This thesis attempts to explain Everettian quantum mechanics from the ground up, such that those with little to no experience in quantum physics can understand it. First, we introduce the history of quantum theory, and some concepts that make up the framework of quantum physics. Through these concepts, we reveal why interpretations are necessary to map the quantum world onto our classical world. We then introduce the Copenhagen interpretation, and how many-worlds differs from it. From there, we dive into the concepts of entanglement and decoherence, explaining how worlds branch in an Everettian universe, and how an Everettian universe can appear as our classical observed world. From there, we attempt to answer common questions about many-worlds and discuss whether there are philosophical ramifications to believing such a theory. Finally, we look at whether the many-worlds interpretation can be proven, and why one might choose to believe it.

The purpose of this paper is to provide an analysis of entanglement and the particular problems it poses for some physicists. In addition to looking at the history of entanglement and non-locality, this paper will use the Bell Test as a means for demonstrating how entanglement works, which measures the behavior of electrons whose combined internal angular momentum is zero. This paper will go over Dr. Bell's famous inequality, which shows why the process of entanglement cannot be explained by traditional means of local processes. Entanglement will be viewed initially through the Copenhagen Interpretation, but this paper will also look at two particular models of quantum mechanics, de-Broglie Bohm theory and Everett's Many-Worlds Interpretation, and observe how they explain the behavior of spin and entangled particles compared to the Copenhagen Interpretation.

This paper analyzes the history and impact of the double-slit experiment on the world of physics. The experiment was initially created by Thomas Young in the early nineteenth century to prove that light behaved as a wave, and the experiment’s findings ended up being foundational to the classical wave theory of light. Decades later, the experiment was replicated once more with electrons instead of light and shockingly demonstrated that electrons possessed a dual nature of behavior in that they acted in some instances as particles and in others as waves. Despite numerous modifications and replications, the dual behavior of electrons has never been definitively explained. Numerous interpretations of quantum mechanics all offer their own explanations of the double-slit experiment’s results. Notably, the Copenhagen Interpretation states that an observer measuring a quantum system, such as the double-slit experiment, causes the electrons to behave classically (i.e. as a particle.) The Many Worlds Interpretation offers that multiple branching worlds come into existence to represent the physical occurrence of all probable outcomes of the double-slit experiment. In these and other interpretations, explanations of the double-slit experiment are key to proving their respective dogmas. The double-slit experiment has historically been very important to the worlds of both classical and quantum physics and is still being modified and replicated to this day. It is clear that it will continue to remain relevant even in the future of physics.

With the extreme strides taken in physics in the early twentieth century, one of the biggest questions on the minds of scientists was what this new branch of quantum physics would be able to be used for. The twentieth century saw the rise of computers as devices that significantly aided in calculations and performing algorithms. Because of the incredible success of computers and all of the groundbreaking possibilities that they afforded, research into using quantum mechanics for these systems was proposed. Although theoretical at the time, it was found that a computer that had the ability to leverage quantum mechanics would be far superior to any classical machine. This sparked a wave of interest in research and funding in this exciting new field. General-use quantum computers have the potential to disrupt countless industries and fields of study, like physics, medicine, engineering, cryptography, finance, meteorology, climatology, and more. The supremacy of quantum computers has not yet been reached, but the continued funding and research into this new technology ensures that one day humanity will be able to unlock the full potential of quantum computing.

With the dissolution of the old forms of power has come a new heteronomy: that of the screen. The individual is in stasis, caught between the old forms of control and the new, but unable to imagine a better, liberated future. What is responsible for this interregnum? The answer lies in analyzing these new forms of control, their effects on the subject, and the material, historical processes behind them. This paper looks specifically at social media and how it has come to limit autonomy and commodify human experience and personhood. Drawing from Theodor Adorno’s Theory of Pseudo Culture, it seeks to describe the ways in which social media both erodes and administers subjectivity. Culture, now subject to the economic imperatives of capitalism, no longer contributes to the development of individuality. By referencing Karl Marx’s Capital and C. Wright Mill’s “The Competitive Personality”, this paper describes how social media expands commercial imperatives outside of the bounds of the workplace and into everyday life. The paper concludes by drawing on Herbert Marcuse’s One Dimensional Man in order to describe how social media neutralizes oppositional sentiments. Even the seemingly spontaneous expressions of dissent found on social media become a conservative force, stymieing real world organization through the repressive desublimation of revolt. In addition to understanding the dominating effects of the screen, this paper seeks to map the contours of neoliberal subjectivity.

I wrote a literary analysis on the early history of quantum mechanics and the discovery of quantum tunneling. Quantum tunneling has led to the discovery of explanations of ideas like alpha decay radioactivity and the invention of the scanning tunneling microscope (STM). In this paper, I discussed these two topics, with a focus on the STM.

This study investigates whether an experience as a novice can help alleviate expert blindness in Arizona State University faculty. Expert blindness, also known as the expert blind spot, is a phenomenon in which an expert in any subject finds it difficult to teach because they are so advanced at it. Many faculty have taught the same subject for so long that certain things that are difficult for beginners in their courses are trivial for the expert. In this experiment, ASU faculty were given five weeks of instruction to learn to solve the Rubik’s Cube in five minutes or less. Before and after the five-week experience, the participants took the Interpersonal Reactivity Index assessment, which measures empathy. Throughout the Rubik’s Cube challenge, the faculty were also asked discussion questions and invited to participate in informal interviews. The study finds a significant increase in the “empathic concern” of the participants after the experience, with a sample size of five participants. The qualitative interview data confirms the survey data, and the main sentiments of the professors after going through the experience were distilled into four main themes: (a) patience and reflection; (b) individualized approaches; (c) trying, failing, and improving; (d) knowing what and when to explain. An effective teacher who is aware of their tendency towards expert blindness should be aware of these four themes and strive to include them in their own teaching. The study recommends that universities and companies should have “beginner experiences” at regular intervals to remind experts what it is like to be a beginner again. These experiences not only mitigate the expert blind spot but promote lifelong learning and an active brain.