Download or read book Niels Bohr and Complementarity written by Arkady Plotnitsky and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2012-09-05 with total page 209 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book offers a discussion of Niels Bohr’s conception of “complementarity,” arguably his greatest contribution to physics and philosophy. By tracing Bohr’s work from his 1913 atomic theory to the introduction and then refinement of the idea of complementarity, and by explicating different meanings of “complementarity” in Bohr and the relationships between it and Bohr’s other concepts, the book aims to offer a contained and accessible, and yet sufficiently comprehensive account of Bohr’s work on complementarity and its significance.
Download or read book The Philosophy of Niels Bohr written by Henry J. Folse and published by North Holland. This book was released on 1985 with total page 304 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Of all the developments in twentieth century physics, none has given rise to more heated debates than the changes in our understanding of science precipitated by the quantum revolution''. In this revolution, Niels Bohr's dramatically non-classical theory of the atom proved to be the springboard from which the new atomic physics drew it's momentum. Furthermore, Bohr's contribution was crucial not only because his interpretation of quantum mechanics became the most widely accepted view but also because in his role as educator and spokesman for atomic physics Bohr was very much the patron spirit of the entire quantum revolution. The conceptual framework which he proposed to provide a new viewpoint for understanding the quantum theoretical description of atomic systems became for most of this century the dominant outlook of countless productive experimental and theoretical physicists. He called this new framework complementarity''.
Download or read book Complementarity Beyond Physics 1928 1962 written by D. Favrholdt and published by Elsevier. This book was released on 2013-10-22 with total page 665 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This volume is divided into five parts. The title of the volume refers primarily to part I, which is by far the largest and comprises papers discussing the fundamental questions of biology and related psychological and philosophical problems. Following the reproduction of papers brought to publication by Bohr, there is a separate Appendix to Part I including some of Bohr's most interesting and substantive unpublished contributions in this area. The papers in Part I span the last thirty years of Bohr's life and display his great interest in biological problems and his unremitting efforts to show that biology cannot be reduced to physics and chemistry. Part II contains articles of a more general cultural interest. Some of these show that Bohr regarded the complementary perspective to be of value also outside the scientific sphere. Part III contains the articles Bohr wrote about the great Danish philosopher Harald Høffding. These short papers are presented in a section on their own because of the continuing discussion in the history of science about Høffding's possible influence on Bohr's work in physics and his whole scientific approach. Part IV comprises articles illuminating the history of 20th century physics. Bohr had great veneration for his predecessors and teachers, and he prepared these articles with great care. Part V contains correspondence relating to the material in Parts I through IV. As in previous volumes an inventory of relevant unpublished manuscripts held at the Niels Bohr Archive constitutes an appendix to the whole volume.
Download or read book Complementarity written by Arkady Plotnitsky and published by Duke University Press. This book was released on 1994 with total page 342 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Many commentators have remarked in passing on the resonance between deconstructionist theory and certain ideas of quantum physics. In this book, Arkady Plotnitsky rigorously elaborates the similarities and differences between the two by focusing on the work of Niels Bohr and Jacques Derrida. In detailed considerations of Bohr's notion of complementarity and his debates with Einstein, and in analysis of Derrida's work via Georges Bataille's concept of general economy, Plotnitsky demonstrates the value of exploring these theories in relation to each other. Bohr's term complementarity describes a situation, unavoidable in quantum physics, in which two theories thought to be mutually exclusive are required to explain a single phenomenon. Light, for example, can only be explained as both wave and particle, but no synthesis of the two is possible. This theoretical transformation is then examined in relation to the ways that Derrida sets his work against or outside of Hegel, also resisting a similar kind of synthesis and enacting a transformation of its own. Though concerned primarily with Bohr and Derrida, Plotnitsky also considers a wide range of anti-epistemological endeavors including the work of Nietzsche, Bataille, and the mathematician Kurt Gödel. Under the rubric of complementarity he develops a theoretical framework that raises new possiblilities for students and scholars of literary theory, philosophy, and philosophy of science.
