Monthly Archives: August 2014

Q: Before you open the box, isn’t Schrödinger’s cat alive or dead, not alive and dead?

The original question was: If I don’t open the lid of the bunker, the cat inside is either dead OR alive.  Why does Schrödinger say that the cat is both alive AND dead if I do not perform the act of … Continue reading

Posted in -- By the Physicist, Philosophical, Physics, Quantum Theory | 29 Comments

Q: How many times do you need to roll dice before you know they’re loaded?

Physicist: A nearly equivalent question might be “how can you prove freaking anything?”. In empirical science (science involving tests and whatnot) things are never “proven”.  Instead of asking “is this true?” or “can I prove this?” a scientist will often … Continue reading

Posted in -- By the Physicist, Experiments, Math, Philosophical, Skepticism | 5 Comments

Q: Since it involves limits, is calculus always an approximation?

Physicist: Nope!  Calculus is exact.  For those of you unfamiliar with calculus, what follows is day 1. In order to find the slope of a curve at a particular point requires limits, which always feel a little incomplete.  When taking … Continue reading

Posted in -- By the Physicist, Equations, Math | 4 Comments