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A Strange Quantum Theorem Has Killed Einstein’s Reality
Quanta Magazine • • world
Key Points:
- Human understanding of object permanence suggests an objective reality where things possess intrinsic properties independent of observation, a notion supported by Einstein.
- Quantum mechanics challenges this view by assigning properties like color only upon measurement, implying reality may not be objective or fixed prior to observation.
- Einstein, with Podolsky and Rosen, proposed a thought experiment (EPR) arguing quantum states reflect incomplete knowledge, not reality itself, assuming both reality and locality.
- John Stewart Bell’s 1964 theorem and subsequent experiments disproved Einstein’s assumptions, showing the world is stranger than classical intuition suggests.
- In 2012, the PBR theorem by Matthew Pusey and collaborators further undermined the idea of an objective reality independent of measurement, marking a paradigm shift in understanding quantum mechanics.