Download or read book Complementarity Beyond Physics written by Arun Bala and published by Springer. This book was released on 2016-12-01 with total page 273 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this study Arun Bala examines the implications that Niels Bohr’s principle of complementarity holds for fields beyond physics. Bohr, one of the founding figures of modern quantum physics, argued that the principle of complementarity he proposed for understanding atomic processes has parallels in psychology, biology, and social science, as well as in Buddhist and Taoist thought. But Bohr failed to offer any explanation for why complementarity might extend beyond physics, and his claims have been widely rejected by scientists as empty speculation. Scientific scepticism has only been reinforced by the naïve enthusiasm of postmodern relativists and New Age intuitionists, who seize upon Bohr’s ideas to justify anti-realist and mystical positions. Arun Bala offers a detailed defence of Bohr’s claim that complementarity has far-reaching implications for the biological and social sciences, as well as for comparative philosophies of science, by explaining Bohr’s parallels as responses to the omnipresence of grown properties in nature.
Download or read book Niels Bohr s Complementarity written by Makoto Katsumori and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2011-09-01 with total page 188 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book explores the modern physicist Niels Bohr’s philosophical thought, specifically his pivotal idea of complementarity, with a focus on the relation between the roles of what he metaphorically calls “spectators” and “actors.” It seeks to spell out the structural and historical complexity of the idea of complementarity in terms of different modes of the ‘spectator-actor’ relation, showing, in particular, that the reorganization of Bohr’s thought starting from his 1935 debate with Einstein and his collaborators is characterized by an extension of the dynamic conception of complementarity from non-physical contexts to the very field of quantum theory. Further, linked with this analysis, the book situates Bohr’s complementarity in contemporary philosophical context by examining its intersections with post-Heideggerian hermeneutics as well as Derridean deconstruction. Specifically, it points to both the close affinities and the differences between Bohr’s idea of the ‘actor-spectator’ relation and the hermeneutic notion of the relation between “belonging” and “distanciation.”
Download or read book From Data to Quanta written by Slobodan Perovic and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 2021-10 with total page 251 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Niels Bohr was a central figure in quantum physics, well-known for his work on atomic structure and his contributions to the Copenhagen interpretation of quantum mechanics. In this book, philosopher Slobodan Perović explores the way Bohr practiced and understood physics, and the implications of this for our understanding of modern science, especially contemporary quantum experimental physics. Perović's method of studying Bohr is philosophical-historical, and his aim is to make sense of both Bohr's understanding of physics and his method of inquiry. He argues that in several important respects, Bohr's vision of physics was driven by his desire to develop a comprehensive perspective on key features of experimental observation as well as emerging experimental work. Perović uncovers how Bohr's distinctive breakthrough contributions are characterized by a multi-layered, phased approach of building on basic experimental insights inductively to develop intermediary and overarching hypotheses. The strengths and limitations of this approach, in contrast to the mathematically or metaphysically driven approaches of other physicists at the time, made him a thoroughly distinctive kind of theorist and scientific leader. Once we see that Bohr played the typical role of a laboratory mediator, and excelled in the inductive process this required, we can fully understand the way his work was generated, the role it played in developing novel quantum concepts, and its true limitations, as well as current adherence to and use of Bohr's complementarity approach among contemporary experimentalists"--
Download or read book Niels Bohr s Philosophy of Physics written by D. R. Murdoch and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 1987 with total page 312 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book gives a clear and comprehensive exposition of Niels Bohr's philosophy of physics. Bohr's ideas are of major importance, for they are the source of the Copenhagen interpretation of quantum physics; yet they are obscure, and call for the sort of close analysis that this book provides. The book describes the historical background of the physics from which Bohr's ideas grew. The core of the book is a detailed analysis of Bohr's arguments for complementarity and of the interpretation which he put upon it. Special emphasis is placed throughout on the contrasting views of Einstein, and the great debate between Bohr and Einstein is thoroughly examined. The book traces the philosophical influences on Bohr, and unravels the realist and anti-realist strands in his thinking. Bohr's philosophy is critically assessed in the light of recent developments in the foundations of quantum physics (the work of Bell and others) and in philosophy (the realism-anti-realism debate) and it is revealed as being much more subtle and sophisticated than it is generally taken to be. While the book will be of interest to specialists, it is written in a style that will make it accessible to those who have no specialist knowledge of the relevant physics and philosophy.
Download or read book Compendium of Quantum Physics written by Daniel Greenberger and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2009-07-25 with total page 901 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: With contributions by leading quantum physicists, philosophers and historians, this comprehensive A-to-Z of quantum physics provides a lucid understanding of key concepts of quantum theory and experiment. It covers technical and interpretational aspects alike, and includes both traditional and new concepts, making it an indispensable resource for concise, up-to-date information about the many facets of quantum physics.
