Related papers: Is quantum mechanics merely a theory for us?
The question about the existence of so-called ``hidden'' variables in quantum mechanics and the perception of the completeness of quantum mechanics are two sides of the same coin. Quantum analytical mechanics constitutes a completion of…
I suggest that the common unease with taking quantum mechanics as a fundamental description of nature (the "measurement problem") could derive from the use of an incorrect notion, as the unease with the Lorentz transformations before…
In this article, we propose to use the formalism of quantum mechanics to describe and explain the so-called "abnormal" behaviour of agents in certain decision or choice contexts. The basic idea is to postulate that the preferences of these…
We formulate and prove an Agreement Theorem for quantum mechanics (QM), describing when two agents, represented by separate laboratories, can or cannot maintain differing probability estimates of a shared quantum property of interest.…
Recently a study of the first superposed mechanical quantum object ("machine") visible to the naked eye was published. However, as we show, it turns out that if the object would actually be observed, i.e. would interact with an optical…
We propose an exercise in which one attempts to deduce the formalism of quantum mechanics solely from phenomenological observations. The only assumed inputs are obtained through sequential probing of quantum systems; no presuppositions…
This article may be seen as a summary and a final discussion of the work that the author has done in recent years on the foundation of quantum theory. It is shown that quantum mechanics as a model follows under certain specific conditions…
Familiar formulations of classical and quantum mechanics are shown to follow from a general theory of mechanics based on pure states with an intrinsic probability structure. This theory is developed to the stage where theorems from quantum…
A version of quantum theory is derived from a set of plausible assumptions related to the following general setting: For a given system there is a set of experiments that can be performed, and for each such experiment an ordinary…
How should we interpret physical theories, and especially quantum theory, if we drop the assumption that we should treat it as an exact description of the whole Universe? I expound and develop the claim that physics is about the study of…
The effect of decoherence is analysed for a free particle, interacting with an environment via a dissipative coupling. The interaction between the particle and the environment occurs by a coupling of the position operator of the particle…
I will show how an objective definition of the concept of information and the consideration of recent results about information-processing in the human brain help clarify some fundamental and often counter-intuitive aspects of quantum…
The measurement problem and the role of observers have plagued quantum mechanics since its conception. Attempts to resolve these have introduced anthropomorphic or non-realist notions into physics. A shift of perspective based upon process…
This paper discusses the relation between the decoherent histories approach to quantum mechanics that is based on coarse-grained decoherent histories of a closed system, and the approximate quantum mechanics of measured subsystems, as in…
Quantum mechanics and the theory of gravity are presently not compatible. A particular question is whether gravity causes decoherence - an unavoidable source of noise. Several models for gravitational decoherence have been proposed, not all…
Applications of quantum mechanics have led to many successful predictions and explanations of puzzling phenomena, and we now apply quantum mechanics to gain, process, and communicate information in novel ways. We can understand quantum…
We ground the asymmetry of causal relations in the internal physical states of a special kind of open and irreversible physical system, a causal agent. A causal agent is an autonomous physical system, maintained in a steady state, far from…
Quantum decoherence plays a pivotal role in the dynamical description of the quantum-to-classical transition and is the main impediment to the realization of devices for quantum information processing. This paper gives an overview of the…
Both classical and quantum mechanics assume that physical laws are invariant under changes in the way that the world is labeled. This Principle of Decompositional Equivalence is formalized, and shown to forbid finite experimental…
The conventional interpretation of quantum mechanics, though it permits a correspondence to classical physics, leaves the exact mechanism of transition unclear. Though this was only of philosophical importance throughout the twentieth…