Scientific Objectivity and its Limits

• URL: http://arxiv.org/abs/2010.01013v2
• Date: Thu, 5 Aug 2021 09:46:20 GMT
• Title: Scientific Objectivity and its Limits
• Authors: Richard Healey
• Abstract summary: Measurement outcomes provide data for a physical theory. Unless they are objective they support no objective scientific knowledge. Recent arguments purport to show that if quantum theory is universally applicable there is no such fact.
• Score: 0.0
• License: http://arxiv.org/licenses/nonexclusive-distrib/1.0/
• Abstract: Measurement outcomes provide data for a physical theory. Unless they are objective they support no objective scientific knowledge. So the outcome of a quantum measurement must be an objective physical fact. But recent arguments purport to show that if quantum theory is universally applicable then there is no such fact. This calls for a reappraisal of the notions of fact and objectivity. If quantum theory is universally applicable the facts about the physical world include a fact about each quantum measurement outcome. These physical facts lack an ideal kind of objectivity but their more modest objectivity is all that science needs.

Related papers

• Against (unitary) interpretation (of quantum mechanics): removing the metaphysical load [0.0]
  We show that "unitary quantum mechanics", which according to its followers leads to some interesting paradoxes, is an interpretation of quantum mechanics. The root of "unitary" vs. operational discrepancy is that the latter treats the measurement process as irreversible.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2024-09-25T16:19:44Z)
• Why engineers are right to avoid the quantum reality offered by the orthodox theory? [0.0]
  A proper knowledge of the reality of a physical theory is important to get an understanding of empirical phenomena. We argue that engineers are actually led to the natural quantum reality offered by alternative approaches.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2024-02-10T00:55:48Z)
• Two Quantum Entangled Cheshire Cats [14.618082583488812]
  In the original thought experiment of the Quantum Cheshire Cat, the physical properties of the cat (state) can be decoupled from its quantum entities. Here, we conceive a new thought experiment that exploits quantum entanglement with weak (value) measurement.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2023-03-30T01:02:29Z)
• Is there a finite complete set of monotones in any quantum resource theory? [39.58317527488534]
  We show that there does not exist a finite set of resource monotones which completely determines all state transformations. We show that totally ordered theories allow for free transformations between all pure states.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2022-12-05T18:28:36Z)
• Towards Noncommutative Quantum Reality [0.0]
  The implications of the physical theory of quantum mechanics on the question of realism is much a subject of sustaining interest. We give here a picture of quantum mechanics as the basic theory for nonrelativistic' particle dynamics. The key is to fully embrace the noncommutativity of the theory and see it as a notion about the reality of physical quantities.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2022-02-19T10:27:23Z)
• Quantum realism: axiomatization and quantification [77.34726150561087]
  We build an axiomatization for quantum realism -- a notion of realism compatible with quantum theory. We explicitly construct some classes of entropic quantifiers that are shown to satisfy almost all of the proposed axioms.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2021-10-10T18:08:42Z)
• Ruling out real-valued standard formalism of quantum theory [19.015836913247288]
  A quantum game has been developed to distinguish standard quantum theory from its real-number analog. We experimentally implement the quantum game based on entanglement swapping with a state-of-the-art fidelity of 0.952(1). Our results disprove the real-number formulation and establish the indispensable role of complex numbers in the standard quantum theory.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2021-03-15T03:56:13Z)
• Experimental Validation of Fully Quantum Fluctuation Theorems Using Dynamic Bayesian Networks [48.7576911714538]
  Fluctuation theorems are fundamental extensions of the second law of thermodynamics for small systems. We experimentally verify detailed and integral fully quantum fluctuation theorems for heat exchange using two quantum-correlated thermal spins-1/2 in a nuclear magnetic resonance setup.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2020-12-11T12:55:17Z)
• Floating free from physics: the metaphysics of quantum mechanics [0.0]
  We argue that, in this perspective, metaphysics must be understood as an autonomous discipline. One of the main motivations of such project is the obtaining of a scientifically respectable justification for the attribution of a single true metaphysical profile to the posits of a scientific theory.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2020-12-10T16:53:21Z)
• Realism and metaphysics in quantum mechanics [0.0]
  According to scientific realism, science gives us an approximately true description of what the world is like. We focus on the ontological and metaphysical aspects of this discussion.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2020-12-05T16:33:56Z)
• Operational Resource Theory of Imaginarity [48.7576911714538]
  We show that quantum states are easier to create and manipulate if they only have real elements. As an application, we show that imaginarity plays a crucial role for state discrimination.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2020-07-29T14:03:38Z)

This list is automatically generated from the titles and abstracts of the papers in this site.

This site does not guarantee the quality of this site (including all information) and is not responsible for any consequences.