Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
More handpicked essays just for you.
The theory of relativity
Analysis of relativism
Theory of relativity
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Recommended: The theory of relativity
Do we live in a world with a reality that is independent of the observer, which can be assessed objectively and compared to an observer’s perceptions? Or do we live in a world that has a reality dependent on the consciousness of the observer? The two most successful scientific theories do not agree on the role of the observer in reality. The Theory of Relativity implies that there is an observer-independent reality whereas The Copenhagen Interpretation of Quantum Mechanics implies an observer-dependent reality. In this paper, I will critically examine the views of both and evaluate what our observation can tell us about the world. For the dissection of the Theory of Relativity, I will be focusing on two important concepts: that of spacetime as the 4th dimension and the speed of light. The fourth dimension is called space-time because the two elements cannot be separated: as I move in space, I also move forward in time. Spacetime as a unified dimension is a smooth constant. As 3D beings we only experience a “now” and Special Relativity says each person has their own relative time (CITE). If two people were observing the same event from two different locations, it would appear that the event happened at two different times. This is caused by the time it takes for light to travel through space to reach the observer. An example of this is two people standing half a mile away from one another and hearing the siren of an ambulance traveling on the road. The sound waves reach the observers at different times and fade away from their hearing at different times. The event being observed occurs at the same instant but is perceived relative to the observer. The postulate of invariability says that the speed of light in any inertial syste... ... middle of paper ... ... Philosophy of Science: An Anthology. Malden, MA: Blackwell Pub., 2007. 619-32. Print. 3. Norton, John D. "Special Relativity Basics." Lecture. Special Relativity Basics. Department of History and Philosophy of Science, University of Pittsburgh. Web. 20 Nov. 2013. 4. Bub, Jeffrey. "Quantum Entanglement and Information." Stanford University. Stanford University, 13 Aug. 2001. Web. 20 Nov. 2013. 5. Zimmerman Jones, Andrew. "The Abuse of Quantum Physics, and the Possibility of Quantum Consciousness." About.com Physics. Web. 23 Nov. 2013. 6. Hoffman, Donald D. "What Do We Mean by "The Structure of the World"?" Commentaries (n.d.): 219-21. Web. .
Tignor, R., Adelman, J., Brown, P., Elman, B. A., Liu, X., Pittman, H., & Shaw, B. D. (2011). Worlds together, worlds apart A history of the world: V. 1 (3rd ed., Vol. 1). New York: WW Norton &.
The novel, Alice and Quantum Land, by Robert Gilmore is an adventure in the Quantum universe. Alice, a normal teenage girl, goes through quantum land and understands what quantum is and how it works. The quantum world is a difficult one to understand, as its nature is one of complex states of being, natures, principles, notions, and the like. When these principles or concepts are compared with the macro world, one can find great similarities and even greater dissimilarities between the world wherein electrons rule, and the world wherein human beings live. In Alice in Quantumland, author Robert Gilmore converts the original tale of Alice in Wonderland from a world of anthropomorphic creatures into the minute world of quantum mechanics, and attempts to ease the reader into this confusing world through a series of analogies (which comprise an allegory) about the principles of quantum mechanics. Through Alice’s adventure she comes across some ideas or features that contradict real world ideas. These ideas are the following: Electrons have no distinguishing spin, the Pauli Exclusion Principle, Superposition, Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle, and Interference and Wave Particle Duality.
Holtzman, Jack M. "A note on Schrodinger's cat and the unexpected hanging paradox." The British Journal for the Philosophy of Science v39. 1988. 397-401.
In this term paper, I have tried to tackle the metaphysical issues of consciousness by first defining consciousness and doing a thorough study about the term. Then I proceeded to the metaphysical aspects of consciousness, examining and understanding them.
Quantum Mechanics This chapter compares the theory of general relativity and quantum mechanics. It shows that relativity mainly concerns that microscopic world, while quantum mechanics deals with the microscopic world.
Perry, M., Davis, D., Harris, J., Laue, T. V., & Warren, D. J. (1985). A history of the world (Revised Edition ed.). Boston: Houghton Mifflin.
2. Kirkpatrick, Larry D. and Gerald F. Wheeler. Physics: A World View. ed. 4. Harcourt College Publishers. Fort Worth. 2001.
Of the many counter intuitive quirks of quantum mechanics, the strangest quirk is perhaps the notion of quantum entanglement. Very roughly, quantum entanglement a phenomenon where the state of a large system cannot be described by the state of the smaller systems that compose it. On the standard metaphysical interpretation of quantum entanglement, this is taken to show that there exists emergent properties1. If this standard interpretation is correct, it seems that physics paints a far different picture of the world then commonsense leads one to believe.
To the Absolute as a whole, the objective world has no reality and is no more than an idea of consciousness. To the Absolute as parts, the objective world appears real because of the concepts of limitation, matter and so on. As individuals, we perceive an objective world because we believe that we are part of the material world. The concepts of limitation and the ideas of sense reinforce that belief.
Kirkpatrick, Larry, and Gerald F. Wheeler. Physics: A World View. 4th ed. Orlando: Harcourt College Publishers, 2001.
Weinberg, Steven. 1992. Dreams of a Final Theory: The Search for the Fundamental Laws of Nature. New York: Pantheon Books.
J.J.C Smart proposes that a scientific explanation of consciousness must fall with in universal physical laws. Furthermore, if science could not explain consciousness within scientific laws, than we would have a problem called a nomological dangler. For Smart, this is unbelievable. It would seem that this move by Smart is one based on scientific bias. The nature of consciousness rests in the experience of the first person account, and if philosophy of mind is to have a complete scientific knowledge of the...
...pecial relativity has caused profound changes in the way we view our universe at its most fundamental level. The theory has had an effect on many areas of science, especially physics. Even though many people did not think that special relativity was anything more than a theoretical idea, it has been tested numerous times. In every case, the predictions of special relativity are upheld. Special relativity is a cornerstone upon which modern physics has been built, and it is one of the greatest discoveries of the twentieth century.
In conclusion the only way the everyday consumer could technically have a quantum computer is by owning 14,000 grams of gold. In reality, the commercial quantum computer will be a coming in a lifetime. Currently, the quantum computer can only calculate elementary math and nothing more. We could use the qubit to build softwares that could theoretically process
Finally in 2012 Feynman’s thought-experiment had been accurately carried out by a team of researchers. The team managed to “show a full realization of Feynman’s thought experiment and illustrate key features of quantum mechanics: interference and the wave-particle duality of matter.”