The YubTub channel 'Sixty Symbols' just did a video on Bell's Inequality. There are quite a few of these out there. They're all correct, as far as following the logic of Bell's Theorem goes. That logic, however, is ridiculously bad.
Bell's Inequality (the essential point of Bell's Theorem), by the way, is the "proof" that quantum systems are inherently random, that entangled particles communicate instantaneously, and a several other bits of nonsense.
I now create a parody of the argument that Bell makes, using the exact same logic he employs, to point out the rampant silliness:
Let us suppose that I am standing on a basketball court, ball in hand. I am at the three point line, and try to make that shot. Logic states that I will either score, or miss. This is a binary solution, with only two possible outcomes. A 50/50 situation. But when I actually try to do this, I only manage to score once in 50 tries. That's a 2% probability. 2% is much less than the 50% predicted. Contradiction! Paradox! Basketball is inherently illogical!
I'm not kidding. That is the essence of Bell's Theorem, one of the fundamental papers in quantum science.
No comments:
Post a Comment
I reserve the right to remove egregiously profane or abusive comments, spam, and anything else that really annoys me. Feel free to agree or disagree, but let's keep this reasonably civil.