Copenhagen Interpretation
The Copenhagen Interpretation, developed primarily by Danish physicist Niels Bohr (1885–1962) and other researchers in Copenhagen in the first third of the twentieth century, is the standard interpretation of quantum mechanics. It ascribes physical reality only to observed reality. Quantum mechanics can predict only the probability that measurements will have particular outcomes. No observation has ever been found to conflict with the experimental predictions of this theory. However, there is much debate about the correctness of this interpretation of the measurement process, and there are several rival interpretations of quantum mechanics, notably the Many Worlds Interpretation proposed in 1957 by physicists Hugh Everett and John Wheeler. A major problem of the Copenhagen Interpretation is the lack of a precise definition of what constitutes a "measurement" or an "observation." It is also problematic if a theory of quantum cosmology is to be developed because the Copenhagen Interpretation requires an "observer" for the universe.
Bibliography
Deutsch, David. The Fabric of Reality. London: Penguin, 1997.
Herbert, Nick. Quantum Reality: Beyond the New Physics. London: Rider, 1985.
Rae, Alistair I. M. Quantum Physics: Illusion or Reality? Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1986.
JOHN D. BARROW
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