Could you elaborate on what exactly you mean by many worlds QM? From what I understand, this idea seems only to have relevance in the context of observing the state of quantum particles. Unless we start making macro-level decisions about how to act through Schrodinger’s Cat scenarios, isn’t many worlds QM irrelevant?
How they might be different from a ‘single world situation’:
Quantum effects have some bearing on computation, or can produce ‘strange probabilistic effects’.
‘How do these quantum computations work? How are they so powerful? The answer to this question might be important’
How they might be the same:
Expected value matters. Not just in expectation, but ‘there’s a world for that’ (for the correct distribution).
Real world applications I’ve heard of:
quantum pseudo-telepathy*,
counterfactual computation
transmissions that can’t be intercepted (or break if they are observed) - some sort of quantum security.
Changing the way we see information
A new, (much better than classical) quantum algorithm is designed/discovered. Then a better classical algorithm is proposed based on it that makes up for (a lot of) the gap.
Better/cheaper randomness?
Changing the way we think about information/computation/physics/math/probability
*This one uses measuring entangled particles.
Maybe if you condition actions based on a quantum source of randomness that changes what happens in the multiverse relative to a deterministic protocol.
Standard quantum mechanics models small, unobserved quantum systems as probability distributions over possible observable values, meaning there’s no function that gives you a particle’s exact momentum at a given time. Instead, there’s a function that gives you a probability distribution over possible momentum values at a given time. Every modern interpretation of quantum mechanics predicts nearly the same probability distributions for every quantum system.
Many worlds QM argues that, just as small, unobserved quantum systems are fundamentally probabilistic, so too is the wider universe. Under many worlds, there exists a universal probability distribution over states of the universe. Different “worlds” in the many worlds interpretation equate to different configurations of the observable universe.
If many worlds is true, it implies there are alternate versions of ourselves who we can’t communicate with. However, the actions that best improve humanity’s prospects in a many worlds situations may be different from the best actions in a single world situation.
Could you elaborate on what exactly you mean by many worlds QM? From what I understand, this idea seems only to have relevance in the context of observing the state of quantum particles. Unless we start making macro-level decisions about how to act through Schrodinger’s Cat scenarios, isn’t many worlds QM irrelevant?
How they might be different from a ‘single world situation’:
Quantum effects have some bearing on computation, or can produce ‘strange probabilistic effects’.
‘How do these quantum computations work? How are they so powerful? The answer to this question might be important’
How they might be the same:
Expected value matters. Not just in expectation, but ‘there’s a world for that’ (for the correct distribution).
Real world applications I’ve heard of:
quantum pseudo-telepathy*,
counterfactual computation
transmissions that can’t be intercepted (or break if they are observed) - some sort of quantum security.
Changing the way we see information
A new, (much better than classical) quantum algorithm is designed/discovered. Then a better classical algorithm is proposed based on it that makes up for (a lot of) the gap.
Better/cheaper randomness?
Changing the way we think about information/computation/physics/math/probability
*This one uses measuring entangled particles.
Maybe if you condition actions based on a quantum source of randomness that changes what happens in the multiverse relative to a deterministic protocol.
Standard quantum mechanics models small, unobserved quantum systems as probability distributions over possible observable values, meaning there’s no function that gives you a particle’s exact momentum at a given time. Instead, there’s a function that gives you a probability distribution over possible momentum values at a given time. Every modern interpretation of quantum mechanics predicts nearly the same probability distributions for every quantum system.
Many worlds QM argues that, just as small, unobserved quantum systems are fundamentally probabilistic, so too is the wider universe. Under many worlds, there exists a universal probability distribution over states of the universe. Different “worlds” in the many worlds interpretation equate to different configurations of the observable universe.
If many worlds is true, it implies there are alternate versions of ourselves who we can’t communicate with. However, the actions that best improve humanity’s prospects in a many worlds situations may be different from the best actions in a single world situation.