Quantum Entanglement - very interesting stuff

[Theorist]

Quantum physicist Antoine Suarez of the Center for Quantum Philosophy in Zurich argues that the God seekers are better off pursuing another quantum effect, entangle*ment. In entanglement, two particles become twinned in such a way that the measurement of one always determines the properties of the other, no matter how far apart they may be. Imagine setting up a pair of entangled quantum “coins” (such as photons with a specific orientation), then giving one to Alice in Oxford and another to Bob in Zurich. When you ask Alice and Bob to flip their coins, they would both get heads or both get tails, even though the results of the tosses should be random and independent. Most physicists accept entanglement as just one more counterintuitive reality of quantum physics. But Suarez claims entanglement tests conducted with real photons in the lab suggest that quantum effects must be caused by “influences that originate from outside of space-time.”

In an oft-repeated version of the photon experiment, a pair of entangled photons, A and B, are created by a laser beam. Each photon follows a different path around a table until it hits a “beam splitter,” a half-silvered mirror that acts as a crossroads. From this point each photon continues its journey down one of two paths, either short or long—another type of quantum coin toss. In every case A and B will follow the same route, both traveling the long path or both traveling the short one. But why?
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Seeking an explanation, Suarez and his colleague Valerio Scarani (now at the National University of Singapore) proposed a way to modify the basic experiment, which had been carried out by physicists in Geneva. Their intent was not to address theological questions but to challenge quantum theory by testing one of its fundamental predictions: that the timing of quantum events has nothing to do with their outcomes. They proposed instead that the outcome might be influenced by the course of events as the experiment takes place. For instance, if particle A hits the beam splitter even a tiny fraction of a second before particle B, its trajectory and outcome might influence what happens to B in its wake, somehow communicating across time. To test the idea, Suarez and Scarani needed to design an experiment that disrupted the 
cause-and-effect relationship between 
the photons by making sure that neither one arrived before the other.

Would discovering God's quantum powers give us godlike control ourselves?

Their cunning scheme was based on another famous theory of physics that gives quantum mechanics a run for its money in terms of odd predictions: Einstein’s theory of relativity. Early in the 20th century, Einstein realized that time is not absolute; it runs at a slower or faster rate depending on how quickly you are moving. 
(Your watch falls about 177 nanoseconds behind on a cross-country flight.) Because relativity monkeys around with the rate at which time flows, there is no universal clock ticking away at a set rate that everyone will agree on. Two people moving relative to each other can even disagree on the order in which two events take place. If Alice and Bob are seated on two space shuttles moving in different directions, it is possible to set up a scenario in which they both flip quantum coins, but Alice says she flipped her coin before Bob, while Bob swears he tossed his coin first. According to Einstein, they would both be right, depending on whether you looked at the situation from Alice’s or Bob’s point of view.

In an analogous “before-before” experiment, Suarez’s colleagues in Geneva deployed entangled photons A and B through beam splitters, after which each particle would follow either a short or a long path. The physicists used acoustic waves that had the effect of altering time for the photons—the equivalent of putting Alice and Bob in those opposite-moving space shuttles. In this setup, a miniature observer running alongside photon A would swear it had been set on its course first, while an observer next to photon B would say with equal certainty that events had happened in the reverse order.

Suarez was sure that by messing up the time-ordering in this way, it would be impossible for the photons to coordinate their paths. He was proved wrong. On every run, the photons still met the same fate. Whatever causes the twin photons to behave in the same way, it must work independently of time. “There is no story that can be told within the framework of space-time that can explain how these quantum correlations keep occurring,” Suarez says.

These results have intriguing philosophical implications, he notes, especially for the spiritually inclined. “You could say the experiment shows that space-time does not contain all the intelligent entities acting in the world because something outside of time is coordinating the photons’ results,” Suarez says. “Physics experiments cannot demonstrate the existence of God, but this test shows that today’s physics is compatible with all major religious traditions. There is strong experimental evidence for accepting that nonmaterial beings act in the world.”



What do you guys think about this experiment? I find it rather fascinating.

