Bohr-Einstein debate
The Bohr-Einstein debate was a series of public conversations about quantum mechanics between the two physicists Albert Einstein and Niels Bohr . These debates are also remembered because of their importance as an illustrative example for the formation of theories and epistemology within the natural sciences , specifically for the tension between causal determination and chance , which is condensed in Einstein's saying “ God does not throw the dice ”. We are indebted to Niels Bohr for an account of the course of this debate in his article Discussions with Einstein on Epistemological Problems in Atomic Physics (1949). Irrespective of their different points of view on questions of quantum mechanics, Bohr and Einstein remained connected to one another in mutual respect throughout their lives.
The debate represents one of the high points of scientific research during the first half of the twentieth century, largely because it drew attention to the uncertainty principle as an area of quantum theory, an aspect of fundamental importance to the modern understanding of the physical world and its phenomena. Scientists today agree that Bohr was able to successfully defend his theory of quantum mechanics and provide evidence of the random nature of the measurement of quantum mechanical phenomena.
literature
Carsten Held : The Bohr-Einstein Debate: Quantum Mechanics and Physical Reality , Schöningh, Paderborn 1998, ISBN 978-3-506-73823-3 .
Web links
- Michael Springer: Review by: Carsten Held: The Bohr-Einstein Debate. Quantum Mechanics and Physical Reality . Philosophical dissertation, Paderborn 1998 , Spectrum of Science 2/2000, p. 104