Berlin 2014 – scientific programme
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AGPhil: Arbeitsgruppe Philosophie der Physik
AGPhil 2: Quantum-Classical Divide I
AGPhil 2.4: Invited Talk
Wednesday, March 19, 2014, 18:00–18:45, SPA SR22
Properties Are ... — •Antigone Nounou1 and Harris Anastopoulos2 — 1University of Athens, Athens, Greece — 2University of Patras, Patras, Greece
The object of this paper is the notion of property and its objective is to study the different nuances that manifest as we transition from the classical to the quantum. Of the many questions that might -in our view need- be addressed, only one has been discussed thus far, namely whether properties in non-relativistic QM can be viewed as categorical or dispositional but the answers have been given in the context of particular interpretations only. The dispositional-categorical distinction constitutes the backdrop of the present discourse also as it bears on a more comprehensive discussion of the metaphysics of quantum physics and the question whether QM is amenable to a Humean construal or not. Given the nature of quantum probabilities and the possibility of entangled states, we acknowledge that in order to be able to talk about properties of microscopic systems (presumed determinate and single-valued) additional elements are required, such as the Copenhagen inspired mechanisms for wavefunction collapse, Bohmian pilot waves or GRW spontaneous localizations. Committing to any one of them implicates the adoption of a certain interpretation or rendition of the QM formalism and this has an effect on how properties can be understood. But by offering as exhaustive an analysis as we possibly can, we attempt to propose a satisfactory general account of how quantum properties may be understood in the context of non-relativistic QM.