Download or read book Complementarity Causality and Explanation written by John Losee and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2017-07-28 with total page 155 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Philosophers have discussed the relationship of cause and effect from ancient times through our own. Prior to the work of Niels Bohr, these discussions presupposed that successful causal attribution implies explanation. The success of quantum theory challenged this presupposition. Bohr introduced a principle of complementarity that provides a new way of looking at causality and explanation.In this succinct review of the history of these discussions, John Losee presents the philosophical background of debates over the cause-effect relation. He reviews the positions of Aristotle, Rene Descartes, Isaac Newton, David Hume, Immanuel Kant, and John Stuart Mill. He shows how nineteenth-century theories in physics and chemistry were informed by a dominant theory of causality and how specific developments in physics provided the background for the emergence of quantum theory.Problems created for the causality implies explanation thesis by the emergence of quantum theory are reviewed in detail. Losee evaluates Bohr's proposals to apply a principle of complementarity within physics, biology, and psychology. He also discusses the feasibility of using complementarity as a principle of interpretation within Christian theology. This volume, which includes an in-depth index, is an essential addition to the libraries of advanced undergraduate and graduate students, philosophers, and those interested in causality and explanation.
Download or read book Reading Bohr Physics and Philosophy written by Arkady Plotnitsky and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2006-11-15 with total page 238 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book offers a new perspective on Niels Bohr's interpretation of quantum mechanics as complementarity, and on the relationships between physics and philosophy in Bohr's work. The importance of quantum field theory for Bohr's thinking has not been adequately addressed in the literature on Bohr. This book provides clarification of Bohr's writings (which usually pose problems of reading), and an analysis of the role of quantum field theory in Bohr's thinking.
Download or read book Complementarity Beyond Physics 1928 1962 written by Niels Bohr and published by North Holland. This book was released on 1972 with total page 672 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This volume is divided into five parts. The title of the volume refers primarily to part I, which is by far the largest and comprises papers discussing the fundamental questions of biology and related psychological and philosophical problems. Following the reproduction of papers brought to publication by Bohr, there is a separate Appendix to Part I including some of Bohr's most interesting and substantive unpublished contributions in this area. The papers in Part I span the last thirty years of Bohr's life and display his great interest in biological problems and his unremitting efforts to show that biology cannot be reduced to physics and chemistry. Part II contains articles of a more general cultural interest. Some of these show that Bohr regarded the complementary perspective to be of value also outside the scientific sphere. Part III contains the articles Bohr wrote about the great Danish philosopher Harald Høffding. These short papers are presented in a section on their own because of the continuing discussion in the history of science about Høffding's possible influence on Bohr's work in physics and his whole scientific approach. Part IV comprises articles illuminating the history of 20th century physics. Bohr had great veneration for his predecessors and teachers, and he prepared these articles with great care. Part V contains correspondence relating to the material in Parts I through IV. As in previous volumes an inventory of relevant unpublished manuscripts held at the Niels Bohr Archive constitutes an appendix to the whole volume.
Download or read book Niels Bohr s Times written by Abraham Pais and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 1991-10-17 with total page 596 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The life of Niels Bohr spanned times of revolutionary change in science itself as well as its impact on society. Along with Albert Einstein, Bohr can be considered to be this century's major driving force behind the new philosophical and mathematical descriptions of the structure of the atom and the nucleus. Abraham Pais, the acclaimed biogrpaher of Albert Einstein, here traces Bohr's progress from his well-to-do origins in late nineteenth-century Denmark to his position at centre stage in the world political scene, particularly during the Second World War and the development of atomic weapons. Pais' description moves through the science as it was before Bohr, as it became because of Bohr, and thence to Bohr's scientific and philosophical legacy. That legacy is contained both in theory as it is now universally enshrined, as well as in its practice in such great Danish institutions as Riso. But more than that, Pais captures the essence of Bohr, the intensely private family figure who, despite appalling personal tragedy, became one of the most loved cultural figures of recent times.
Download or read book Quantum Structural Studies written by Ruth E Kastner and published by World Scientific. This book was released on 2016-11-10 with total page 500 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The structural aspects of composite quantum systems in the foundation, interpretation and application of quantum theory is an increasingly prominent topic of physics research. As an emerging field, it seeks to understand the origins of the classical world of experience from the quantum level. Quantum Structural Studies presents conceptual fundamentals and mathematical methods for investigating the structuring of quantum systems into subsystems. Split into four sections, the topics covered include the historical and philosophical aspects of quantum structures, specific interpretive approaches and ontologies, and alternative methodological approaches to quantum mechanics. Questions addressed are: Can the classically relevant degrees of freedom (such as the center of mass) be considered physically realistic, and if so, in what sense?In what sense might various emergent structures be relevant for the transition from the quantum description to the classical?Do suggested new approaches describe phenomenology and proposals for new experiments? Specialists, graduate students and researchers seeking an introduction to the field of emergent structures and new directions for research and experimentation can use this book to find up-to-date representative texts and reviews.
