Making Sense of Quantum Mechanics by Jean Bricmont (PDF)

Description

This book explains, in simple terms, with a minimum of mathematics, why things can appear to be in two places at the same time, why correlations between simultaneous events occurring far apart cannot be explained by local mechanisms, and why, nevertheless, the quantum theory can be understood in terms of matter in motion. No need to worry, as some people do, whether a cat can be both dead and alive, whether the moon is there when nobody looks at it, or whether quantum systems need an observer to acquire definite properties. The author’s inimitable and even humorous style makes the book a pleasure to read while bringing a new clarity to many of the longstanding puzzles of quantum physics.

User’s Reviews

Editorial Reviews: Review “This is a clearly written and interesting book. It has been very well researched, containing more than 500 references, and I would thoroughly recommend it to anyone who has an undergraduate knowledge of physics and mathematics and an interest in foundational questions.” (Alastair Rae, CERN Courier, cerncourier.com, May, 2017)“I wish this book had been around already when I was a student. It is a must read for anyone who seriously cares about understanding what our ‘most fundamental scientific theories’ say about the physical world.” (Michael K.-H. Kiessling, Journal of Statistical Physics, Vol. 169, 2017) From the Back Cover This book explains, in simple terms, with a minimum of mathematics, why things can appear to be in two places at the same time, why correlations between simultaneous events occurring far apart cannot be explained by local mechanisms, and why, nevertheless, the quantum theory can be understood in terms of matter in motion. No need to worry, as some people do, whether a cat can be both dead and alive, whether the moon is there when nobody looks at it, or whether quantum systems need an observer to acquire definite properties. The author’s inimitable and even humorous style makes the book a pleasure to read while bringing a new clarity to many of the longstanding puzzles of quantum physics. About the Author Jean Bricmont is a theoretical physicist and professor at the Université Catholique de Louvain. He works on statistical and mathematical physics. He is best known outside the academic world as the co-author, with Alan Sokal, of Fashionable Nonsense (also known as Intellectual Impostures), which criticizes abuses of scientific concepts by intellectuals and relativism in the philosophy of science. Read more

Reviews from Amazon users which were colected at the time this book was published on the website:

⭐While retaining the essential experimental observations of quantum mechanics, this easy to understand book shows how the mysticism of the standard, or Copenhagen interpretation can be eliminated without bringing in new problems or difficulties in understanding. The standard interpretation is believed by a majority of physicists in spite of the fact that it is so strange that Bohr himself declared that nothing about how nature works on the smallest of scales can be known until a measurement (observation) is made. Such mysticism as the axiomatization of QM, the duality of wave and particle, the superposition of states, and the indeterminacy of particle trajectories is washed away by the simple and experimentally confirmed de Broglie-Bohm interpretation, so simply and clearly explained in this book. Everyone who loves physics but is disappointed with the current acceptance of mysticism in QM should read this book and fall in love again with how nature works.

⭐I found this book a very good discussion of the de Broglie-Bohm interpretation of quantum mechanics. I am outside the field pf physics, but interested in the meaning of modern physical theory. By way of review of the book, let me offer my (short) synopsis of the chapters.Chapter one discusses what physicists find mystifying and confusing about Quantum Mechanics. The author offers his views and quotes the reflections of people who have made major contributions to the fieldThe second chapter goes into what it calls the first mystery, that pertaining to interference and superposition in Quantum Mechanics. It discusses the collapse of the wave function and some of the mathematics involved. These are expanded on in appendences to the chapter. The treatment is good and should be understandable to those with some understanding of linear algebra.Chapter three is a bit of a side trip into some philosophical issues pertaining to Quantum Mechanics.A short chapter four discusses the concept and issue of non-locality in Quantum Mechanics. This should be read unless one already has a grasp of the issue.Chapter five get down to the business of discussing the de Broglie-Bohm theory, Some knowledge of partial differential equations is needed to to understand the concepts discussed. The chapter presents a derivation of the “guiding wave” equation, and provides some examples of its use. The material is clearly discussed and constitutes the heart of the book. The six appendices to the chapter provide more mathematical detail to the treatment in the body of the chapter.Chapter six delves into other interpretations of Quantum Mechanics that have been proposed. I feel the author does a fair job of presenting and criticizing other approaches.Chapter seven offers a short but interesting history of the theory of Quantum Mechanics.A short chapter on “culture” concludes the book.I recommend the book to anyone interested the possible meanings of Quantum Mechanics. The mathematically prepared amateur can learn much from the book.

