Author Topic: SchrÃ¶dingerâ€™s Cat Revisited (Read 1182 times)

hubag bohol · « **on:** April 30, 2014, 12:13:55 PM »

By Theo Merz

Erwin SchrÃ¶dinger, the Austrian quantum physicist, has been celebrated in a Google Doodle which depicts his most widely-known contribution to the field: the SchrÃ¶dingerâ€™s Cat mind experiment.

In the hypothetical experiment, which the physicist devised in 1935, a cat is placed in a sealed box along with a radioactive sample, a Geiger counter and a bottle of poison.

If the Geiger counter detects that the radioactive material has decayed, it will trigger the smashing of the bottle of poison and the cat will be killed.

The experiment was designed to illustrate the flaws of the â€˜Copenhagen interpretationâ€™ of quantum mechanics, which states that a particle exists in all states at once until observed.

If the Copenhagen interpretation suggests the radioactive material can have simultaneously decayed and not decayed in the sealed environment, then it follows the cat too is both alive and dead until the box is opened.

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hubag bohol · « **Reply #1 on:** May 21, 2015, 06:51:08 PM »

Common sense tells us this is not the case, and SchrÃ¶dinger used this to highlight the limits of the Copenhagen interpretation when applied to practical situations. The cat is actually either dead or alive, whether or not it has been observed.

â€œ[It] prevents us from so naively accepting as valid a "blurred model" for representing reality,â€ SchrÃ¶dinger wrote. â€œIn itself, this would not embody anything unclear or contradictory.â€

SchrÃ¶dingerâ€™s Cat has been used to illustrate the differences between emerging theories in quantum mechanics, by testing how they would approach the experiment.

For example, the â€˜many worlds interpretationâ€™, developed in the 1950s, would argue that when the box is opened, the observer and dead-and-alive cat split into two realities, in one of which the observer sees a dead cat and the other an alive one.

The experiment has also been widely influential in popular culture, having been referenced in TV shows such as Futurama, Doctor Who and The Big Bang Theory as well as appearing in the works of Douglas Adams and Terry Pratchett.

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hubag bohol · « **Reply #2 on:** November 28, 2015, 06:09:00 AM »

Schrodinger's Cat Tells All
http://www.thespoof.com/
Tuesday, 10 November 2015

FRANKFURT, GERMANY - The idea of Schrodinger's cat has long baffled scientists, entertained meme makers, and horrified animal rights' activists. But one thing puzzles the minds of all who have heard this famous tale:

Is Schrodinger's cat alive or dead?

Recently, Schrodinger's cat, after a 70+ year silence, has come out of the box, so to speak, and has revealed that Schrodinger is a nutcase and a jerk.

Whether or not the cat is alive or dead has nothing to do with whether or not you see the cat die. The cat dies when the hammer releases the acid, no matter if you see it or not.

"Schrodinger did not need to lock me in a box to figure that one out!" the distraught cat says.

Hillary Clinton also says, "If elected president, I will change Schrodinger's name to 'Idiot Catabuser'"

As usual though, it does nothing for her polls. Schrodinger's cat is also running for president now as well.

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