Uncertainty and Quantum Entanglement
Properties of Elementary Particles and the Nature of Reality
Oct 23, 2009
There are many uncertainties in life and many people have contemplated uncertainty. Bertrand Russell was a real fan: “Not to be absolutely certain is, I think, one of the essential things in rationality.” and “The whole problem with the world is that fools and fanatics are always so certain of themselves, but wiser people so full of doubts.” Then there's the old anonymous saying: “If you can't change your mind, are you sure you still have one?” Even Oprah Winfrey got into the act: “I believe that uncertainty is really my spirit's way of whispering, 'I'm in flux. I can't decide for you. Something is off-balance here.'" Pliny the Elder may have summed it up best when he said: “...the only certainly is that nothing is certain.”
Uncertainty Principle
In quantum physics, Werner Heisenberg determined that the more is known about the momentum of a particle (like an electron or photon), the less is known about its position. Similarly, the more is known about its position, the less is known about its momentum. Thus, the Heisenberg uncertainty principle is the inability to determine (with any degree of certainty) the position and momentum of a particle simultaneously. The uncertainty principle bothers some people because it doesn't seem to jibe with normal everyday things like baseballs. But quantum physics reveals that states with both definite position and definite momentum at the same time simply don't exist.
In other words, atomic particles influence each other in ways that violate space and time in so far as how people think about space and time for baseballs. Additionally, simply by measuring a particle's position, conditions are established that limit its momentum. Likewise, by measuring a particle's momentum, conditions are established that restrict its position. Even though it's totally counter-intuitive, the uncertainty principle is not even that radical an idea for quantum physics. Even physicist Fred Alan Wolf asked, “How is it that an observer can change, by looking, what it is that's being looked at?”
Quantum Entanglement
When two elementary particles are created from another elementary particle, they acquire or inherit properties that are related or entangled. The two particles' entangled properties (neither need be known) are related such that knowledge about a property of one particle is obtained simply by observing or measuring that property of the other particle. When such shared properties (position, charge, spin, momentum) exist between particles, physicists say the two particles are entangled and therefore had the same origin or creation. In a very elementary, non-mathematical sense, this is what quantum entanglement is all about.
Simplistic Example of Entanglement
Although it's probably impossible to truly understand quantum entanglement without mathematics, a very simplistic real-life example was provided in a paper by theoretical physicist John Bell entitled “Bertlmann's socks and the nature of reality.” While on sabbatical at Stanford University, Bell noticed that his colleague, R. A. Bertlmann, always came to work wearing two different colored socks (see figure). So, a simple rule was established that illustrates how observation affects reality. Before Bertlmann arrived at work, Bell knew that one of Bertlmann's socks would be one color and his other sock would be a different color. But as soon as Bell observed that one of Bertlmann's socks was red for example, he immediately knew something about the other unobserved sock; namely, that it was not red. Therefore, Bell could limit or restrict the color possibilities for the other, unobserved sock. Simply by observing the first sock that was entangled (by the color rule in this case) with the second sock, reality was changed (see figure).
Cosmic Consequences for Entanglement
One fascinating consequence of quantum entanglement is that if one accepts that all particles were created with the Big Bang, then all particles could be quantum entangled. This means that all such particles could share properties that can influence each other when they are measured or observed. Based on a recent paper published in Nature, its generally believed that all particles with properties that are quantum entangled remain entangled regardless of their spatial separation (and possibly temporal separation) and distance (and possibly length of time) from one another. This is pretty heavy stuff because it essentially means that every particle in the approximately 14 billion-year-old universe (since the Big Bang) can influence every other particle and be influenced by every other particle in the approximately 165 billion light-year expanse of the universe. Therefore, all matter in the universe is inter-influencing because of its common origin and the quantum entanglement of the properties of its elementary particles of which it is made. It's really a far out, cosmic concept. It means there's order in the universe.
Quantum physics seems to imply this even while a complete inventory of all the elementary particles in the universe (and their properties) is unknown. Consequently, the possibilities for inter-influencing matter are also unknown. The Large Hadron Collider near Geneva, Switzerland was built to produce and detect some of the unknown but predicted elementary particles such as the Higgs boson. It should be up and running again very soon.
Is it possible that a person's observations, actions, or even thoughts, all of which involve quantum-entangled matter, are influencing and influenced by those of others somewhere else in the universe through a quantum communication mechanism?
References
- Jost, J.D., J.P. Home, J.M. Amini, D. Hanneke, R. Ozeri, C. Langer, J.J. Bollinger, D. Leibfried and D.J. Wineland, Entangled mechanical oscillators, Nature, 459 (7247):683, 2009.
- Bell, John Stewart, Bertlmann's socks and the nature of reality, 44 1981 ED (1990).
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