First published 2002
Dr. Sarah Chen stands in her laboratory, watching quantum particles behave in ways that challenge everything she thought she knew about measurement and reality. As a theoretical physicist investigating the boundary between quantum and classical worlds, she discovers that the act of observation itself creates fundamental problems for understanding physical systems. Her research pushes against the limits of what can be known about quantum states before measurement collapses their possibilities into single outcomes. The deeper she probes into measurement theory, the more she realizes that consciousness and physical reality intertwine in unexpected ways. Chen must reconcile competing interpretations of quantum mechanics while grappling with experiments that seem to violate basic assumptions about objective reality. Her journey through the conceptual maze of quantum measurement reveals how the simple act of looking at the world changes what we can discover about it.
Genres: science, science-fiction, physics, academic
Vibes: intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: gritty, hard-science-fiction
Hardcover · Cambridge University Press