Collected Works 1955-1980 with Commentary
Buch, Englisch, 392 Seiten, Format (B × H): 167 mm x 251 mm, Gewicht: 837 g
ISBN: 978-0-691-14507-5
Verlag: Princeton University Press
Hugh Everett III was an American physicist best known for his many-worlds interpretation of quantum mechanics, which formed the basis of his PhD thesis at Princeton University in 1957. Although counterintuitive, Everett's revolutionary formulation of quantum mechanics offers the most direct solution to the infamous quantum measurement problem--that is, how and why the singular world of our experience emerges from the multiplicities of alternatives available in the quantum world. The many-worlds interpretation postulates the existence of multiple universes. Whenever a measurement-like interaction occurs, the universe branches into relative states, one for each possible outcome of the measurement, and the world in which we find ourselves is but one of these many, but equally real, possibilities. Everett's challenge to the orthodox interpretation of quantum mechanics was met with scorn from Niels Bohr and other leading physicists, and Everett subsequently abandoned academia to conduct military operations research. Today, however, Everett's formulation of quantum mechanics is widely recognized as one of the most controversial but promising physical theories of the last century. In this book, Jeffrey Barrett and Peter Byrne present the long and short versions of Everett's thesis along with a collection of his explanatory writings and correspondence. These primary source documents, many of them newly discovered and most unpublished until now, reveal how Everett's thinking evolved from his days as a graduate student to his untimely death in 1982. This definitive volume also features Barrett and Byrne's introductory essays, notes, and commentary that put Everett's extraordinary theory into historical and scientific perspective and discuss the puzzles that still remain.
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PREFACE xi
PART I INTRODUCTION 1
CHAPTER 1: General Introduction 3
Everett and His Project 3
Everett?s Target: The Measurement Problem 5
CHAPTER 2: Biographical Introduction 9
Basement Treasure 9
Life of Everett: The Short Story 10
Origins of the Theory 11
To Split or Not To Split 17
Operations Research 19
The Theory Matures 21
CHAPTER 3: Conceptual Introduction 26
The Quantum Measurement Problem 27
Everett?s Proposed Resolution 34
Interpretations of Everett 37
On the Faithful Interpretation of Everett 50
PART II THE EVOLUTION OF THE THESIS 55
CHAPTER 4: Minipaper: Objective versus Subjective Probability (1955) 57
CHAPTER 5: Minipaper: Quantitative Measure of Correlation (1955) 61
CHAPTER 6: Minipaper: Probability in Wave Mechanics (1955) 64
CHAPTER 7: Correspondence: Wheeler to Everett (1955) 71
CHAPTER 8: Long Thesis: Theory of the Universal Wave Function (1956) 72
Introduction 72
Probability, Information, and Correlation 80
Quantum Mechanics 95
Observation 117
Supplementary Topics 133
Discussion 151
Appendix I 159
Appendix II: Remarks on the Role of Theoretical Physics 168
CHAPTER 9: Short Thesis: "Relative State" Formulation of Quantum Mechanics (1957) 173
Introduction 175
Realm of Applicability of the Conventional or "External Observation"
Formulation of Quantum Mechanics 175
Quantum Mechanics Internal to an Isolated System 178
Concept of Relative State 179
Observation 183
Discussion 196
CHAPTER 10: Wheeler Article: Assessment of Everett?s ?Relative State? Formulation of Quantum Theory (1957) 197
PART III THE COPENHAGEN DEBATE 203
CHAPTER 11: Correspondence: Wheeler and Everett (1956) 205
Wheeler to Everett, May 22, 1956 205
Wheeler Notes on Conversation with Petersen, May 3, 1956 207
Wheeler to Everett, May 26, 1956 211
Wheeler to Everett, September 17, 1956 212
CHAPTER 12: Correspondence: Wheeler, Everett, and Stern (1956) 214
Stern to Wheeler, May 20, 1956 215
Wheeler to Stern, May 25, 1956 219
Wheeler to Everett, May 25, 1956 223
CHAPTER 13: Correspondence: Groenewold to Everett (1957) 225
Groenewold to Everett and Wheeler, April 11, 1957 226
CHAPTER 14: Correspondence: Everett and Wiener (1957) 231
Wiener to Wheeler, April 9, 1957 231
Everett to Wiener, May 31, 1957 234
CHAPTER 15: Correspondence: Everett and Petersen (1957) 236
Petersen to Everett, April 24, 1957 236
Everett to Petersen, May 31, 1957 238
CHAPTER 16: Correspondence: Everett and DeWitt (1957) 241
DeWitt to Wheeler, May 7, 1957 242
Everett to DeWitt, May 31, 1957 252
CHAPTER 17: Correspondence: Everett and Frank (1957) 257
Everett to Frank, May 31, 1957 257
Frank to Everett, August 3, 1957 259
CHAPTER 18
Correspondence: Everett and Jaynes (1957) 261
Everett to Jaynes, June 11, 1957 262
PART IV POST-THESIS CORRESPONDENCE AND NOTES 265
CHAPTER 19: Transcript: Conference at Xavier University (1959) 267
CHAPTER 20: Notes: Everett on DeWitt (1970) 280
CHAPTER 21: Notes: Everett on Bell (1971) 283
CHAPTER 22: Correspondence: Jammer, Wheeler, and Everett (1972) 291
Jammer to Wheeler, January 11, 1972 291
Wheeler to Jammer, March 19, 1972 292
Jammer to Everett, August 28, 1973 293
Everett to Jammer, September 19, 1973 294
CHAPTER 23: Transcript: Everett and Misner (1977) 299
CHAPTER 24: Correspondence: Everett and L?vy-Leblond (1977) 311
L?vy-Leblond to Everett, August 17, 1977 311
Everett to L?vy-Leblond, November 15, 1977 313
CHAPTER 25: Correspondence: Everett and Raub (1980) 315
Everett to Raub, April 7, 1980 315
PART V APPENDIXES 317
Appendix A: Everett?s Notes on Possible Thesis Titles 319
Appendix B: Early Draft Outline for Long Thesis 321
Appendix C: Universal Wave Function Note 324
Appendix D: Handwritten
