Evrim Tekin

Quantum mechanics

At the smallest scales, the world is made of possibilities until something measures it.

What it is

Quantum mechanics describes matter and light at the scale of atoms and below. Energy comes in discrete amounts, quanta; particles behave like waves; and the theory predicts the probabilities of outcomes rather than single certain results.

Its predictions are among the most precisely tested in science. What it means is still argued over: the “measurement problem” asks why we see one definite result, and interpretations disagree. Links drawn on this site between quantum physics and consciousness are marked as interpretation, not physics.

Updated 5 November 2026 · 3 sourced facts

Illustrative model

The double-slit experiment

Shows how waves passing two slits interfere and build up a striped pattern, the classic quantum demonstration.

Source: Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy

A model to explain the idea; not drawn to scale.

Ideas to carry

  1. 1

    Quanta

    Energy is exchanged in packets. That single idea started the whole field in 1900.

  2. 2

    Superposition

    Before measurement, a system is described by a combination of possible states.

  3. 3

    Entanglement

    Two particles can share one quantum state, so measuring one constrains the other, however far apart.

Established What we know

  1. Max Planck received the 1918 Nobel Prize for his discovery of energy quanta.[1]
  2. The 2022 Nobel Prize in Physics went to Alain Aspect, John Clauser and Anton Zeilinger for experiments with entangled photons.[2]
  3. The Standard Model describes the known fundamental particles and three of the four fundamental forces; gravity is not included.[3]

Interpretation The older lens · Yoga and Daoism

Yoga’s prana and Chinese qi imagined a subtle field behind matter. Physics’ quantum fields are measurable; the image is much older.

Reading

  1. 1930The Physical Principles of the Quantum TheoryWerner Heisenberg
  2. 1985QED: The Strange Theory of Light and MatterRichard Feynman
  3. 2020HelgolandCarlo Rovelli

Electron before you look

Electron after you look: “I was here the whole time”

Made in-house, for fun.

Connected subjects, projects and writing

  • ConsciousnessSubject · Origin

    Interpretation The measurement problem asks what counts as an observation. Some read a role for mind in it; mainstream physics does not require one.

  • RelativitySubject · Cosmos

    Einstein’s account of space, time and gravity, and why your phone’s map needs it to work.

  • MathematicsSubject · Cosmos

    Number, structure, proof and pattern: the language nature seems to speak, and the only knowledge that does not expire.

Sources

  1. Max Planck — Facts Nobel Prize, 1918. Checked 5 Nov 2026.
  2. The Nobel Prize in Physics 2022 Nobel Prize, 2022. Checked 5 Nov 2026.
  3. The Standard Model CERN. Checked 5 Nov 2026.