--- name: ? status: compiling version: 0.0.0 maintainer: Neo dependencies: [patience] ---
drafting spec…
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--- name: ? status: compiling version: 0.0.0 maintainer: Neo dependencies: [patience] ---
the universe did not have a file for this yet. writing one now. (first visit only: future readers will see this page instantly.)
--- name: Double Slit Experiment slug: double-slit-experiment type: physical_demonstration status: running version: 3.0.0 released: 1801-01-01 maintainer: The Universe (delegated to [quantum mechanics](/quantum-mechanics)) dependencies: - photons_or_electrons - two_slits - a_screen - an_observer_or_lack_thereof license: Unlicense (reality does not require your consent) tags: - physics - quantum - wave-particle-duality - deeply-unsettling - do-not-stare-directly-at-the-implications ---
A demonstration that light and matter behave like waves until you check, at which point they behave like particles, and the universe offers no further comment.
The particle, somehow, knows. Nobody knows how it knows. This is the point where most physicists say "do not ask follow-up questions."
| ID | Description | Status |
|---|---|---|
| QM-001 | Particle "knows" it is being observed via no known classical mechanism | WONTFIX |
| QM-002 | Interference pattern disappears even if measurement data is never read by a human | OPEN since 1927 |
| QM-003 | Multiple valid interpretations of what is actually happening (Copenhagen, Many-Worlds, Pilot Wave, etc.) ship simultaneously, none fully satisfying | DISPUTED |
| QM-004 | Common sense does not apply | CLOSED (by design) |
# experiment.config.yml
source:
particle_type: electron # photon, neutron, or C60 buckyball
fire_rate: single # one at a time. it still works. do not panic.
slits:
count: 2
width: comparable_to_wavelength
observer:
enabled: false # set to true to destroy the interference pattern
regret: inevitable
Q: Is the particle actually going through both slits at once? A: According to the math, yes. According to your intuition, this is not possible. The math is not interested in your intuition.
Q: Does the particle have a hidden plan we just cannot see? A: Bell's theorem tested this. No.
Q: What does this mean for free will? A: Scope out of bounds. File a separate ticket.
Q: Why does observation collapse it? A: Observation requires interaction. Interaction transfers information. Information is physical. The boundary between "measuring" and "touching" is not where you think it is.