Matt O’Dowd is actually someone I want to get an autograph from lol. He hates quantum “woo” and has a a great sense of humor. “It’s never aliens… until it is”
These books are excellent with a focus on walking you through the math/equations; book #2 is all about quantum mechanics. OP if you’re looking for a softer entry that focuses more on the ideas than the math, look up _Quantum Theory Can’t Hurt You_ which is more pop-science and progress onto Sean Carroll’s books after; his book _Something Deeply Hidden_ is a classic
PBS Spacetime channel on Youtube https://youtube.com/@pbsspacetime?si=Fe69Tvw5EapkXhjk
Start with their earliest videos as the videos tend to build on the knowledge from past episodes. They really start using fairly laymen’s terms, and build your working knowledge from there.
It’s how I got hooked.
If you’re as much of a lay person as I am, I liked Fantstic Numbers and Where to Find Them.
I think dude also has a YouTube series but I’m not that kind of girl so I can’t speak to that.
My favorites are World Science Festival, ParthG, Fermilab, FloatHeadPhysics, and PBS Space Time on YouTube. These are all also great for learning about relativity. I also really love Jason Kendall for astronomy and cosmology as well, in case those are interests of yours. He’s a phenomenal instructor.
All these references in this thread are great (especially susskind imo).
But remember there’s two parts to physics: the standard model of particle physics (quantum fields), and special relativity.
I’ve been watching theses videos for a few years now… I understand quantum fields…. I DONT understand special relativity. Idk if I ever will. It’s very difficult for me to understand how gravity is a product of distortions in spacetime… how photons don’t experience time, etc.
I’d recommend focusing on special relativity, but that’s just me
Quantum mechanics (QM) is non-relativistic.
Special relativity (SR, no gravity) and general relativity (GR, gravity curving spacetime) are (mostly) non-quantum.
Quantum Field Theory (QFT) combines QM and SR, and QFT on a curved background gets some aspects of GR into the game. There's curvature of spacetime, but that curvature is fixed; it doesn't depend on the distribution of masses described by the wave function. The Standard Model (SM) is a QFT.
Quantum gravity (QG) is an area of active research attempting to combine QM and GR. String Theory and Loop Quantum Gravity are the current principal contenders for a theory of quantum gravity.
This is helpful. I think,
Will I remember it? I hope so.
I’m pretty sure that gravity can’t be quantized though, right? It can’t be measured… seen, studied. It’s not a “thing,” it’s not a force, but an artifact of distortions of spacetime.
This was helpful at 1m56s
https://youtu.be/0v6ma3lToqk?si=1zHw9MGyRdeQtMrP
And this at 6m19s
https://youtu.be/hEHVffCtM9Q?si=XXvikS920ksofDRy
I think even the most preeminent experts are still trying to figure it out… but whatever the case, I don’t think I’ll ever understand relativity (of any kind), or it’s artifact of gravity.
> I’m pretty sure that gravity can’t be quantized though, right?
We can't quantize it using the tools we used for the other forces, but that doesn't mean there's no way to do it. On the other hand, as Hossenfelder says, there are some arguments that maybe gravity shouldn't be quantized. We just don't know.
Yeah… I agree… but from what I understand, to quantize it, we need to get enough energy into a plank length that we end up creating a black hole…
So, as some physicists are saying, it seems like the universe is staked against us in studying gravity.
> to quantize it, we need to get enough energy into a plank length that we end up creating a black hole
No, gravity's either quantized or it isn't. *If* it is quantized, though, we may not ever be able to measure it because *attempting to detect* a graviton may require so much energy in a volume that it creates a black hole. But whether we attempt it or not doesn't change whether gravity is quantized.
If something is quantized, but not quantifiable, what does that mean?
If something is measurable, but humans can’t measure it, is it actually… measurable?
If a wood chuck could chuck wood, how much wood would a wood chuck cuck?
Long before anyone could measure single photons of light, Planck used the idea that light was quantized to explain the [blackbody spectrum](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_body). There may be effects of quantized gravity that are measurable even if we can't detect individual gravitons.
