Related papers: Objective and subjective time in anthropic reasoni…
During the last centuries of human history, many questions was repeated in connection with the great problems of the existence and origin of human beings, and also of the Universe. The old questions of common sense and philosophy have not…
The anthropic principle is based on the observation that, within narrow bounds, the laws of physics are such as to have allowed the evolution of life. The string theoretic approach to understanding this observation is based on the…
We characterize a value of an observable by a `sum rule' for generally non-commuting observables and a `product rule' when restricted to a maximal commuting subalgebra of observables together with the requirement that the value is unity for…
The objectivity is a basic requirement for the measurements in the classical world, namely, different observers must reach a consensus on their measurement results, so that they believe that the object exists "objectively" since whoever…
Discussions of quantum mechanics often loosely claim that time evolution logically must be unitary, in order for the probabilistic interpretation of the amplitudes of the state vector to make sense at all times. We discuss from first…
This paper sets out to resolve how agents ought to act in the Sleeping Beauty problem and various related anthropic (self-locating belief) problems, not through the calculation of anthropic probabilities, but through finding the correct…
The observed value $\Lambda_{\rm obs}$ of the cosmological constant $\Lambda$ is extremely smaller than theoretical expectations, and the anthropic argument has been proposed as a solution to this problem because galaxies do not form when…
In the recent article `Conflict between anthropic reasoning and observation'(gr-qc/0303070) Ken D. Olum, using some inflation-based ideas and the anthropic premise that we should be typical among all intelligent observers in the Universe,…
Measurements take a singular role in quantum theory. While they are often idealized as an instantaneous process, this is in conflict with all other physical processes in nature. In this Letter, we adopt a standpoint where the interaction…
The concept of time mostly plays a subordinate role in finance and economics. The assumption is that time flows continuously and that time series data should be analyzed at regular, equidistant intervals. Nonetheless, already nearly 60…
The observed late-time acceleration of the Universe may be the result of unknown physical processes involving either modifications of gravitation theory or the existence of new fields in high energy physics. In the former case, such…
Anthropic reasoning is a form of statistical reasoning based upon finding oneself a member of a particular reference class of conscious beings. By considering empirical distribution functions defined over animal life on Earth, we can deduce…
Lorentz time is replaced by three parameters: a global time, a local rate of aging, and a new spatial coordinate. This enables successful reconstruction of relativity's observables in a four dimensional Euclidean hyperspace. The new…
I address the question whether the origin of the observed arrow of time can be derived from quantum cosmology. After a general discussion of entropy in cosmology and some numerical estimates, I give a brief introduction into quantum…
There are theories which implement the idea that the constants of nature may be "time dependent." These introduce new fields representing "evolving constants," in addition to physical fields. We argue that dynamical matter coupling…
Weak values are quantities accessed through quantum experiments involving weak measurements and post-selection. It has been shown that 'anomalous' weak values (those lying beyond the eigenvalue range of the corresponding operator) defy…
We observe entropy decrease towards the past. Does this imply that in the past the world was in a non-generic microstate? I point out an alternative. The subsystem to which we belong interacts with the universe via a relatively small number…
We address the relation between two apparently distinct problems: The quest for a deeper understanding of the nature of consciousness and the search for time and space as emergent structures in the quantum mechanical world. We also advance…
The classical evolution of the universe can be seen as a parametrised worldline of the minisuperspace, with the time variable $t$ the parameter that parametrises the worldline. The time reversal symmetry of the field equations implies that…
Three recent arguments seek to show that the universal applicability of unitary quantum theory is inconsistent with the assumption that a well-conducted measurement always has a definite physical outcome. In this paper I restate and analyze…