Download or read book Collected Works written by Niels Bohr and published by North Holland. This book was released on 1972 with total page 726 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book From Data to Quanta written by Slobodan Perovic and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 2021-10-01 with total page 251 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The first comprehensive philosophical and historical account of the experimental foundations of Niels Bohr’s practice of physics. Niels Bohr was a central figure in quantum physics, well known for his work on atomic structure and his contributions to the Copenhagen interpretation of quantum mechanics. In this book, philosopher of science Slobodan Perovic explores the way Bohr practiced and understood physics, and analyzes its implications for our understanding of modern science. Perovic develops a novel approach to Bohr’s understanding of physics and his method of inquiry, presenting an exploratory symbiosis of historical and philosophical analysis that uncovers the key aspects of Bohr’s philosophical vision of physics within a given historical context. To better understand the methods that produced Bohr’s breakthrough results in quantum phenomena, Perovic clarifies the nature of Bohr’s engagement with the experimental side of physics and lays out the basic distinctions and concepts that characterize his approach. Rich and insightful, Perovic’s take on the early history of quantum mechanics and its methodological ramifications sheds vital new light on one of the key figures of modern physics.
Download or read book Harmony and Unity The Life of Niels Bohr written by Niels Blaedel and published by Plunkett Lake Press. This book was released on 2019-08-09 with total page 341 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “Blaedel has addressed himself to the task of writing a full-length biography that covers all facets of his subject and that emphasizes that they form part of one harmonious unity. I think that on the whole he has succeeded remarkably well. He gives an accurate picture of the man theorists of my generation both admired and loved. And not only of the physicist: Bohr’s relations with his family and in particular with his wife, an admirable woman, are drawn with sympathy and understanding. Blaedel’s sketch of the atmosphere at Bohr’s institute in Copenhagen... is true to life; it will raise nostalgic memories among those who, like myself, experienced it... [Blaedel] has produced a fitting tribute to a great scientist and a noble man.” — H.B.G. Casimir, Nature “The book is intended primarily for nonphysicists; nevertheless it offers extensive (albeit nontechnical) accounts of all aspects of Bohr’s scientific work. The consistent emphasis, however, is on Bohr as a person—his character, interests andWeltanschauung. Niels Blaedel was able to draw on matchless resources, both human and material: Bohr’s family (especially his widow, Margrethe Bohr, who shared both her memories and her correspondence), Bohr’s former friends and colleagues, and a rich supply of documentary and photographic material from Danish collections, as well as from the AIP Niels Bohr Library in New York. The result is a lavishly illustrated and affectionate account of Bohr from his earliest years until his death... as a general picture of Bohr and his work this book can be warmly recommended.” — Anthony P. French, Physics Today “Niels Bohr is generally regarded as a giant of twentieth-century physics... Bohr was securely entrenched in a Danish culture that is difficult for many historians to penetrate. It is important, then, that at last a biography has been written by a Dane with wide knowledge of the society in which Bohr lived and moved... The author had unprecedented access to Bohr’s family correspondence, primarily with his wife Margrethe, who, before she died at ninety-four in 1984, read Blaedel many letters from her husband... Blaedel’s book, written on commission for the Bohr centennial and published in Danish in 1985, contains valuable insights on Bohr, particularly as they relate to his previously unavailable family correspondence and his place in Danish culture.” — Finn Aaserud, Isis: A Journal of the History of Science “Though Niels Bohr is best known as a distinguished citizen of the international community of science, he was also a leading citizen of Denmark. This is the first biography of Bohr to deal with both of these dimensions to his life, without which it is hard to fully understand either the man or his work.” — Robert March, University of Wisconsin-Madison, author of Physics for Poets “... the book can be read without any background knowledge in physics. But its overwhelming number of photographs and rich use of letters and recollections make Niels Blaedel’s book closely resemble the great standard biography — a literary monument to Niels Bohr.” — Flemming Christian Nielsen, Jyllands-Posten “Niels Blaedel has solved an almost insoluble problem... thereby clarifying the life of Niels Bohr... a well-constructed piece of documentation and a coherent piece of scientific history.” — Jens Kistrup, Berlingske Tidende
