Related papers: Theoretical Physics and Indian Philosophy: Concept…
The theme of the World Conference on Physics Education 2012 is "Context, Culture, and Representations." In this talk I present a brief outline of a theoretical framework that allows us to discuss these issues using a model based in…
The problem of emergence in physical theories makes necessary to build a general theory of the relationships between the observed system and the observing system. It can be shown that there exists a correspondence between classical systems…
The quantum logical `or' is analyzed from a physical perspective. We show that it is the existence of EPR-like correlation states for the quantum mechanical entity under consideration that make it nonequivalent to the classical situation.…
We still lack any consensus about what one is actually talking about as one uses quantum mechanics. There is a gap between the abstract terms in which the theory is couched and the phenomena the theory enables each of us to account for so…
The human mind is endowed with innate primordial perceptions such as space, distance, motion, change, flow of time, matter. The field of cognitive science argues that the abstract concepts of mathematics are not Platonic, but are built in…
Reference frames are of special importance in physics. They are usually considered to be idealized entities. However, in most situations, e.g. in laboratories, physical processes are described within reference frames constituted by physical…
Contextuality lays at the heart of quantum mechanics. In the prevailing opinion it is considered as a signature of 'quantumness' that classical theories lack. However, this assertion is only partially justified. Although contextuality is…
It is claimed that a variety of facts concerning ellipsis, event reference, and interclausal coherence can be explained by two features of the linguistic form in question: (1) whether the form leaves behind an empty constituent in the…
According to Peter Galison, the coordination of different ``subcultures'' within a scientific field happens through local exchanges within ``trading zones''. In his view, the workability of such trading zones is not guaranteed, and science…
We establish the equivalence between the quantum evolution of spatially homogeneous oscillations of a scalar field and that of an analogous classical system with certain random initial condition. We argue that this observation can be used…
The peculiar uncertainty or randomness of quantum measurements stems from coherence, whose information-theoretic characterization is currently under investigation. Under the resource theory of coherence, it is interesting to investigate…
Quantum coherence is the outcome of the superposition principle. Recently, it has been theorized as a quantum resource, and is the premise of quantum correlations in multipartite systems. It is therefore interesting to study the coherence…
As an approach to a Theory of Everything a framework for developing a coherent theory of mathematics and physics together is described. The main characteristic of such a theory is discussed: the theory must be valid and and sufficiently…
When we teach physics to prospective scientists and engineers we are teaching more than the "facts" of physics - more, even, than the methods and concepts of physics. We are introducing them to a complex culture - a mode of thinking and the…
Introduction to the theory of decoherence. Contents: 1. The phenomenon of decoherence: superpositions, superselection rules, decoherence by "measurements". 2. Observables as a derivable concept. 3. The measurement problem. 4. Density…
Coherent effects manifested in light scattering from cold, optically dense and disordered atomic systems are reviewed from a primarily theoretical point of view. Development of the basic theoretical tools is then elaborated through several…
What kind of problem-solving instruction can help students apply what they have learned to solve the new and unfamiliar problems they will encounter in the future? We propose that mathematical sensemaking, the practice of seeking coherence…
Quantum decoherence arises due to uncontrollable entanglement between a system with its environment. However the effects of decoherence are often thought of and modeled through a simpler picture in which the role of the environment is to…
Learning physics is a context dependent process. I consider a broader interdisciplinary problem of where differences in understanding and reasoning arise. I suggest the long run effects a multiple choice based learning system as well as…
This paper presents two unconventional links between quantum and classical physics. The first link appears in the study of quantum cryptography. In the presence of a spy, the quantum correlations shared by Alice and Bob are imperfect. One…