(Part 2) Best products from r/quantum

Sorry, I'm just reading your comment now, 2 months late.

You touched on an important point though. Actually, it's sort of the reason I asked this question because I didn't want to get any false ideas. Remember this, the Copenhagen interpretation (just like the several other interpretations) are trying to explain things that we see in practice, in the real world. Any interpretation has to explain the experimental results.

The experimental evidence says our world is clearly stranger than our common sense/experience tells us. Like you said, "Where did the first classical system come from"? If observation occurs because something in a quantum state interacted with something in a "classical" state (whatever that is), what was the first observation that collapsed the first wave.

Many people will try to brush this aside, which is also part of Copenhagen, but really it's a question that's somewhat left to philosophers. Some people say "God" or "Consciousness", others channel the Many Worlds interpretation. Either way, we don't know how to explain why the universe appears classical because the world is definitely modeled most accurately by Quantum Theory. Researchers are putting bigger and bigger things into superposition all the time. Even objects big-enough to be visible to the naked-eye

If you're interested in that subject, check out the Quantum Enigma. It asks these questions in depth, and it's not one of those new-age books that are so easily dismissible.

When I was in high school, I learned from Georg Joos' Theoretical Physics. While it is a little dated (1934), it gives you a solid introduction to classical and quantum physics.

Also, you need to learn mathematics. Lots of it. It would be impossible to seriously explore physics until you have at least have a thorough understanding of multivariate calculus and linear algebra. If you only know bits of high school calculus, but are strong in geometry, I highly recommend Maxwell's Matter and Motion and An Elementary Treatise of Electricity.

I just read this and its absolutely amazing.

http://www.amazon.com/Quantum-Perplexed-Dr-Jim-Al-Khalili/dp/1841882380

I have a technical background, but I have no reason to work through the math as a casual reader. This is a great explanation of QM without delving into the mathematical aspect too far.

There is this book: https://www.amazon.com/Quantum-Physics-Babies-Baby-University/dp/1492656224

And this paper: https://arxiv.org/abs/quant-ph/0510032

But in my (biased) opinion, it's hard to appreciate quantum science without the mathematics. I think it would make sense to just keep your kids interested in science in general, and then as they mature mathematically/scientifically introduce some quantum. It makes no sense to talk about quantum with someone who doesn't know what probability is or possibly even what an electron/photon is or maybe even what a wave is.

I think there are definitely some prerequisites needed in order to actually discuss quantum physics properly.

Not exactly what you are looking for, but the textbook with the lowest barrier to entry is (imo) QFT for the Gifted Amateur.

I would say that after Griffiths's QM book (also recommended) you are ready for your first (but probably not your last) attempt at Gifted Amateur.

If you know calculus, all you are lacking to get started on Griffiths is linear algebra.

Good luck!

the thing is, nowadays most of the people believe that science and spirituality are two different things. but for a person who understands that both are same become great physicists such as Albert Einstein, Nikola Tesla, Robert Oppenheimer and so many names to be counted.

in fact, the birth of modern physics was somehow done by the Indian Sage SWAMI VIVEKANANDA. in https://www.amazon.in/Modern-Physics-Vedanta-Swami-Jitatmananda/dp/8172762860?tag=googinhydr18418-21&tag=googinkenshoo-21&ascsubtag=c00634fd-e7ab-4f48-8ff3-4949604753dc this book you can find the relation between quantum mechanics and the consciousness.

or even regarding more to know then you can refer the complete work of Swami Vivekananda in his book- Vedanta

Not weird at all. When you find out how weird quantum physics is, it's hard not to be interested. I first read about it at around the same age and it's fascinated me ever since.

If you haven't yet, read Feynman's QED, which is a great introduction from a famous physicist. The only math is a little arithmetic.

If you've got some EE experience, then Quantum Mechanics for Electrical Engineers might be for you. With your background, I'd approach QM from a signal processing point of view: a free particle will have energy eigenstates that are sine waves.

For a concise introduction to the concepts without all the jargon I’d recommend “Q is for Quantum” by Terry Rudolph. It doesn’t assume university-level maths like most of others, and yet it gets to explain most of the fundamental aspects without getting tangled in technicalities. For a tester of his style you can check his inaugural lecture on YouTube!

https://www.amazon.com/Q-Quantum-Terry-Rudolph/dp/0999063502

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=JKGZDhQoR9E

>I'd point out the numerous conceptual errors you showed in that last comment (eg. according to special relativity, photons don't have mass, because they move at the speed of light), but I'm clearly wasting my time here.

Anyone who actually knows what they’re talking about wouldn’t even use the term “the speed of light.” Einstein’s famous equation refers to the speed of the smallest form of energy we know of in a vacuum (P.S: the universe is by no means a vacuum; there’s mass everywhere). Photons travel more slowly around objects with large mass, which is why light can’t escape black holes.

You make far too many assumptions based on unfinished data. Again, there was a point where atoms were only theorized to exist. This theory is simply the next step.

>I'll leave with a book recommendation. Don't worry, it doesn't have any math.

I appreciate the recommendation, but not so much the condescending remark. It’s not that I have trouble with math; I’m just not going to learn equations that are not needed to prove/falsify my own theory. The equation I have now doesn’t work and is useless and meaningless, I get that. It’s a work in progress.

A good reference book is Mathematical Methods in the Physical Sciences by Mary Boas

Amazon link

Though a bit outdated, Jammer is a good place to start:

http://www.amazon.com/Philosophy-Quantum-Mechanics-Interpretations-Perspective/dp/0471439584

This recent arxiv article classifies various interpretations -- to learn more about each interpretation follow the citation trail:

http://arxiv.org/pdf/1509.04711.pdf

This book by Michael Raymer is a good start.

Susskind's Quantum Mechanics: The Theoretical Minimum is a good, informal place to start. I'd read it before tackling Griffiths or Sakurai. For a quick brush-up on the math, you could try Shankar's Basic Training in Mathematics: A Fitness Program for Science Students, but the basics of calculus, diff eq, abstract & linear algebra will get you started.

Yes. Dr Lawrence Krauss wrote the answer to that in a book. Here's a video too.
http://www.amazon.com/Universe-Nothing-There-Something-Rather/dp/1451624468
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sbsGYRArH_w

I'd recommend reading this book. It'll answer all your questions.

https://www.amazon.com/Beyond-Measure-Physics-Philosophy-Meaning/dp/0198525362

What if reality is like a book and we're measuring weight, width, letter and word frequencies instead of reading the meaning? Maybe there's a whole other dimension to reality that we are discounting -- meaning. In this view particles are actually symbols of meaning or information. Anyway, this is kind of what the Semantic Interpretation proposes - its insights are from Indian philosophy and the everyday experience of knowledge and language as realities in this world. There's more detail in the this book's description. The premise is: What if atoms are not things but ideas?

Yes, I read it before telling people what it was.

No, I don't want your reading list. I already have quantum computing since democritus to finish, quantum computing and information to re-read, and quantum machine learning to buy.

Who doesn't wonder about being wrong every day?