Related papers: Comment on a suggested Kochen-Specker test
Many theoretical calculations of subtle coherent effects in quantum mechanics do not carefully consider the interface between their calculations and experiment. Calculations for gedanken experiments using initial states not satisfied in…
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…
Kochen-Specker theorems assure the breakdown of certain types of non-contextual hidden variable theories through the non-existence of global, holistic frame functions; alas they do not allow us to identify where this breakdown occurs, nor…
The measurement problem is seen as an ambiguity of quantum mechanics, or, beyond that, as a contradiction within the theory: Quantum mechanics offers two conflicting descriptions of the Wigner's-friend experiment. As we argue in this note…
It is known that non-commuting observables in quantum mechanics do not have joint probability. This statement refers to the precise (additive) probability model. I show that the joint distribution of any non-commuting pair of variables can…
A goal of most interpretations of quantum mechanics is to avoid the apparent intrusion of the observer into the measurement process. Such intrusion is usually seen to arise because observation somehow selects a single actuality from among…
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…
The Kochen-Specker theorem has been discussed intensely ever since its original proof in 1967. It is one of the central no-go theorems of quantum theory, showing the non-existence of a certain kind of hidden states models. In this paper, we…
The hidden-variable question is whether or not various properties --- randomness or correlation, for example --- that are observed in the outcomes of an experiment can be explained via introduction of extra (hidden) variables which are…
We present a method for describing and characterizing the state of N particles that may be distinguishable in principle but not in practice due to experimental limitations. The technique relies upon a careful treatment of the exchange…
The problem of the observer in quantum mechanics is getting new human content. The paradox of Wigner's friend and its extended versions have observers who not only observe quantum phenomena, but communicate, have memories and even…
The probability `measure' for measurements at two consecutive moments of time is non-additive. These probabilities, on the other hand, may be determined by the limit of relative frequency of measured events, which are by nature additive. We…
In this paper, I attempt a personal account of my understanding of the measurement problem in quantum mechanics, which has been largely in the tradition of the Copenhagen interpretation. I assume that (i) the quantum state is a…
We describe an explicitly non-contextual statistical model of hidden variables for the qutrit, which fully reproduces the predictions of quantum mechanics and, thus, bypasses the constraints imposed by the Kochen-Specker theorem and its…
This paper proposes an experiment designed to distinguish between competing interpretations of quantum mechanics: those that involve wave function collapse and those that assume purely unitary evolution. The experiment tests whether an…
By probabilistic means, the concept of contextuality is extended so that it can be used in non-ideal situations. An inequality is presented, which at least in principle enables a test to discard non-contextual hidden-variable models at low…
The Kochen-Specker theorem, Bell inequalities, and several other tests that were designed to rule out hidden-variable theories, assume the existence of observables having infinitely sharp eigenvalues. A paradigmatic example is spin-1/2. It…
Measurement is an important scientific activity. In most of science, including classical physics, is may be understood as a way of finding out about the physical world and representing the results numerically. No-go theorems show that…
The origin of non-classical correlations is difficult to identify since the uncertainty principle requires that information obtained about one observable invariably results in the disturbance of any other non-commuting observable. Here,…
The interpretations of a particular quantum gedanken experiment provided by Bohmian mechanics and consistent histories are shown to contradict each other, both in the absence and in the presence of a measuring device. The consistent history…