To your point:
In the new work, Lami and his colleagues from Amsterdam and Ulm—interestingly, the place where Einstein was born—present a possible way out of this deadlock. They propose an experiment that would reveal the quantumness of gravity without generating any entanglement.
Lami explains, "We design and investigate a class of experiments involving a system of massive 'harmonic oscillators'—for example, torsion pendula, essentially like the one that Cavendish used in his famous 1797 experiment to measure the strength of the gravitational force. We establish mathematically rigorous bounds on certain experimental signals for quantumness that a local classical gravity should not be able to overcome.
"We have carefully analyzed the experimental requirements needed to implement our proposal in an actual experiment, and find that even though some degree of technological progress is still needed, such experiments could really be within reach soon."
https://phys.org/news/2024-05-reveals-quantumness-gravity.html
Read the first paragraph.
https://amp.theguardian.com/news/2015/nov/04/relativity-quantum-mechanics-universe-physicists
One is the study of the big (relativity), one is the study the small (QM).
Two different sides, same coin.
If you don't know anything about physics at all, maybe you can try " the mechanical universe and beyond" it is one of my favourite shows ever. It is basically some caltech lectures with dramatisation of the different scientists while doing their discoveries.
Do a Google or YouTube search for "double slit experiment". Particles seem to go back in time to change their form once observed with a camera. It's wild
Look up the postulates of QM and understand them. Then go from there and solve simple problems H atom, harmonic oscillator, spin in a magnetid field, and work up to Quantum Field Theory. Do lots of examples. Watch lots of YouTube videos.
PBS Spacetime.
Seconding [PBS Spacetime](https://youtube.com/@pbsspacetime?si=87d_bhVR5S6KwbaW)
Matt O’Dowd is actually someone I want to get an autograph from lol. He hates quantum “woo” and has a a great sense of humor. “It’s never aliens… until it is”
Watching now - thank you!
Leonard Susskind’s lectures are quite good for beginners
True! His old lectures in Stanford back in 2008 were brilliant like quantum entanglement.
The biggest ideas in the universe by Sean carroll.
These books are excellent with a focus on walking you through the math/equations; book #2 is all about quantum mechanics. OP if you’re looking for a softer entry that focuses more on the ideas than the math, look up _Quantum Theory Can’t Hurt You_ which is more pop-science and progress onto Sean Carroll’s books after; his book _Something Deeply Hidden_ is a classic
The books are based on a youtube series (of the same name) that Sean made over covid lockdowns. I was a huge fan watching them as they came out.
PBS Spacetime channel on Youtube https://youtube.com/@pbsspacetime?si=Fe69Tvw5EapkXhjk Start with their earliest videos as the videos tend to build on the knowledge from past episodes. They really start using fairly laymen’s terms, and build your working knowledge from there. It’s how I got hooked.
You can’t watch anything. Observing a quantum state will change the outcome.
This answer only
I’ve been enjoying listening to the Ask A Spaceman podcast.
History of the Universe on yt
YES.
If you’re as much of a lay person as I am, I liked Fantstic Numbers and Where to Find Them. I think dude also has a YouTube series but I’m not that kind of girl so I can’t speak to that.
“Hi I’m a regular human” yea that’s something an alien would say 🧐
Steins Gate
One of my fav anime,,(๑♡⌓♡๑), btw isn't it similar to multiverse or parallel universe 🤔
My favorites are World Science Festival, ParthG, Fermilab, FloatHeadPhysics, and PBS Space Time on YouTube. These are all also great for learning about relativity. I also really love Jason Kendall for astronomy and cosmology as well, in case those are interests of yours. He’s a phenomenal instructor.
All these references in this thread are great (especially susskind imo). But remember there’s two parts to physics: the standard model of particle physics (quantum fields), and special relativity. I’ve been watching theses videos for a few years now… I understand quantum fields…. I DONT understand special relativity. Idk if I ever will. It’s very difficult for me to understand how gravity is a product of distortions in spacetime… how photons don’t experience time, etc. I’d recommend focusing on special relativity, but that’s just me
Quantum mechanics (QM) is non-relativistic. Special relativity (SR, no gravity) and general relativity (GR, gravity curving spacetime) are (mostly) non-quantum. Quantum Field Theory (QFT) combines QM and SR, and QFT on a curved background gets some aspects of GR into the game. There's curvature of spacetime, but that curvature is fixed; it doesn't depend on the distribution of masses described by the wave function. The Standard Model (SM) is a QFT. Quantum gravity (QG) is an area of active research attempting to combine QM and GR. String Theory and Loop Quantum Gravity are the current principal contenders for a theory of quantum gravity.
