In June 2024, the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) declared 2025 the International Year of Quantum Science and Technology (IYQ). IYQ, under the leadership of UNESCO, marks the 100th anniversary of the discovery of the foundations of quantum physics.

Quantum mechanics (the underlying theory of quantum physics) reveals that all matter in the universe itself appears deeply connected, in ways that may have been empirically demonstrated but which cannot be ‘understood’ because “…the imagination of nature is far greater than the imagination of man” (Richard Feynman). Let’s examine the power of nature’s imagination, and the three pillars of quantum mechanics. 

The Heisenberg uncertainty principle

In September 1924, the Danish physicist Niels Bohr invited the 23 year-old Werner Heisenberg to Copenhagen. 

Bohr needed the brilliant assistant professor at the University of Göttingen to help make sense of his formulas describing the strange behavior of electrons. His mathematical calculations showed that the electrons in atoms were circling around the nucleus of an atom on certain precise orbits from which they magically leap to other precise orbits. 

Tucked away on the island of Helgoland, the German scientist attempted to solve the riddle. What he discovered in June 1925 was that subatomic particles refuse to obey the laws of physics, at least those Sir Isaac Newton had laid down two centuries earlier. What was soon to become known as the Heisenberg uncertainty principle postulated that while the position and velocity of an apple falling from a tree can be determined with ultimate precision, only either the position or the momentum of any subatomic particle can be determined, but never both at the same time.

What’s more, taking a measurement or the simple act of observing particles somehow disturbs them: measuring a particle’s exact position affects its momentum, and vice versa. The observer affects the observed, mind appears to change matter.

The Schrödinger Equation

Six months after Heisenberg’s trip to Helgoland, in December 1925, the Austrian physicist Erwin Schrödinger took a train to Arosa, the popular mountain resort in the Swiss alps a few hours away from Zurich. Upon his return to the University of Zurich, where he was a professor of theoretical physics, Schrödinger mentions to a colleague that he had barely touched his skis because he had been working on “a few calculations which had been on my mind for a while.” What resulted was the second big breakthrough in the history of particle physics, hitherto known as the “Schrödinger Equation.”

Quantum mechanics as a theory consists of two distinct, interrelated spheres: the formal mathematical framework (Schrödinger’s “few calculations”) and the interpretations it allows about the physical universe (i.e., what they tell us about the world).

The Schrödinger Equation can accommodate multiple, radically different interpretations. Its most common, almost universally accepted interpretation is the “Copenhagen Interpretation.” It postulates that every particle in the universe can in principle be described by a mathematical function, its ‘wave function.’ Atomic particles, as has since been shown in countless experiments, can spread out like waves and be in more than one place at the same time – until the moment they are being observed: the wave function ‘collapses’ and a particle assumes a definite position in space and time. Until then, we cannot even be sure that they exist, all we can know is a certain probability (described by the wave function) that something will appear in one place or another.

Entanglement

Surprisingly to many, Albert Einstein, one of the greatest scientists of all time, did not play a pivotal role in the ‘new physics’ revolution. Although some of his discoveries laid the foundation for quantum mechanics, he wasn’t among its founding fathers. If anything, he would have contested his parenthood.

Einstein, malgré lui, contributed what many physicists call the most important scientific discovery ever made: quantum entanglement. In 1935, Einstein and two collaborators challenged the completeness of quantum mechanics, suggesting that yet to be discovered ‘hidden variables’ might explain certain strange behaviors of particles. Even for a scientist as imaginative as Einstein, quantum entanglement was too outlandish, too counterintuitive to accept.

Subatomic particles have many different properties, among which ‘spin,’ a kind of angular momentum – ‘up’ or ‘down,’ ‘right’ or ‘left.’ The sub-atomic particle in an EPR experiment may for instance be a pi meson. Since it is highly unstable, it will quickly decay into an electron and a positron, a positively charged antimatter counterpart of an electron. In a typical experiment, the electron would be contained within a particle accelerator, let’s say at CERN near Geneva, while the positron speeds away in the direction of Mars where we assume CERN has conveniently set up a subsidiary. The positron reaches Mars, and the resident CERN physicist duly captures it with a detector.

As previously arranged between the two colleagues, at a specific moment in time, the Martian changes the positron’s spin from ‘up’ to ‘down.’ The Earthling, taking measures on her electron, notices that the spin of the particle instantly (and not four minutes later, the time light takes to travel the distance between Mars and Earth) switches from ‘down’ to ‘up.’ The two particles mysteriously remained connected, responding to a change in their alter ego by an instantaneous and corresponding change. A crucial frequent misconception (shared by Einstein) is that the two particles must somehow be communicating with each other, yet in reality no information transfer takes place. Entanglement means that separated systems remain correlated, continuing to act as a single entity although they might be at opposite ends of the universe.

Albert Einstein died in 1955 without having come to terms with this key pillar of quantum theory because entanglement and non-locality appeared to be contradicting his own theory of relativity. This is expressed in the famous equation E=mc2, setting the cosmic speed limit. Nothing in the universe can travel at a speed faster than light as its mass would become infinitely large. If two subatomic particles—one on Earth and the other on Mars—can influence each other simultaneously, then we have to give up our intuitive notion of space and time.  

Is there solace in quantum?

So much for the physics of particles. But is there ary deeper meaning in quantum mechanics or shall we “move on, nothing to see here”? Erwin Schrödinger, in a lecture titled ‘Mind and Matter’ at Oxford’s Trinity College in 1956, speculated that the microscopic quantum world might influence the macroscopic world, and vice versa.

Contemporary scientists from a variety of disciplines—biology, neuroscience and chemistry—have discovered that quantum phenomena, including entanglement, are fundamental to the evolution and the functioning of biological systems, including photosynthesis, the human brain, or the avian compass. There are indications that quantum physics could even provide the clues for the resolution of the biggest puzzle of all: consciousness.

Quantum mechanics suggest that there is a connection between the material world and the immaterial world of mind and consciousness. 

Many leading figures in quantum physics articulated a longing for connection. Max Born, Heisenberg’s mentor, in his 1920 introduction to Einstein’s Theory of Relativity, wrote that all disciplines—religion, philosophy, and science—sought to transform the ‘I’ into the ‘we,’ to expand individual consciousness into a collective understanding.

This transformation from ‘I’ to ‘we’ is not just about expanding consciousness, but also about fostering empathy, cooperation, and a shared sense of purpose. 

While Born emphasizes the transformation of individual consciousness into a collective understanding, isolationism leans toward prioritizing national interests over global cooperation. The United Nations and UNESCO advocate for collaboration and shared humanity as the foundation for lasting peace. It underscores the need for global citizens to work together, free from hate and intolerance, to tackle pressing issues like climate change, biodiversity crisis, and digital progress. This vision resonates with Born’s idea of collective growth and empathy, emphasizing that progress is achieved through cooperation rather than division. Maybe there is solace in quantum, after all.