432 research outputs found
Quantum Ontologies and Mind-Matter Synthesis
Aspects of a quantum mechanical theory of a world containing efficacious
mental aspects that are closely tied to brains, but that are not identical to
brains.Comment: 69 pages. Invited contribution to Xth Max Born Symposium: "Quantum
Future". Published in "Quantum Future", eds. P. Blanchard and A. Jadczyk,
Springer-Verlag, 1999, ISBN 3-540-65218-3. LBNL 4072
A Recommendation to Implement a Quality Assurance/Quality Control Topics Course
The purpose of this report is to recommend and gauge student interest/need for the addition of a Quality Assurance/Quality Control topics course to the Construction Management curriculum. Both Quality Assurance and Quality Control are vital for all construction projects, and without proper implementation there is no way to ensure high quality results. In an industry that demands high quality projects, it is important that our department prepares our students to be well-rounded in all aspects of construction. This will enable our graduates to enter the workforce in full stride, contributing efficiently from the start. Our University’s motto is “Learn by Doing,” therefore, we shall prepare our graduates to excel in all areas, especially out in the field. This project reveals the need for an increased understanding of QA/QC practices amongst Construction Management graduates. A department-wide survey of the Construction Management students at Cal Poly provides this recommendation with a discovery component. This includes the newfound knowledge of high levels of student interest in enhancing their knowledge of QA/QC before graduation. Throughout this report, research and discovery shall translate into the implementation of a tech elective course that Cal Poly Students can choose to enroll in
On the Consequences of Retaining the General Validity of Locality in Physical Theory
The empirical validity of the locality (LOC) principle of relativity is used
to argue in favour of a local hidden variable theory (HVT) for individual
quantum processes. It is shown that such a HVT may reproduce the statistical
predictions of quantum mechanics (QM), provided the reproducibility of initial
hidden variable states is limited. This means that in a HVT limits should be
set to the validity of the notion of counterfactual definiteness (CFD). This is
supported by the empirical evidence that past, present, and future are
basically distinct. Our argumentation is contrasted with a recent one by Stapp
resulting in the opposite conclusion, i.e. nonlocality or the existence of
faster-than-light influences. We argue that Stapp's argumentation still depends
in an implicit, but crucial, way on both the notions of hidden variables and of
CFD. In addition, some implications of our results for the debate between Bohr
and Einstein, Podolsky and Rosen are discussed.Comment: revtex, 11 page
On Quantum Jumps, Events and Spontaneous Localization Models
We propose a definite meaning to the concepts of "experiment", "measurement"
and "event" in the event-enhanced formalism of quantum theory. A minimal
piecewise deterministic process is given that can be used for a computer
simulation of real time series of experiments on single quantum objects. As an
example a generalized cloud chamber is described, including multiparticle case.
Relation to the GRW spontaneous localization model is discussed. The second
revised version of the paper contains references to papers by other authors
that are are aiming in the same direction: to enhance quantum theory in such a
way that it will provide stochastic description of events triggered by
individual quantum systems.Comment: 20 page
A Lens With Multiple Perspectives: The Transformative Power of Higher Education in Health Promotion
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, chronic conditions represent the largest risk to America’s health (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC], 2013). Approximately 50% of adults are affected by at least one chronic disease and 25% of adults are affected by more than two (CDC, 2013). As this health crisis expands, those who have the power to create change must utilize it to their highest capacity. While the complexities of the current state of health are challenging, higher education provides a powerful platform wherein those intricacies can be fully examined and resolutions sought through multiple lenses. This essay provides an example of how both individual and collaborative endeavors have been fostered at the University of Mississippi to generate local, national, and global transformations in health
Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen paradox without entanglement
We claim that the nonlocality without entanglement revealed quite recently by
Bennett {\it et al.} [quant-ph/9804053] should be rather interpreted as {\it
Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen paradox without entanglement}. It would be true
nonlocality without entanglement if one knew that quantum mechnics provides the
best possible means for extracting information from physical system i.e. that
it is ``operationally complete''.Comment: RevTeX, 2 page
Dissipation and spontaneous symmetry breaking in brain dynamics
We compare the predictions of the dissipative quantum model of brain with
neurophysiological data collected from electroencephalograms resulting from
high-density arrays fixed on the surfaces of primary sensory and limbic areas
of trained rabbits and cats. Functional brain imaging in relation to behavior
reveals the formation of coherent domains of synchronized neuronal oscillatory
activity and phase transitions predicted by the dissipative model.Comment: Restyled, slight changes in title and abstract, updated bibliography,
J. Phys. A: Math. Theor. Vol. 41 (2008) in prin
On the Early History of Current Algebra
The history of Current Algebra is reviewed up to the appearance of the
Adler-Weisberger sum rule. Particular emphasis is given to the role current
algebra played for the historical struggle in strong interaction physics of
elementary particles between the S-matrix approach based on dispersion
relations and field theory. The question whether there are fundamental
particles or all hadrons are bound or resonant states of one another played an
important role in this struggle and is thus also regarded.Comment: 17 page
The importance of quantum decoherence in brain processes
Based on a calculation of neural decoherence rates, we argue that that the
degrees of freedom of the human brain that relate to cognitive processes should
be thought of as a classical rather than quantum system, i.e., that there is
nothing fundamentally wrong with the current classical approach to neural
network simulations. We find that the decoherence timescales ~10^{-13}-10^{-20}
seconds are typically much shorter than the relevant dynamical timescales
(~0.001-0.1 seconds), both for regular neuron firing and for kink-like
polarization excitations in microtubules. This conclusion disagrees with
suggestions by Penrose and others that the brain acts as a quantum computer,
and that quantum coherence is related to consciousness in a fundamental way.Comment: Minor changes to match accepted PRE version. 15 pages with 5 figs
included. Color figures and links at
http://www.physics.upenn.edu/~max/brain.html or from [email protected].
Physical Review E, in pres
Peripheral Nucleon-Nucleon Phase Shifts and Chiral Symmetry
Within the one-loop approximation of baryon chiral perturbation theory we
calculate all one-pion and two-pion exchange contributions to the
nucleon-nucleon interaction. In fact we construct the elastic NN-scattering
amplitude up to and including third order in small momenta. The phase shifts
with orbital angular momentum and the mixing angles with are
given parameterfree and thus allow for a detailed test of chiral symmetry in
the two-nucleon system. We find that for the D-waves the -exchange
corrections are too large as compared with empirical phase shifts, signaling
the increasing importance of shorter range effects in lower partial waves. For
higher partial waves, especially for G-waves, the model independent
-exchange corrections bring the chiral prediction close to empirical NN
phase shifts. We propose to use the chiral NN phase shifts with as
input in a future phase shift analysis. Furthermore, we compute the irreducible
two-pion exchange NN-potentials in coordinate space. They turn out to be of
van-der-Waals type, with exponential screening of two-pion mass range.Comment: 30 pages, TeX,12 figures in ps , submitted to Nucl. Phys.
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