•  27
    This article focuses on two of the main problems raising interpretational issues in quantum mechanics, namely the notorious measurement problem and the equally important but not quite as widely discussed problem of the classical regime. The two problems are distinct, but they are both intimately related to some of the issues arising from entanglement and density operators. The article aims to be fairly non-technical in language, but modern in outlook and covering the chosen topics in more depth …Read more
  •  25
    Modal interpretations, decoherence and measurements
    with Meir Hemmo
    Studies in History and Philosophy of Science Part B: Studies in History and Philosophy of Modern Physics 27 (3): 239-277. 1996.
  •  24
    The symmetries of the wavefunction for identical particles, including anyons, are given a rigorous non-relativistic generalisation within pilot-wave formulations of quantum mechanics. In particular, parastatistics are excluded. The result has a rigorous generalisation to _n_ particles and to spinorial wavefunctions. The relation to other non-relativistic approaches is briefly discussed.
  •  17
    Probability, arrow of time and decoherence
    Studies in History and Philosophy of Science Part B: Studies in History and Philosophy of Modern Physics 38 (2): 439-456. 2007.
    This paper relates both to the metaphysics of probability and to the physics of time asymmetry. Using the formalism of decoherent histories, it investigates whether intuitions about intrinsic time directedness that are often associated with probability can be justified in the context of no-collapse approaches to quantum mechanics. The standard approach to time symmetry in the decoherent histories literature is criticised, and an alternative approach is proposed, based on two decoherence conditio…Read more
  •  16
    The notion of non-equilibrium, in the sense of a particle distribution other than rho equal psi squared, is imported into Nelson’s stochastic mechanics, and described in terms of effective wavefunctions obeying non-linear equations. These techniques are applied to the discussion of non-locality in non-linear Schroedinger equations.
  •  12
    Translation of Three Short Papers by Grete Hermann
    Journal for General Philosophy of Science / Zeitschrift für Allgemeine Wissenschaftstheorie 51 (4): 615-619. 2020.
  •  12
    Quantum mechanics, emergence, and decisions
    Mind and Society 19 (2): 299-305. 2020.
    I summarise some aspects of the relation between quantum mechanics and the macroscopic world in the context of the multiverse or Everett theory. I do so with particular reference to the results of the theory of decoherence, the notions of reduction and emergence, and agents' decisions.
  •  9
    Physics and Beyond: Essay review of Kay Herrmann (Ed.): Grete Henry - Hermann: Philosophie – Mathematik – Quantenmechanik. Springer: Wiesbaden 2019, xv + 663 pp (review)
    Journal for General Philosophy of Science / Zeitschrift für Allgemeine Wissenschaftstheorie 51 (4): 595-610. 2020.
    Using the volume of her works and correspondence recently edited by K. Herrmann, I assess the significance of Grete Hermann's work.
  •  5
    Bohr’s Slit and Hermann’s Microscope
    In Elise Crull & Guido Bacciagaluppi (eds.), Grete Hermann - Between Physics and Philosophy, Springer. 2016.
    The Heisenberg microscope and its analysis by Weizsäcker are used by Grete Hermann in her 1935 essay on the foundations of quantum mechanics to argue her claims about causality in quantum mechanics. In this chapter, I wish to draw a comparison between Hermann’s use of the Heisenberg microscope and another famous use of a very similar thought experiment : Bohr’s analysis of the suspended single slit in his reply to EPR. I shall argue that Hermann’s use of different aspects of the classical pictur…Read more
  •  1
    The role of decoherence in quantum theory
    Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. forthcoming.