⭐The book itself looks good, as far as I am able to tell. The book contains mathematical equations, though, which are totally unreadable in the e-book version. Generally, images can be enlarged, which would be OK, but not optimal. That does not work with this book (on my Kindle Voyage). I ordered the print book, which I would recommend to anyone who really wants to read it.

⭐One of the best books on quantum foundations.

⭐”Making Sense of Quantum Mechanics” is probably what many students and physicists need right now. Unfortunately, the book with this title advertises a Pilot Wave approach to QM which, thogh known for many decades, is not widely supported and which is, as a matter of the fact, controversial. There is no doubt the author may have a point in presenting his view and claiming that this very view makes sense of QM, but one buying this book needs to understand that this book expresses a personal point of view (or a point of view of small part of the physicist community) rather than a widely accepted knowledge and explanation of QM. Now, as for the content of the book, I have no comments and no objections, but please do realize what you are buying. I put one point as I consider the current title of the book greately misleading.

⭐This is an extremely clear and well written book about Quantum Mechanics and its peculiarities. The main message is that most of the grandiose claims usually made about the implications of the theory (impossibility to talk about trajectories or about objective reality, intrinsic randomness of Nature) are largely overblown and at least not implied by the formalism. The only true provable specificity of quantum theory is non-locality. These facts have been understood for some time in the quantum foundation community, however they were (until now) mostly hidden in peer-reviewed journals making it hard for the public and physicists outside the field to know them. Making Sense of Quantum Mechanics beautifully bridges this gap while utilizing only the strict minimum of formalism.The book should be especially useful for young students puzzled about the implications of the formalism or by philosophers who want to know what epistemological consequences quantum theory really has. The book is filled with fascinating historical references which are helpful to understand the hegemony of some largely mistaken views about the theory. Chapter 3 is devoted to a very readable and illuminating philosophical intermezzo which, alone, would be enough to make the book worth buying.This book is a must read for anyone interested in Quantum Mechanics and wants to know not only its mathematical formalism but what it says about the world. I highly recommend it.

⭐This is one of the best books that I have ever read on the foundations of quantum mechanics. The book is highly simulating and helps you understand difficult concepts with great ease. It is a very well-written book for anyone who desires to deeply understand quantum mechanics and go beyond the pure technicalities found in textbooks. It has an excellent balance between conceptual clarity and formal rigor. It has an intellignet combination of philosophy and physics, and it discloses some of the most important events in the history of physcis that have very deep philosophical and foundational consequences. It starts by clearly explaining the main mysteries of quantum mechanics concerning the notions of superpositions and non-locality. Then, after introducing the quantum formalism, the book explains with a cristal clear clarity the de Broglie Bohm pilot-wave theory. Then, the book provides highly objective and critical explanations on alternative theories. It ends by revisiting the history of quantum mechanics and its impacts on our culture. I greatly enjoyed reading this book and, I highly recommend it for all students of physics and philosphy of physics. Moreover, the book can be read by anyone who in interested in the philosphy and history of quantum mechanics without needing any prior knowledge of quantum mechanics. This book, deserves to become a classic.

⭐Un “must read” pour une découverte d’un nouveau monde qui n’a hélas pas été suffisamment soumis aux communs des mortels dans le cadre de l’éducation burinee à coup de physique contemporaine et réductrice ( pour ne pas dire “restreinte”) Einsteinienne.Après les témoignages historiques, les démonstrations théoriques et expérimentations illustrent avec éclat une science et une approche universelle qui bouleversera notre vision du monde, celle dans laquelle la matière n’existe pas sans conscience.

⭐

⭐Excellent book!

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