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2 results

Quantum Mechanics
  • Lectures on Theoretical Physics
  • Volume 3
  • David Tong
  • Published online:
    27 June 2025
    Print publication:
    19 June 2025
  • The universe we live in is both strange and interesting. This strangeness comes about because, at the most fundamental level, the universe is governed by the laws of quantum mechanics. This is the most spectacularly accurate and powerful theory ever devised, one that has given us insights into many aspects of the world, from the structure of matter to the meaning of information. This textbook provides a comprehensive account of all things quantum. It starts by introducing the wavefunction and its interpretation as an ephemeral wave of complex probability, before delving into the mathematical formalism of quantum mechanics and exploring its diverse applications, from atomic physics and scattering, to quantum computing. Designed to be accessible, this volume is suitable for both students and researchers, beginning with the basics before progressing to more advanced topics.

  • Chapter 5 - Quantum Mechanics As the Ultimate Mode of Symbol Formation

  • from Part I - Cassirer’s Philosophy of Culture
  • Edited by Simon Truwant, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Belgium
  • Book:
    Interpreting Cassirer
    Published online:
    17 April 2021
    Print publication:
    01 April 2021, pp 89-108

  • Summary

    This chapter examines Cassirer's view on contemporary science. It revisits Cassirer's lesser-known work Determinism and Indeterminism in Modern Physics and argues that it harbors a significantly new stage of his philosophy of physical science. On the one hand, this work presents the quantum formalism as a limiting pole of the Bedeutungsfunktion, the highest mode of symbolic formation according to Cassirer’s “phenomenology of cognition.” Inspired by Paul Dirac, Cassirer understands quantum mechanics as a symbolic calculus for deriving probabilistic predictions of measurement outcomes without regard to underlying wave or particle “images” – or, as an exemplar of abstract symbolic thought. On the other hand, Cassirer recognizes the philosophical significance of the use of group theory in quantum mechanics as advancing a purely structural concept of object in physics. Hence, Ryckman reveals that Cassirer drew epistemological consequences from the symbolic character of contemporary physical theory that retain relevance for philosophy of science today.