Predictions and Primitive Ontology in Quantum Foundations: A Study of Examples

A major disagreement between different views about the foundations of quantum mechanics concerns whether for a theory to be intelligible as a fundamental physical theory it must involve a 'primitive ontology' (PO), i.e. variables describing the distribution of matter in four-dimensional sp...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The British journal for the philosophy of science 2014-06, Vol.65 (2), p.323-352
Main Authors: Allori, Valia, Goldstein, Sheldon, Tumulka, Roderich, Zanghì, Nino
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Density
Laws of Motion
Ontological pluralism
Ontology
Physical theory
Physics
Quantum field theory
Quantum mechanics
Quantum physics
Quantum theory
Spacetime
Wave functions
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Summary:A major disagreement between different views about the foundations of quantum mechanics concerns whether for a theory to be intelligible as a fundamental physical theory it must involve a 'primitive ontology' (PO), i.e. variables describing the distribution of matter in four-dimensional space–time. In this article, we illustrate the value of having a PO. We do so by focussing on the role that the PO plays for extracting predictions from a given theory and discuss valid and invalid derivations of predictions. To this end, we investigate a number of examples based on toy models built from the elements of familiar interpretations of quantum theory.¹
ISSN:0007-0882
1464-3537
DOI:10.1093/bjps/axs048