Something Deeply Hidden: Quantum Worlds and the Emergence of Spacetime

摘要

'You don't need a PhD in theoretical physics to be afraid of quantum mechanics. But it doesn't hurt', Carroll's latest work begins. But the author quickly proceeds to undermine the notion through a project of demystification ('quantum therapy'). If we stop trying to find some secret behind the oddities and just accept the wave function as the most basic building block of our universe, then the rest of the puzzle falls into place. The book opens with a topical introduction to quantum mechanics and a chronological survey of its history, weaving discussions of locality and entanglement into tales of Einstein and the Solvay conferences. Carroll laments the lack of work in the foundations of quantum theory since the 1950s. While many physicists have become content with a utilitarian view, Carroll believes the scientist's job is not merely to figure out what 'works' but to unveil the mysteries of the cosmos, seeking a genuine answer to the foundations of quantum mechanics. Carroll contends that a many-worlds interpretation might provide such an answer. Physicists often observe individual wave functions without considering the broader world as part of that quantum reality. But if there is indeed a broader wave function for the universe as a whole, then our universe must also have existed in a state of superposition, in which case it is only one branch of many possible universes.