Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.1 6/24/83; site looking.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!looking!brad From: brad@looking.UUCP (Brad Templeton) Newsgroups: net.physics Subject: Free will and QM "if you believe it" Message-ID: <217@looking.UUCP> Date: Mon, 3-Dec-84 00:00:00 EST Article-I.D.: looking.217 Posted: Mon Dec 3 00:00:00 1984 Date-Received: Tue, 4-Dec-84 19:41:37 EST References: <152@talcott.UUCP> Organization: Looking Glass Software, Waterloo, Ont Lines: 19 First of all, when one says, "QM if you believe it" they are referring to some particular aspects, like the Cohpenhagen interpretation. That's the interpretation that says the sub-observable phenomenon (like the precise position/momentum of a particle) are meaningless and don't exist. There are many who don't accept this. Some proport the "Many Worlds" interpretation. That says that all events in a probability distribution happen, and that the essence of being an aware creature is to take only one of the paths. This gets rid of the nasty Copenhagen idea about the "collapse of the wave functions", which Occam's razor would have us reject, but replaces it with something as distrubing. As to what the implications of free will in the many worlds interpretation are, that's hard to say. Of course I don't support the silly notion that free will and determinism are contradictory, so it isn't as much of an issue with me. -- Brad Templeton, Looking Glass Software Ltd. - Waterloo, Ontario 519/884-7473