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Quantum Physics and Many Worlds

Aug 24, 2017 by Eliezer Yudkowsky

Quantum mechanics is our best mathematical model of the universe to date, powerfully confirmed by a century of tests. However, interpreting what the experimental results mean - how and when the Schrödinger equation and Born's rule interact - is a topic of much contention, with the main disagreement being between the Everett and the Copenhagen interpretations.

Yudkowsky uses this scientific controversy as a proving ground for some central ideas from previous sequences: map-territory distinctions, mysterious answers, Bayesianism, and Occam’s Razor.

102Quantum Explanations
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73Configurations and Amplitude
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79Joint Configurations
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77Distinct Configurations
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58Collapse Postulates
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71Decoherence is Simple
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47Decoherence is Falsifiable and Testable
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127Privileging the Hypothesis
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62Living in Many Worlds
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56Quantum Non-Realism
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96If Many-Worlds Had Come First
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62Where Philosophy Meets Science
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161Thou Art Physics
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54Many Worlds, One Best Guess
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