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Metaphors in
Quantum Mechanics
Quantum mechanics describes fundamental natural phenomena
that are not accessible for direct human perception. Not surprisingly, it
appears from empirical data that QM phenomena (quantum world) are just not
compatible with classical images, notions, relations created by perceptions of ‘classical
world’ directly accessible to human senses. The undeniable fully natural empirical
fact is that the quantum world cannot be expressed in terms of the classical
world language. The only solution found by great physicists (Schrodinger, Heisenberg,
Pauli and others) is that QM phenomena may be completely described by the formal
language of mathematics. Luckily, classical language appears helpful
at formulating the results of QM math connections by appropriate “metaphors” from
classical phenomena. The most known metaphors are from inanimate classical
images as “particles”, “waves”, “local orbits”, “nonlocal entanglement” etc., they
are related to nearly passive quantum phenomena. Different
quantum phenomena are the substantially active ones such as QM wave function
collapse. It seems that those may be appropriately described by metaphors taken
from classical world of animate phenomena. In particular, it seems that the QM
basic phenomenon of wave function collapse may be illustrated by the metaphor
of “unconditional reflex” from physiology.
Of cause, it is not necessary to point
to deeper meaning of that metaphor.
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