Read Quantum Theory Cannot Hurt You Online
Authors: Marcus Chown
WAVE FUNCTION A mathematical entity that contains all that is knowable about a quantum object such as an atom. The wave function changes in time and space according to the Schrödinger equation.
WAVELENGTH The distance for a wave to go through a complete oscillation cycle.
WAVE-PARTICLE DUALITY The ability of a subatomic particle to behave as a localised billiard ball-like particle or a spread-out wave.
WEAK NUCLEAR FORCE The second force experienced by protons and neutrons in an atomic nucleus, the other being the strong nuclear force. The weak nuclear force can convert a neutron into a proton and so is involved in beta decay.
WHITE DWARF A star that has run out of fuel and that gravity has compressed until it is about the size of Earth. A white dwarf is supported against further shrinkage by electron degeneracy pressure. A sugar cube of white dwarf material weighs about as much as a family car.
WORMHOLE A tunnel through space-time that connects widely spaced regions and so provides a shortcut.
X-RAYS A high-energy form of light.
Quantum: A Guide for the Perplexed
, by Jim Al-Khalili (Weidenfeld & Nicolson, London, 2003).
Taming the Atom
, by Hans Christian von Baeyer (Penguin, London, 1994).
Minds, Machines, and the Multiverse,
by Julian Brown (Little Brown, New York, 2000).
The Magic Furnace
, by Marcus Chown (Vintage, London, 2000).
The Fabric of Reality
, by David Deutsch (Penguin, London, 1997).
Thirty Years That Shook Physics,
by George Gamow (Dover, New York, 1985).
The Great Physicists from Galileo to Einstein
, by George Gamow (Dover, New York, 1988).
The New Quantum Universe,
by Tony Hey and Patrick Walters, 2nd edition (Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, England, 2004).
The Feynman Lectures on Physics,
edited by Robert Leighton et al. (Addison-Wesley, New York, 1989).
Afterglow of Creation
, by Marcus Chown (University Science Books, Sausalito, California, 1994).
The Universe Next Door,
by Marcus Chown (Headline, London, 2002).
Cosmology
, by Edward Harrison (Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, England, 1991).
The River of Time
, by Igor Novikov (Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, England, 1998).
Einstein’s Legacy,
by Julian Schwinger (Scientific American Library, New York, 1986).
The Physical Universe
, by Frank Shu (University Science Books, Sausalito, California, 1982).
A
Acceleration
curvature of space and,
1
gravity and,
1
Aging
general theory of relativity,
1
gravity effects,
1
special theory of relativity,
1
,
2
Allen, Woody,
1
Alpha particle
definition,
1
tunnelling,
1
Alpher, Ralph,
1
Anaxagoras,
1
Aspect, Alain,
1
Atkinson, Robert,
1
Atmosphere,
1
Atomic theory
origins and development,
1
quantum theory and,
1
structure and properties of atoms,
1
,
2
,
3
structure and properties of matter,
1
,
2
types of atoms,
1
uncertainty principle,
1
Attraction, atomic,
1
B
Becquerel, Henri,
1
Beginning of Universe.
See
Big Bang
Bernoulli, Daniel,
1
Big Bang
cosmic background radiation as evidence of,
1
,
2
,
3
distribution of matter after,
1
,
2
entanglement and,
1
expansion of universe after,
1
explanatory power,
1
general theory of relativity and,
1
,
2
inflation theory,
1
singularity at moment of,
1
visibility of stars and,
1
Big Crunch,
1
Binary calculations,
1
n
Binnig, Gerd,
1
Biosphere,
1
Black body,
1
Black holes
definition and properties,
1
,
2
,
3
Einstein’s theory,
1
energy conversion in,
1
event horizon,
1
gravity in,
1
in quasars,
1
singularity in,
1
Bohr, Niels,
1
Bose-Einstein condensation,
1
Bosons
behaviour in presence of other bosons,
1
definition,
1
fermions behaving as,
1
Boyle, Robert,
1
Bragg, William,
1
Breathing, shared atoms in,
1
Brown, Julian,
1
Brown, Robert,
1
Bruno, Giordano,
1
C
Carbon,
1
Centrifugal force,
1
Chance, in quantum theory,
1
Chandrasekhar, Subrahmanyan,
1
Chandrasekhar limit,
1
Chemistry, atomic basis of,
1
,
2
Chiao, Raymond,
1
Chronology protection conjecture,
1
Cloud chamber,
1
Compton effect,
1
Computers, quantum.
See
Quantum computers
Contraction of universe,
1
Cooper pairs,
1
Copenhagen Interpretation,
1
Cosmic Background Explorer Satellite,
1
Cosmic background radiation,
1
discovery,
1
Cosmology,
1
D
Decay
atomic,
1
of organic matter,
1
Deutsch, David,
1
Double slit experiment
design,
1
indistinguishability and,
1
uncertainty principle and,
1
E
Eclipse, solar,
1
Einstein, Albert,
1
,
2
,
3
,
4
,
5
,
6
,
7
,
8
,
9
,
10
,
11
,
12
,
13
,
14
,
15
,
16
,
17
,
18
,
19
,
20
,
21
Electricity
electric current,
1
electrical charge,
1
photoelectric effect,
1
Electromagnetism
special theory of relativity,
1
Electrons,
1
in Cooper pairs,
1
discovery,
1
ejection event,
1
indistinguishability,
1
in photoelectric effect,
1
spin,
1
in stars,
1
uncertainty principle,
1
velocity,
1
wave frequency,
1
See also
Fermions
Emptiness
quantum vacuum,
1
Energy
atomic weight and,
1
in black holes,
1
dark energy,
1
in electron orbit jump,
1
in empty space,
1
gravity effects,
1
hydrogen bomb,
1
mass converted into,
1
of motion,
1
to reach speed of light,
1
of stars,
1
Entanglement,
1
Event horizon,
1
Everett, Hugh, III,
1
Exclusion principle.
See
Pauli exclusion principle
Expanding universe
discovery of,
1
future of,
1
rate,
1
See also
Inflation of Universe
F
Faraday, Michael,
1
Fermions
boson behaviour in,
1
definition,
1
probability waveflipping and,
1
Feynman, Richard,
1
,
2
,
3
,
4
,
5
n
,
6
,
7
Fourth dimension,
1
Frame dragging,
1
Frequencies, wave,
1
Friedman, Aleksandr,
1
G
Galaxies
dark matter of,
1
distribution,
1
in expanding universe,
1
Gamboge particles,
1
Gas, pressure of,
1
General theory of relativity
bending of light in,
1
gravity waves in,
1
nonlinearity of,
1
principles of,
1
quantum theory and,
1
time travel and,
1
Geodesics,
1
Gravitational red shift,
1
n
Gravitons,
1
Gravity
acceleration and,
1
bending of light by,
1
of dark matter,
1
effects on time,
1
experience of,
1
frame dragging,
1
general theory of relativity,
1
as inertial force,
1
mass and,
1
Newtonian conceptualisation,
1
particle carriers of,
1
in production of energy,
1
quantum theory of,
1
repulsive force and,
1
sources of,
1
speed of,
1
as warped space,
1
without mass,
1
Ground state,
1
Guth, Alan,
1