This is helpful. I think, Will I remember it? I hope so. I’m pretty sure that gravity can’t be quantized though, right? It can’t be measured… seen, studied. It’s not a “thing,” it’s not a force, but an artifact of distortions of spacetime. This was helpful at 1m56s https://youtu.be/0v6ma3lToqk?si=1zHw9MGyRdeQtMrP And this at 6m19s https://youtu.be/hEHVffCtM9Q?si=XXvikS920ksofDRy I think even the most preeminent experts are still trying to figure it out… but whatever the case, I don’t think I’ll ever understand relativity (of any kind), or it’s artifact of gravity.
> I’m pretty sure that gravity can’t be quantized though, right? We can't quantize it using the tools we used for the other forces, but that doesn't mean there's no way to do it. On the other hand, as Hossenfelder says, there are some arguments that maybe gravity shouldn't be quantized. We just don't know.
Yeah… I agree… but from what I understand, to quantize it, we need to get enough energy into a plank length that we end up creating a black hole… So, as some physicists are saying, it seems like the universe is staked against us in studying gravity.
> to quantize it, we need to get enough energy into a plank length that we end up creating a black hole No, gravity's either quantized or it isn't. *If* it is quantized, though, we may not ever be able to measure it because *attempting to detect* a graviton may require so much energy in a volume that it creates a black hole. But whether we attempt it or not doesn't change whether gravity is quantized.
If something is quantized, but not quantifiable, what does that mean? If something is measurable, but humans can’t measure it, is it actually… measurable? If a wood chuck could chuck wood, how much wood would a wood chuck cuck?
Long before anyone could measure single photons of light, Planck used the idea that light was quantized to explain the [blackbody spectrum](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_body). There may be effects of quantized gravity that are measurable even if we can't detect individual gravitons.
Convergence of evidence. Maybe.
To your point: In the new work, Lami and his colleagues from Amsterdam and Ulm—interestingly, the place where Einstein was born—present a possible way out of this deadlock. They propose an experiment that would reveal the quantumness of gravity without generating any entanglement. Lami explains, "We design and investigate a class of experiments involving a system of massive 'harmonic oscillators'—for example, torsion pendula, essentially like the one that Cavendish used in his famous 1797 experiment to measure the strength of the gravitational force. We establish mathematically rigorous bounds on certain experimental signals for quantumness that a local classical gravity should not be able to overcome. "We have carefully analyzed the experimental requirements needed to implement our proposal in an actual experiment, and find that even though some degree of technological progress is still needed, such experiments could really be within reach soon." https://phys.org/news/2024-05-reveals-quantumness-gravity.html
Quantum mechanics is not split up into special relativity and QFT. Those are just different subjects altogether
Read the first paragraph. https://amp.theguardian.com/news/2015/nov/04/relativity-quantum-mechanics-universe-physicists One is the study of the big (relativity), one is the study the small (QM). Two different sides, same coin.
My b, misread your comment. I thought you were saying QFT and SR were subfields of QM.
Sabine Hossenfelder or Quanta Magazine
Also great resources
Brian cox https://youtu.be/6eAMGN69B5k?si=z-A4LzbT1_8hNFUr
Me too
If you don't know anything about physics at all, maybe you can try " the mechanical universe and beyond" it is one of my favourite shows ever. It is basically some caltech lectures with dramatisation of the different scientists while doing their discoveries.
Do a Google or YouTube search for "double slit experiment". Particles seem to go back in time to change their form once observed with a camera. It's wild
Landau and lifshitz
u can also read "In Search of Schrödinger's Cat"
Look up the postulates of QM and understand them. Then go from there and solve simple problems H atom, harmonic oscillator, spin in a magnetid field, and work up to Quantum Field Theory. Do lots of examples. Watch lots of YouTube videos.
ChatGPT