Quantum mechanics is a fundamental physical theory that describes the microscopic world and deals with the behavior and properties of microscopic particles. It was developed at the beginning of the 20th century by a number of scientists, including Max Planck, Albert Einstein, Niels Bohr, etc. However, although quantum mechanics is widely used in modern science and technology, including semiconductor devices, nuclear physics, quantum computing, etc., its essence and explanations are still esoteric and difficult.
Because of this, the famous physicist Richard Feynman once commented, "I think I can safely say that no one understands quantum mechanics." This article will explain why quantum mechanics is so difficult to understand and explain this comment by Feynman.
The core concepts of quantum mechanics include wave-particle duality, uncertainty principle, quantum superposition, and quantum entanglement. These concepts are contrary to our daily experience and the intuition of classical physics, and are therefore difficult to understand and accept. For example, according to wave-particle duality, microscopic particles can exhibit both wave and particle properties, which is unimaginable in classical physics. In addition, the uncertainty principle states that we cannot accurately determine the position and momentum of microscopic particles at the same time, which further challenges our intuition about the physical world.
An important concept in quantum mechanics is the process of observation and measurement. According to the mathematical form of quantum mechanics, when a system is observed or measured, the state of the system collapses to a definite value. This phenomenon of collapse goes against the continuous and definite observations in classical physics. And, according to quantum mechanics, the presence of the observer and the method of measurement have an impact on the measurement results, which has given rise to a series of philosophical controversies about subjectivity and objectivity.
The problem of quantum mechanics is also a key factor in understanding its difficulty. At present, there are various schools of thought to explain quantum mechanics, including the Copenhagen school, the multi-world school, and the hidden variable school. These schools of thought differ in explaining the basic concepts and mathematical forms of quantum mechanics, and none of them can be widely accepted and fully solve all the difficult problems of quantum mechanics. This diversity makes the nature of quantum mechanics even more ambiguous and difficult to understand.
As a brilliant theoretical physicist, Feynman's understanding and contributions to quantum mechanics are unquestionable. However, in his commentary, he stated that no one fully understands quantum mechanics, reflecting the difficulty and complexity of quantum mechanics. Feynman's point is not that quantum mechanics is wrong, but rather emphasizes its profundity and the extent to which it needs to be further studied and explored. He argues that although we can use quantum mechanics to perform ** and calculations, there are still confusions and limitations in our interpretation of it.
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