California Institute of Technology
Project Title
What Happens Inside the Quantum State?
Project Summary
The quantum world is a strange one, where observation seems to change reality and predictions are a matter of probabilities rather than certainties. But for working physicists, that strangeness doesn't really get in the way; we know what the rules are for situations we encounter in the lab, and those rules have been as well-tested as any in the history of science. Where we run into trouble is when we try to extend our understanding far outside the lab, into the universe and multiverse. Modern cosmology frequently imagines situations that are far removed from the safe confines of our local environment — places where there are no observers, no discernible difference between past and future, perhaps no notion of space and time at all. This research proposal seeks to investigate what quantum theory has to say about those realms. Are there people, planets, and civilizations fluctuating in and out of existence? Does time stretch forever? Is there just one "world”, or are there many, or perhaps an infinite number? Modern physics has reached the point where such profound questions need to be answered if we hope to make further progress in understanding the universe.
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