Context
Helgoland refers to an archipelago in the North Sea where in 1925 Heisenberg formulated his ideas on quantum physics. It was a view that differed from that of Schrödinger and the associated Copenhagen interpretation, which later dominated physics. In this explanation every particle has an associated wave which can interfere with itself. This wave is characteristic of the probability of finding a particle at a point in space. However, when the position of the particle is measured the wave collapses into itself at the position of measurement. The particle is not in any state until measured, which means that quantum physics is probabilistic and indeterministic.
The problem with quantum physics is not that the theory disagrees with experiments. All experiments agree with the Copenhagen interpretation. It's the philosophy that doesn't add up. Researchers have come up with the alternative 'many worlds' theory, which argues that the universe is a single evolving wave function and there is no collapse.
Rovelli was inspired by Einstein's theory of relativity to propose a new interpretation of quantum physics. He argues that the wave properties are simply due to the observer's lack of knowledge about the system. It is not absolute and so different observers have different information and thus different interpretations of the quantum system. Yet, if the observers share their information they should agree. Applied to Schrödinger’s cat Rovelli affirms that the cat in the box will always know if it is alive from its own information. The researcher outside the box does not know the current state of the cat, which is shown in a wave interference pattern. When the box is opened the cat and the researcher will agree on the cat's state.
Rovelli’s relational approach is similar to Heisenberg's when he formulated quantum physics as a series of relationships between objects. That reduces physics to relationships between objects. Relational quantum physics resolves the question of observer, measurement, and wavefunction collapse by stating that everything is an observer. Measurement is any process that shares information between observers. Wavefunction is no longer a physical process since there is no physical wave that changes behaviour when measured. It becomes a manifestation of the sharing of information between observers.
Relational quantum mechanics cannot be tested experimentally, but it agrees with what is already known in the existing models.
Commentary
Helgoland, Making Sense of the Quantum Revolution was first published in Italian in 2020.
Heisenberg
In 1925 Werner Heisenberg went to Helgoland to relieve his attacks of hay fever. There he began to challenge the classical model of physics. He recognised that electrons did not fit into that model of fixed, measurable variables, since they behaved unpredictably, moving between specific energy states.
At the same time Erwin Schrödinger imagined electrons as waves, a different interpretation. Both accurately described atomic behaviour, which led to the need for new, quantum rules.
Superpositions
Traditional notions of reality were overturned by Schrödinger’s cat thought experiment where contradictory states occur. In quantum mechanics a photon can exist in multiple states until observed and this required new interpretations. The many-worlds and hidden variables theories seek to answer these paradoxes.
Relational Interpretation
Quantum mechanics has suggested that the observer collapses probabilities into concrete measurements. The author's relational interpretation argues that interactions shape reality, not just observation. This hypothesis holds that no entity exists in isolation, properties emerge from interrelationships. For example, speed is related to a reference point. In the case of Schrödinger's cat its state is defined by the situation inside the box; the outside observer views it in superposition because there is no interaction.
As relational theory focuses on relationships instead of fixed qualities, it shows the universe in constant flux. This leads to the philosophical conclusion that there are no universal truths, only context-based realities.
Entanglement
In entanglement, one particle, when measured, immediately affects the state of its paired particle over any distance.
The relational interpretation of this phenomenon explains that entanglement is the emergence of properties through interaction. The particles do not have definite states until an observer interacts with them. It is relationships, not isolated properties, that drive behaviours at the quantum level.
Philosophy and Quantum Thinking
Mach had already offered ideas against the mechanistic universe before Heisenberg's quantum insights. He affirmed that science should describe what can be observed rather than theorised in abstraction. Heisenberg applied these principles to study electrons. This integration of philosophy and physics demonstrates how interdisciplinary thinking can allow breakthroughs.
The Hard Problem of Consciousness
The hard problem of consciousness has its roots in Cartesian rationalism and the mind/matter question. It deals with how to explain that a physical entity like the brain can produce non-physical ideas.
"If we think in terms of processes, events, in terms of relative properties, of a world of relations, the hiatus between physical phenomena and mental phenomena is much less dramatic. Bridging physics and consciousness."
Relational quantum theory argues that the mind interprets reality through connections between internal awareness and external events. If you see a huge bolder falling, your brain constructs the message: danger! This capacity to link perception and action is the basis of cognition. It explains the physical process, yet says nothing about the experience of awareness or its nature, which is the hard problem.
Seeing Reality Differently
Scientific research suggests that sight is not a passive receptor of light, but an active process in which the brain predicts what it expects. Relational quantum argues that perception relies on interpreting discrepancies between predictions and incoming data. It treats reality not as static truth, but as a dynamic web of interactions. We redefine our understanding of reality in a constantly changing manner. The process is just as important as the conclusions reached.
Uncertainty and Probability
Contrary to classical physics, whose results appeared predictable since the variables might determine the conclusion, quantum mechanics introduced uncertainty as a principal characteristic of the universe. Heisenberg's uncertainty principle affirms that you cannot precisely measure a particle's position and momentum at the same time. This replaced Newton's predictable universe with a world which works on probabilities, not certainties.
Experimentation
Quantum physics goes beyond facts to reveal how we think. Scientific progress is achieved through experimentation and revising previous beliefs and assumptions. This dynamises an enquiring approach which seeks to connect disciplines.
Themes
The Nature of Reality
Rovelli rejects the traditional distinction between observer and observed. He argues that reality in the quantum area is not static but a question of relationships, defined by their interactions. That is based on the quantum mechanics vision that particles have no definitive properties until measured. It illustrates that both the observer and the act of observation play central roles in shaping reality. This encourages us to question the assumption that an objective reality exists, in isolation from our perception and cognition.
Entanglement
Understood within Rovelli's interconnected vision of the universe, entanglement, where two particles are linked in a dependent state at a distance, bears witness to the non-localisation of reality. This defocuses the boundaries of independent existence and connects with the philosophical traditions that underline the unity of all things. Einstein described entanglement as:
"spooky action at a distance".
However, from Rovelli's viewpoint, entanglement is less about isolated parts and more about a holistic vision in which influence exists across a wide field.
Metaphor
In the author's hypothesis the universe is not a grand stage, but rather a cosmic conversation made up of many local interactions. This radical shift means imagining matter and energy as not as separate entities, but as elements in a network of dynamic interrelationships. This affects our approach to questions about consciousness, identity, and existence. If our understanding of the universe is based on relationships, then our experiences can be interpreted as fundamentally connected with the cosmos.
Fluidity
Philosphically Rovelli's theory of interconnectedness encourages a fluid outlook on reality which resists the present temptation to certainties and static definitions. It is in the tradition of Heraclitus, who hypothesised that the natural balance of the Cosmos was in a constant state of flux: "panta rei" (everything flows).
Rovelli's approach also stimulates the view that our perceptions are moulded by interactions and entanglement with the cosmos.
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