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31Quantum mechanics is not about 'quantum states': it is about values of physical variables. I give a short fresh presentation and update on the *relational* perspective on the theory, and a comment on its philosophical implications.
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29Cristina Bicchieri and Carlo Rovelli. Evolution and Revolution: The Dynamics of Corruption
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27Quantum gravity is expected to require modifications of the notions of space and time. I discuss and clarify how this happens in Loop Quantum Gravity.
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26Rohrlich claims that ``the problem of the arrow of time in classical dynamics has been solved". The solution he proposes is based on the equations governing the motion of extended particles. Rohrlich claims that these equations, which must take self-interaction into account, are are not invariant under time reversal. I dispute this claim, on several grounds.
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25Relational Quantum Mechanics is About Facts, Not States: A Reply to Pienaar and BruknerFoundations of Physics 52 (3): 1-21. 2022.In recent works, Časlav Brukner and Jacques Pienaar have raised interesting objections to the relational interpretation of quantum mechanics. We answer these objections in detail and show that, far from questioning the viability of the interpretation, they sharpen and clarify it.
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24Preparation in Bohmian MechanicsFoundations of Physics 52 (3): 1-6. 2022.According to Bohmian mechanics, we see the particle, not the pilot wave. But to make predictions we need to know the wave. How do we learn about the wave to make predictions, if we only see the particle? I show that the puzzle can be solved, but only thanks to decoherence.
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24Some Considerations on Infinity in PhysicsIn Michał Heller & W. H. Woodin (eds.), Infinity: new research frontiers, Cambridge University Press. pp. 167--175. 2011.
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23Information is Physical: Cross-Perspective Links in Relational Quantum MechanicsPhilosophy of Physics 1 (1). 2023.Relational quantum mechanics (RQM) is an interpretation of quantum mechanics based on the idea that quantum states do not describe an absolute property of a system but rather a relationship between systems. There have recently been some criticisms of RQM pertaining to issues around intersubjectivity. In this article, we show how RQM can address these criticisms by adding a new postulate which requires that all of the information possessed by a certain observer is stored in physical variables of …Read more
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23Three roads to quantum gravity - Lee smolin; weidenfeld & Nicolson, London, 2000, 231 pages, price $24.00 (review)Studies in History and Philosophy of Science Part B: Studies in History and Philosophy of Modern Physics 33 (3): 569-576. 2002.
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20The Order of TimeAllen Lane. 2018.Why do we remember the past and not the future? What does it mean for time to "flow"? Do we exist in time or does time exist in us? In lyric, accessible prose, Carlo Rovelli invites us to consider questions about the nature of time that continue to puzzle physicists and philosophers alike. For most readers this is unfamiliar terrain. We all experience time, but the more scientists learn about it, the more mysterious it remains. We think of it as uniform and universal, moving steadily from past t…Read more
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20On the consistency of relative factsEuropean Journal for Philosophy of Science 13 (4): 1-7. 2023.Lawrence et al. have presented an argument purporting to show that “relative facts do not exist” and, consequently, “Relational Quantum Mechanics is incompatible with quantum mechanics”. The argument is based on a GHZ-like contradiction between constraints satisfied by measurement outcomes in an extended Wigner’s friend scenario. Here we present a strengthened version of the argument, and show why, contrary to the claim by Lawrence et al., these arguments do not contradict the consistency of a t…Read more
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19Anaximander and the birth of scienceRiverhead Books. 2023.The bestselling author of Seven Brief Lessons on Physics illuminates the nature of science through the revolutionary ideas of the Greek philosopher Anaximander Over two millennia ago, the prescient insights of Anaximander paved the way for cosmology, physics, geography, meteorology, and biology, setting in motion a new way of seeing the world. His legacy includes the revolutionary ideas that the Earth floats in a void, that animals evolved, that the world can be understood in natural rather than…Read more
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17Three roads to quantum gravityStudies in History and Philosophy of Science Part B: Studies in History and Philosophy of Modern Physics 33 (3): 569-576. 2002.
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17Review of the book “Anaximander, a re-assessment”, by Andrew Gregory, submitted to the "Revue des Etudes Anciennes". I take this opportunity also t present some general considerations on the relation between science, history and philosophy.
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14Helgoland: making sense of the quantum revolutionRiverhead Books. 2021.One of the world's most renowned theoretical physicists, Carlo Rovelli has entranced millions of readers with his singular perspective on the cosmos. In Helgoland, Rovelli examines the enduring enigma of quantum theory. The quantum world Rovelli describes is as beautiful as it is unnerving. Helgoland is a treeless island in the North Sea where the 21-year-old Werner Heisenberg first developed quantum theory, setting off a century of scientific revolution. Full of alarming ideas (ghost waves, dis…Read more
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2Is there incompatibility between the ways time is treated in general relativity and in standard quantum mechanicsIn A. Ashtekar & J. Stachel (eds.), Conceptual Problems of Quantum Gravity, Birkhauser. pp. 126--140. 1991.
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1Time in Quantum Gravity: An HypothesisPhysical Review D 43 (2). 1991.A solution to the issue of time in quantum gravity is proposed. The hypothesis that time is not defined at the fundamental level (at the Planck scale) is considered. A natural extension of canonical Heisenberg-picture quantum mechanics is defined. It is shown that this extension is well defined and can be used to describe the "non-Schrödinger regime," in which a fundamental time variable is not defined. This conclusion rests on a detailed analysis of which quantities are the physical observables…Read more
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1The Disappearance of Space and TimeIn Dennis Dieks (ed.), The Disappearance of Space and Time, Elsevier. 2007.
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The century of the incomplete revolution: Searching for general releativistic quantum field theoryJournal of Mathematical Physics. 2000.
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Group Quantization of the Barbour-Bertotti ModelIn A. Ashtekar & J. Stachel (eds.), Conceptual Problems of Quantum Gravity, Birkhauser. pp. 2--292. 1991.
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Perimeter InstituteDistinguished Visiting Research Chair
London, Ontario, Canada
Areas of Specialization
Philosophy of Physical Science |
Areas of Interest
Philosophy of Physical Science |
Metaphysics and Epistemology |