Partha Ghose - Böcker

This volume consists of a selection of scholarly essays from literature, philosophy and history on the conception of reality as understood by Rabindranath Tagore and Albert Einstein. The nature of reality has been a long-debated issue among scientists and philosophers. Tagore (1861–1941) met Einstein (1879–1955) at the latter’s house in Kaputh, Germany on 14 July 1930 and had a long conversation on this issue. This conversation has been widely quoted and discussed by scientists, philosophers and scholars from the literary world. The important question that Tagore and Einstein discussed was whether the world is a unity dependent on humanity, or the world is a reality independent of the human factor. Einstein believed that reality is independent of the mind and the human factor. On the other hand, Tagore adopted the opposite view. Nevertheless, both Einstein and Tagore claimed to be realists — their conceptions of reality were obviously fundamentally different. Where does the difference lie? Can it be harmonized at a deeper level? This volume brings together for the first time a gamut of views on this subject from eminent scholars. It presents some key reflections on reality, language, poetry, truth, science, personality, human sciences, virtue ethics, intelligibility and creativity. It will be useful to scholars and researchers of philosophy, literature, history and political studies, as also to those interested in Tagore.

The nature of reality has been a long-debated issue among scientists and philosophers. In 1930, Rabindranath Tagore and Albert Einstein had a long conversation on the nature of reality. This conversation has been widely quoted and discussed by scientists, philosophers and scholars from the literary world. The important question that Tagore and Einstein discussed was whether the world is a unity dependent on humanity, or the world is a reality independent on the human factor. Einstein took the stand adopted by Western philosophers and mathematicians, namely that reality is something independent of the mind and the human factor. Tagore, on the other hand, adopted the opposite view. Nevertheless, both Einstein and Tagore claimed to be realists despite the fundamental differences between their conceptions of reality. Where does the difference lie? Can it be harmonized at some deeper level? Can Wittgenstein, for example, be a bridge between the two views? This collection of essays explores these two fundamentally different conceptions of the nature of reality from the perspectives of theories of space-time, quantum theory, general philosophy of science, cognitive science and mathematics.

Technological advances have made it possible to perform experiments, once considered to be purely gedanken, which test the counterintuitive and bizarre consequences of quantum theory. This book provides simple accounts of these experiments and an understanding of what they aim to prove and why this is important. After introducing the main theoretical concepts and problems with the foundations of quantum mechanics, early chapters discuss experiments in the areas of wave-particle duality, cavity quantum electrodynamics and quantum non-demolition measurement. The text then examines investigation of certain predictions including the Aharanov-Bohm effect, before tackling the problem of macroscopic quantum coherence. Later chapters consider methods of testing the quantum Zeno paradox, collapse, macroscopic quantum jumps, tunnelling times and Einstein-Bell non-locality. Introductions to the theory behind types of measuring devices such as micromasers and those based on the concept of quantum non-demolition are also given. Detailed references are included.

Natural phenomena and ordinary, everyday things often contain surprises and puzzles when we attempt to understand them in terms of basic physical principles. Trying to explain what we see around us can even help us to understand physical principles more fully.Written by two well-known popularizers of science, Riddles in Your Teacup, Second Edition focuses on many puzzles, both simple and advanced, that relate to these phenomena. Revised and enlarged, this fascinating second edition contains challenging questions about everyday scientific mysteries. It presents an amusing and entertaining collection of puzzles and solutions, including some riddles that have continued to defy explanation.

This volume consists of a selection of scholarly essays from literature, philosophy and history on the conception of reality as understood by Rabindranath Tagore and Albert Einstein. The nature of reality has been a long-debated issue among scientists and philosophers. Tagore (1861–1941) met Einstein (1879–1955) at the latter’s house in Kaputh, Germany on 14 July 1930 and had a long conversation on this issue. This conversation has been widely quoted and discussed by scientists, philosophers and scholars from the literary world. The important question that Tagore and Einstein discussed was whether the world is a unity dependent on humanity, or the world is a reality independent of the human factor. Einstein believed that reality is independent of the mind and the human factor. On the other hand, Tagore adopted the opposite view. Nevertheless, both Einstein and Tagore claimed to be realists — their conceptions of reality were obviously fundamentally different. Where does the difference lie? Can it be harmonized at a deeper level? This volume brings together for the first time a gamut of views on this subject from eminent scholars. It presents some key reflections on reality, language, poetry, truth, science, personality, human sciences, virtue ethics, intelligibility and creativity. It will be useful to scholars and researchers of philosophy, literature, history and political studies, as also to those interested in Tagore.

