John D. Barrow, Paul C. W. Davies, Charles L. Harper Jr, eds.
Science and Ultimate Reality: quantum theory, cosmology and complexity.
CUP. 2004
This volume provides a fascinating preview of the future of physics,
covering fundamental physics at the frontiers of research.
It comprises a wide variety of contributions from leading thinkers in the field,
inspired by the pioneering work of John A. Wheeler.
Quantum theory represents a unifying theme within the book,
along with topics such as the nature of physical reality, the arrow of time, models of the Universe, superstrings,
gravitational radiation, quantum gravity and cosmic inflation.
Attempts to formulate a final unified theory of physics are discussed,
along with the existence of hidden dimensions of space, space-time singularities,
hidden cosmic matter, and the strange world of quantum technology.
Contents
- • Paul C. W. Davies. John Archibald Wheeler and the clash of ideas. 2004
- • Jaroslav Pelikan. The heritage of Heraclitus: John Archibald Wheeler and the itch to speculate. 2004
- • Lucien Hardy. Why is nature described by quantum theory?. 2004
- • Freeman J. Dyson. Thought-experiments in honor of John Archibald Wheeler. 2004
- • David Deutsch. It from qubit. 2004
- • H. Dieter Zeh. The wave function: it or bit?. 2004
- • Wojciech H. Zurek. Quantum Darwinism and envariance. 2004
- • Juan Pablo Paz. Using qubits to learn about "it". 2004
- • Juan M. Maldacena. Quantum gravity as an ordinary guage theory. 2004
- • Bryce S. DeWitt. The Everett interpretation of quantum mechanics. 2004
- • Anton Zeilinger. Why the quantum? "It" from "bit"? a Participatory universe? Three far-reaching challenges from John Archibald Wheeler and their relation to experiment. 2004
- • Aephraim M. Steinberg. Speakable and unspakable, past and future. 2004
- • Raymond Y. Chiao. Conceptual tensions between quantum mechanics and general relativity: are there experimental consequences?. 2004
- • Serge Haroche. Breeding nonlocal Schrodinger cats: a thought-experiment to explore the quantum-classical boundary. 2004
- • Paul G. Kwiat, Berthold-Georg Englert. Quanum erasing the nature of reality: or, perhaps, the reality of nature?. 2004
- • Hideo Mabuchi. Quantum feedback and the quantum-classical transition. 2004
- • Christopher R. Monroe. What quantum computers may tell us about quantum mechanics. 2004
- • Andreas Albrecht. Cosmic inflation and the arrow of time. 2004
- • John D. Barrow. Cosmology and immutability. 2004
- • Andrei Linde. Inflation, quatum cosmology, and the anthropic principle. 2004
- • Max Tegmark. Parallel universes. 2004
- • Lee Smolin. Quantum theories of gravity: results and prospects. 2004
- • Joao Magueijo. A genuinely evolving universe. 2004
- • Fotini Markopoulou. Planck-scale models of the universe. 2004
- • Lisa Randall. Implications of additional spatial dimensions for questions in cosmology. 2004
- • Philip D. Clayton. Emergence: us from it. 2004
- • George F. R. Ellis. True complexity and its associated ontology. 2004
- • Marcelo Gleiser. The three origins: cosmos, life, and mind. 2004
- • Stuart A. Kauffman. Autonomous agents. 2004
- • Shou-Cheng Zhang. To see a world in a grain of sand. 2004