The Beauty of Equations

Abstract This paper discusses grounds for ascribing beauty to equations. Philosophical accounts of beauty in the context of science tend to stress one or more of three aspects of beautiful objects: depth, economy, and definitiveness. The paper considers several cases that engage these aspects in different ways, depending on whether the equation is considered as a signpost, as a stand-in for a phenomenon, as making a disciplinary transformation, or as inspiring a personal revelation

Quantum interference experiments, modular variables and weak measurements

We address the problem of interference using the Heisenberg picture and highlight some new aspects through the use of pre-selection, post-selection, weak measurements, and modular variables, We present a physical explanation for the different behaviors of a single particle when the distant slit is open or closed: instead of having a quantum wave that passes through all slits, we have a localized particle with non-local interactions with the other slit(s). We introduce a Gedankenexperiment to measure this non-local exchange. While the Heisenberg picture and the Schrodinger pictures are equivalent formulations of quantum mechanics, nevertheless, the results discussed here support a new approach which has led to new insights, new intuitions, new experiments, and even the possibility of new devices that were missed from the old perspective

The pleasure of popular dance

Interrogation philosophique sur la signification de la pratique des danses folkloriques. Type de plaisir ressenti par les participants : expérience d'une 'célébration cinétique'. Danse et phénoménologie du corps vivant. Apprentissage de la danse populaire et manifestation d'une intelligence non-verbale. Danse et libération personnelle, sociale

The many roads to leadership

"Most scientific leaders are renowned either for their discoveries or their contribution to new facilities. But scientific leadership can involve much more than that" (1 page)