An Interdisciplinary Approach to Cognitive Modelling presents a new approach to cognition that challenges long-held views. It systematically develops a broad-based framework to model cognition, which is mathematically equivalent to the emerging ‘quantum-like modelling’ of the human mind. The book argues that a satisfactory physical and philosophical basis of such an approach is missing, a particular issue being the application of quantization to the mind for which there is no empirical evidence as yet. In response to this issue, the book adopts a COM (classical optical modelling) approach, broad-based but mathematically equivalent to quantum-like modelling while avoiding its problematic features. It presents a philosophically informed and empirically motivated mathematical model of cognition, mainly concerning decision-making processes. It also deals with applications to different areas of the social sciences. It will be of interest to scholars and research students interested in the mathematical modelling of cognition and decision-making, and also interdisciplinary researchers interested in broader issues of cognition.

An Interdisciplinary Approach to Cognitive Modelling presents a new approach to cognition that challenges long-held views. It systematically develops a broad-based framework to model cognition, which is mathematically equivalent to the emerging ‘quantum-like modelling’ of the human mind. The book argues that a satisfactory physical and philosophical basis of such an approach is missing, a particular issue being the application of quantization to the mind for which there is no empirical evidence as yet. In response to this issue, the book adopts a COM (classical optical modelling) approach, broad-based but mathematically equivalent to quantum-like modelling while avoiding its problematic features. It presents a philosophically informed and empirically motivated mathematical model of cognition, mainly concerning decision-making processes. It also deals with applications to different areas of the social sciences. It will be of interest to scholars and research students interested in the mathematical modelling of cognition and decision-making, and also interdisciplinary researchers interested in broader issues of cognition.

Natural phenomena and ordinary, everyday things often contain surprises and puzzles when we attempt to understand them in terms of basic physical principles. Trying to explain what we see around us can even help us to understand physical principles more fully.Written by two well-known popularizers of science, Riddles in Your Teacup, Second Edition focuses on many puzzles, both simple and advanced, that relate to these phenomena. Revised and enlarged, this fascinating second edition contains challenging questions about everyday scientific mysteries. It presents an amusing and entertaining collection of puzzles and solutions, including some riddles that have continued to defy explanation.

The nature of reality has been a long-debated issue among scientists and philosophers. In 1930, Rabindranath Tagore and Albert Einstein had a long conversation on the nature of reality. This conversation has been widely quoted and discussed by scientists, philosophers and scholars from the literary world. The important question that Tagore and Einstein discussed was whether the world is a unity dependent on humanity, or the world is a reality independent on the human factor. Einstein took the stand adopted by Western philosophers and mathematicians, namely that reality is something independent of the mind and the human factor. Tagore, on the other hand, adopted the opposite view. Nevertheless, both Einstein and Tagore claimed to be realists despite the fundamental differences between their conceptions of reality. Where does the difference lie? Can it be harmonized at some deeper level? Can Wittgenstein, for example, be a bridge between the two views? This collection of essays explores these two fundamentally different conceptions of the nature of reality from the perspectives of theories of space-time, quantum theory, general philosophy of science, cognitive science and mathematics.

Second in a series of international workshops in high energy physics, WHEPP II dealt with front- line areas of particle phenomenology with an eye to new physics with planned accelerators. Among the topics discussed were: (a) collider physics and structure functions, (b) B physics, hadronic matrix elements and lattice results, (c) new particle search and model building, (d) LEP results and radiative corrections to electro-weak processes and (e) baryon number violation in electroweak processes.