----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Amanda Marlowe" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: "Killer Bs Discussion" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Sent: Sunday, June 20, 2004 7:56 AM
Subject: Re: Speaking of Quantum.........



> >
> Well, as Neils Bohr said, "Anyone who thinks they understand quantum
physics
> is wrong."  I'm also told he followed that with "And anyone who does
> understand quantum physics is insane."(Or some such statement.)

That's not so true now.  We've had 80 years to think about it.  While I'm
no expert, I've been thinking about the ramafications of QM for a few years
now....more than I care to admit. :-)

It is valid statement if one equates "understands" with "provides a
realistic explaination of."  If one does not require a realistic
philosophy, then understanding comes a lot easier.  I tend to like a
Kantiant philsophy as a foundation.


> Here's the article from Physics Web:
>  http://www.physicsweb.org/article/news/8/6/10
>

Thanks.  That does explain it accurately, if not fully.  I don't fault the
lack of a full explaination, but it means that the article is open to
misinterpretation from those who do not understand QM.

>
> The basic problem here is that what quantum physicists are calling
> teleportation isn't really the same thing that Star Trek calls
teleportation.

True.

> If we ever reach the point where we could use this particular method on
> people, my understanding is that it would be more like making a copy of
you
> somewhere else than sending you somewhere else. Maybe that's how dittoing
> works, come to think of it.

The limitations on this physics are so strict that they prohibit the
transferring of humans.  One good rule of thumb to use is that it is
impossible to transfer information from A to B.  The reason for this is,
for spacelike events A & B, there are an infinity of reference frames in
which A is before B and an infinity for which B is before A.  Thus, while
it is acceptable to know at B what the state is at A, it has to be in a
manner that makes as much sense to say B is after A and A is after B.

Lets say, for example, the 3004 Master's golf tournament is played, and our
brave colonists at a star system 30 light years away are avid golfers.
Given the present laws of physics, there is no way to have quantum
entanglement allow them to know the results before 3034.  If we could send
a person from earth to that colony, or make a copy of a person at the
colony, we could do it right after someone watches the 3004 Masters and
then copy that person so he could tell the avid golfers who won.  We could
then copy them send someone back to earth in 2990 and have them place a bet
on that golfer. :-)

BTW, I don't recognize you as a regular poster.  If you are new, welcome.
If you are an infrequent poster, my apologies for not remembering you. :-)

Dan M.


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