In Our Time: Science

The Physics of Reality


Listen Later

Melvyn Bragg examines the physics of reality. When Quantum Mechanics was developed in the early 20th century reality changed forever. In the quantum world particles could be in two places at once, they disappeared for no reason and reappeared in unpredictable locations, they even acted differently according to whether we were watching them. It was so shocking that Erwin Schrodinger, one of the founders of Quantum Theory, said "I don’t like it and I'm sorry I ever had anything to do with it." He even developed an experiment with a cat to show how absurd it was. Quantum Theory was absurd, it disagreed with the classical physics of Newton and Einstein and it clashed with our experience of the everyday world. Footballs do not disappear without reason, cats do not split into two and shoes do not act differently when we are not looking at them. Or do they? Eighty years later we are still debating whether the absurd might actually be true. But why are features of quantum physics not seen in our experience of everyday reality? Can the classical and quantum worlds be reconciled, and why should reality make sense to us? With Roger Penrose, Emeritus Rouse Ball Professor of Mathematics, Oxford University; Fay Dowker, Lecturer in Theoretical Physics, Queen Mary, University of London; Tony Sudbery, Professor of Mathematics, University of York.

...more
View all episodesView all episodes
Download on the App Store

In Our Time: ScienceBy BBC Radio 4

  • 4.6
  • 4.6
  • 4.6
  • 4.6
  • 4.6

4.6

681 ratings


More shows like In Our Time: Science

View all
In Our Time by BBC Radio 4

In Our Time

5,407 Listeners

The Documentary Podcast by BBC World Service

The Documentary Podcast

1,832 Listeners

Global News Podcast by BBC World Service

Global News Podcast

7,678 Listeners

History Extra podcast by Immediate Media

History Extra podcast

3,204 Listeners

5 Live Science Podcast by BBC Radio 5 Live

5 Live Science Podcast

109 Listeners

6 Minute English by BBC Radio

6 Minute English

1,820 Listeners

Learning English Conversations by BBC Radio

Learning English Conversations

1,076 Listeners

Science In Action by BBC World Service

Science In Action

345 Listeners

Witness History by BBC World Service

Witness History

959 Listeners

The Infinite Monkey Cage by BBC Radio 4

The Infinite Monkey Cage

1,940 Listeners

Newshour by BBC World Service

Newshour

1,051 Listeners

In Our Time: History by BBC Radio 4

In Our Time: History

1,904 Listeners

In Our Time: Culture by BBC Radio 4

In Our Time: Culture

594 Listeners

In Our Time: Religion by BBC Radio 4

In Our Time: Religion

280 Listeners

In Our Time: Philosophy by BBC Radio 4

In Our Time: Philosophy

857 Listeners

The Life Scientific by BBC Radio 4

The Life Scientific

236 Listeners

Unexpected Elements by BBC World Service

Unexpected Elements

353 Listeners

BBC Inside Science by BBC Radio 4

BBC Inside Science

396 Listeners

Curious Cases by BBC Radio 4

Curious Cases

818 Listeners

You're Dead to Me by BBC Radio 4

You're Dead to Me

2,981 Listeners

The Supermassive Podcast by The Royal Astronomical Society

The Supermassive Podcast

284 Listeners

The Ancients by History Hit

The Ancients

2,949 Listeners