![]() In that hour, the uranium, whose particles obey the laws of quantum mechanics, has some chance of emitting radiation that will then be picked up by the Geiger counter, which will, in turn, release the hammer and smash the vial, killing the cat by cyanide poisoning. ![]() ![]() The box is sealed, and the experiment is left to run for some set amount of time, perhaps an hour. Inside the box, there's also a kitty (and remember, this is a thought experiment that's never actually been carried out). The apparatus consists of a box with a sealed vial of cyanide, above which is suspended a hammer attached to a Geiger counter aimed at a small lump of mildly radioactive uranium. ![]() A physicist named Adam Mann attempted to provide a simple explanation of this notoriously complicated thought problem by explaining it in the following manner: this experiment asks what would happen if one builds a strange contraption. One notable example that comes to mind is the problem of Schrodinger’s cat. But even though this exercise aims to suspend the use of rational thought, it still bears a striking similarity to many philosophical and scientific exercises. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |