Welcome! Here you will find information about the latest, relativistic version of the transactional interpretation of quantum mechanics, 'RTI', blog posts, and an opportunity for informal discussion. The transactional interpretation (TI) is a new way of understanding what's behind the formalism of quantum physics. My CV is available here. The 2nd edition of my book … Continue reading Welcome!
Maxwell’s Demon: Defeated by Quantum Mechanics
This is an invited contribution to Comprehensive Philosophy of Science, Elsevier (2026) I point out that a neglected principle of quantum mechanics provides a decisive defeat of the notorious "Maxwell's Demon." Comments welcome! ABSTRACT: This work provides an overview of key historical developments in the formulation of the Second Law of Thermodynamics, focusing on the … Continue reading Maxwell’s Demon: Defeated by Quantum Mechanics
A friendly reminder that quantum theory and general relativity have been unified under RTI (since 2023):
The Beetle of Which We Can Indeed Speak–just not in classical language
I was inspired to write this post after seeing a post by Hammurabi Rubio (a guest post for Romaric Jannel) with a fun revisiting of Wittgenstein's "beetle in the box" metaphor for language: “Suppose everyone had a box with something in it: we call it a ‘beetle’. No one can look into anyone else’s box, … Continue reading The Beetle of Which We Can Indeed Speak–just not in classical language
I’m reblogging this post on the quantum/classical transition from nearly 10 years ago…
because there seems to be ongoing puzzlement about the quantum/classical divide. Comments welcome. https://transactionalinterpretation.org/2018/03/06/what-is-the-quantum-classical-divide/?page_id=1458
Against “Exchange Degeneracy”: Symmetrized states are demanded by actual physics, not redundancy.
This is a draft of my latest work deconstructing the conventional "Received View" of symmetrized states. This convention has relied on an unwarranted assumption of "permutation redundancy" at the expense of real physics. Comments welcome. Against-Exchange-Degeneracy-Basic-File2Download
Fun with the chemical potential: an exploration of the quantum/classical divide
This post offers a paper a wrote a few years ago for a workshop in beautiful Buenos Aires in which we explored the puzzle of distinguishability and indistinguishability in physics. Under what conditions can we consider physical objects distinguishable, and when must we assume they are indistinguishable? It turns out that a somewhat obscure quantity … Continue reading Fun with the chemical potential: an exploration of the quantum/classical divide
Animation: A Quantum Defeat of Maxwell’s Demon
This animation is based on my publication Maxwell's Demon Is Foiled by the Entropy Cost of Measurement, Not Erasure, https://www.mdpi.com/2673-9321/5/2/16 (preprint version: https://philsci-archive.pitt.edu/25388/) https://videopress.com/v/WqIS0pYm?resizeToParent=true&cover=true&preloadContent=metadata&useAverageColor=true The Demon gets ready to violate the 2nd Law, but is in for a surprise!
Presentation in 2021: critique of the conventional claim that symmetrized quantum states are about “redundancy of description”
This is a presentation I gave at a 2021 workshop on Identity and Indistinguishability in quantum systems. (The paper based on this talk appears in this publication: "Quantum Haecceity," Phil. Trans. R. Soc. A. 3812022010620220106. http://doi.org/10.1098/rsta.2022.0106 (2023), available as a preprint here: https://arxiv.org/abs/2301.00502). My talk includes a specific scattering example (electron repulsion) in which there … Continue reading Presentation in 2021: critique of the conventional claim that symmetrized quantum states are about “redundancy of description”
Maxwell’s Demon is Foiled by Measurement, Not By Memory Erasure.
This paper shows that once we take into account that gas molecules are quantum systems, we find that there is an entropy cost to measuring their positions, and that this is what prevents a Maxwell's Demon from violating the second law of thermodynamics. The tradition of taking "memory erasure" (originated by Bennett and Landauer) as … Continue reading Maxwell’s Demon is Foiled by Measurement, Not By Memory Erasure.
RTI is a different theory from conventional quantum mechanics; it passes empirical tests routinely failed by the conventional theory
I continue to get claims that the Transactional Formulation of quantum mechanics (now called RTI) isn't really a "theory" because it doesn't lead to "empirically testable differences" from conventional quantum theory. So I thought I'd share an email reply to someone who recently made this claim: But RTI does lead to empirically testable differences with … Continue reading RTI is a different theory from conventional quantum mechanics; it passes empirical tests routinely failed by the conventional theory
Transactional Interpretation 