October 16, 2021 – Prof. Kastner discusess the need for a paradigm change in the way we think about the world. When she says ‘we,’ she means primarily the Western scientific tradition and its attendant metaphysical and epistemological background assumptions, which have led to intractable problems in making sense of quantum theory. Among the assumptions leading us into this cul-de-sac are the empiricist notion that anything real must be tangible, and the Democritan notions that (1) a container called ‘spacetime’ is the delimiter for all real objects and that (2) real entities are separable, localizable ‘things’ that move from place to place in a local manner (as opposed to processes). A further Western background assumption is the notion that all dynamical action occurs in a unilateral fashion: e.g., that a physical quantity (e.g. energy) is emitted by one entity that does all the work and ends up at another spacetime point as a purely passive, secondary effect. The latter can be understood as a ‘Yang-only’ view of interactions, where Yang-type processes are generation, initiation, and creation. In contrast, Yin-type processes include reception, response, and dissolution. The Western paradigm neglects this latter aspect, and one consequence is that it has for many years overlooked an approach to field propagation that could shed new light on the physical meaning of quantum theory.

Prof. Kastner connects our current quantum conundrum to the insights of physician/psychologist Iain McGilchrist, who has argued that Western culture has emphasized left-brain thinking (based on separation, analysis, and control) and neglected right-brain thinking (based on holism, synthesis, and intuition), which is equally valid and necessary. This holistic aspect includes the mode of possibility, while the analytical, left-brain component sees only actuality.

Ruth Kastner, PhD, has taught widely and conducted research in Foundations of Physics, particularly in interpretations of quantum theory.

Length: 2 hours