIL staring back at you… One thing is CERTAIN… you will never get the mirror to smile before you do. That’s the miracle,a Mirror Oracle… What we see is what we get… all opposition is mutually arising.. Never this/or.. always this/and.