Hagar, Amit and Hemmo, Meir (2006) Explaining the Unobserved: Why Quantum Theory Ain't Only About Information. [Preprint]
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Abstract
A remarkable theorem by Clifton, Bub and Halvorson (2003) (CBH) characterizes quantum theory in terms of information--theoretic principles. According to Bub (2004, 2005) the philosophical significance of the theorem is that quantum theory should be regarded as a ``principle'' theory about (quantum) information rather than a ``constructive'' theory about the dynamics of quantum systems. Here we criticize Bub's principle approach arguing that if the mathematical formalism of quantum mechanics remains intact then there is no escape route from solving the measurement problem by constructive theories. We further propose a (Wigner--type) thought experiment that we argue demonstrates that quantum mechanics on the information--theoretic approach is incomplete.
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| Item Type: | Preprint | |||||||||
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| Additional Information: | Revised version after refrees corrections. Submitted to Foundations of Physics | |||||||||
| Keywords: | Quantum information; Collapse theories; Crucial experiments; Principle vs. Constructive theories. | |||||||||
| Subjects: | Specific Sciences > Computation/Information > Quantum General Issues > Theory Change General Issues > Operationalism/Instrumentalism Specific Sciences > Physics > Quantum Mechanics |
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| Depositing User: | Amit Hagar | |||||||||
| Date Deposited: | 01 Mar 2006 | |||||||||
| Last Modified: | 07 Oct 2010 15:13 | |||||||||
| Item ID: | 2642 | |||||||||
| Subjects: | Specific Sciences > Computation/Information > Quantum General Issues > Theory Change General Issues > Operationalism/Instrumentalism Specific Sciences > Physics > Quantum Mechanics |
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| Date: | February 2006 | |||||||||
| URI: | https://philsci-archive.pitt.edu/id/eprint/2642 |
Available Versions of this Item
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Explaining the Unobserved: Why Quantum Mechanics Is Not only About Information. (deposited 16 Nov 2005)
- Explaining the Unobserved: Why Quantum Theory Ain't Only About Information. (deposited 01 Mar 2006) [Currently Displayed]
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