HEИндивидуална стипендия2023–2025

FIndS · Fundamental indeterminacy of spacetime

„Хоризонт Европа“ — Действия „Мария Склодовска-Кюри“

Период: 2023-06-01 → 2025-05-31
Финансиране от ЕС: 173 847 €
Участници: 1
Схема: HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-PF-EF

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Накратко на български

Природата на пространството и времето се анализира чрез теории, в които те не са фундаментални, а се появяват от по-дълбоки процеси. Това помага на физиците да разберат концептуално как функционират черните дупки и ранният етап на вселената.

Този кратък обзор е генериран от изкуствен интелект

Кратко обяснение, генерирано от езиков модел по текста на CORDIS. Оригиналът е по-долу.

Резултати накратко

Fundamental indeterminacy of spacetime

We currently lack a truly fundamental theory of nature that provides a quantum description of space and time (i.e. a theory of quantum gravity (QG)), and that would explain the early times of the universe and the physics of black holes. An important conceptual obstacle currently stands in the way of the development of QG: influential research programmes attempting to find a theory of QG yield theories in which spacetime is emergent, rather than fundamental. Such approaches, called emergent spacetime theories (ESTs), raise critical philosophical challenges. Indeed, the way we conceptualise and experiment the world is embedded in notions of space and time. As a result, the very possibility of considering major approaches of QG as descriptions of the fundamental physical world, beyond their mere mathematical content, is non-trivial. The project seeks to address that challenge by providing a clear, intelligible interpretation of what it means for spacetime to be emergent in ESTs. The first objective of this project is to spell out, in a standard scientific realist context, the notion of spacetime indeterminacy in ESTs and its impact on the way spacetime emergence is to be understood. The second objective is to shift from standard scientific realism to perspectival realism in order to take seriously the presence of distinct agents’ perspectives within the account of spacetime emergence. The third objective is to demonstrate the philosophical virtues of the resulting account. Overall, this project is expected to provide a unified solution to the current conceptual problems of ESTs. This is expected to benefit the (philosophy of) physics’ community working in QG by providing them with a novel conceptual grasp of spacetime emergence.

Текст от CORDIS, на английски · Данни: CORDIS, © Европейски съюз

Цел на проекта

It has been a long-lasting major mystery in modern physics that our current best theories, namely general relativity for spacetime and quantum mechanics (QM) for matter, are incompatible with each other, revealing deep conceptual flaws in the way we understand the physical world. We currently lack a truly fundamental theory of nature that provides a quantum description of space and time (i.e. a theory of quantum gravity (QG)). Yet, an important obstacle currently stands in the way of the current development of QG. Indeed, influential research programmes attempting to find a theory of QG yield theories in which spacetime is emergent, rather than fundamental. Such approaches, called emergent spacetime theories (ESTs), raise critical philosophical challenges for the very possibility of considering these theories as describing the fundamental physical world, beyond their mere mathematical content. There exists a gap between the mathematical nature of the theories and their postulated meaning. Such a gap is highly detrimental to the development of fundamental physics. The project FIndS intends to fill that gap by providing a clear, intelligible interpretation of what it means for spacetime to be emergent in ESTs.The projects outputs are expected to contribute to the following scientific impacts. First, the research will provide a unified solution to the current conceptual obstacles of ESTs. In the long term, this can foster new knowledge in philosophy (of spacetime, emergence and indeterminacy), and quantum physics, thereby contributing to the objectives of the European Quantum Flagship initiative. Second, the research will promote a specific realist interpretative recipe that can, during and shortly after the project, be used as a defence of scientific realism in the face of theory change and proliferation.The researcher has a background in physics and quantum metaphysics (esp. of spacetime). FIndS is the ideal project to complete her expertise in that field.

Оригинален текст от CORDIS (на английски).

Участници

LUDWIG-MAXIMILIANS-UNIVERSITAET MUENCHEN · PlaneggКоординаторГермания