While it does not prove a G/god (capital and lower case "g" inserted for politically correctness) exists, it does prove that there is something outside of our space-time affecting outcomes in our world. This could be a number of things, such as the higher dimensions theorized by string theory.


the full article can be found here: The Priest-Physicist Who Would Marry Science to Religion | Subatomic Particles | DISCOVER Magazine

[Human No More]

Quantum physics != mythology. Saying that entanglement is a being is a wishful interpretation at the very most, and in actuality nothing of the sort. Indeed, this is a reason many people opposed research into it, because it brings humans closer to answering questions that superstition profits from keeping unanswered.

[Tsyal Makto]

Indeed, it is quite fascinating. Not quite sure about the religiosity...but QE does offer some interesting...secular opportunities. Teleportation, for one, if it can be harnessed right. It has already been used to teleport (information, specifically) atoms. Maybe one day molecules? Then cells? And beyond...

[Empty Glass]

I find it fascinating too, and I think it'll be exciting to see where further research goes.

[Human No More]

Teleportation's main issue within entanglement is the uncertainty principle. Recording the state changes it.

[Theorist]

I suppose there will always be people who are opposed to a certain science because of their beliefs.

Much like avatar, some catholics hated it for some reason (I think they had a problem with eywa?)

But on the other hand, this stuff brings faith to some people,like the priest guy they talk about in the beginning of the article.

Personally, I would love to listen to an argument between the christian priest, and his atheist friend. Probably some great thinking going on there.

And while no, it does not at all prove a creator, it just says there is definitely a place, where a creator could affect the fate of humanity without actually being inside the length, width, and height dimensions we are so familiar with.

[applejuice]

I find it fascinating. According to that, distance and time are irrelevant. Lets suppose our minds can actuate that way...

[Theorist]

Yeah, I mean we can't really even comprehend time that well. It's weird to think that each individual is actually at a separate "point" in time fro
Everyone else, due to the fact that no two people have moved at the exact same speeds their entire life.

Also, it'd be cool if we could "see" time, because we would be able to see all events as they are occurring, not jus the one single point we process at a time

[Clarke]

Originally Posted by Theorist

Yeah, I mean we can't really even comprehend time that well. It's weird to think that each individual is actually at a separate "point" in time fro
Everyone else, due to the fact that no two people have moved at the exact same speeds their entire life.

Also, it'd be cool if we could "see" time, because we would be able to see all events as they are occurring, not jus the one single point we process at a time

But if you could see the entire line of time at once, nothing would happen. There'd be no time for it to happen in.

[Moco Loco]

All kinds of funky quantum processes are going on in our quantum computer minds, give me the goosebumps Quantum entanglement is the only reason I allow myself to entertain thoughts of an afterlife.

[Theorist]

Originally Posted by Clarke

But if you could see the entire line of time at once, nothing would happen. There'd be no time for it to happen in.

It'd kinda be like when you take a check book and draw pictures of two stick figures fighting and flip through it. You would see tons of pictures of what is happening every photon equivalent time length as events happen. (I mean photon equivalent, as in the smallest unit you could possibly see is a photon.)

However, I guess it depends on how good your time vision is. I mean I can only see so far, so maybe I could only see 10 hours each direction in time? I have no idea, we haven't gotten there yet.

But, if you were outside of time, (although we can't really comprehend this) you would be suspended in the same state. Most likely, radioactive atoms wouldn't decay, because those are how we measure time, and if time isn't passing, then they shouldn't decay.

Also, here's something I like to think about. If you took a baseball and moved it 1 meter before any time at all passed, what would happen? Would you have released so much energy that the entire Universe would heat up to infinite degrees, because you would have 1/2MV^2, but V would be infinity, so what would happen?

[Moco Loco]

What would happen? I suppose that would depend on the method with which you moved this baseball. The baseball would most certainly be obliterated

[Clarke]

(Which photon? Photons don't have a constant size.)
You can't experience outside of time, since experience inherently relies on you changing.

Re, the baseball: I think it'd be fine, since it doesn't have kinetic energy. You just teleported it.