270 - Tim Maudlin & Jacob Barandes: The Indivisible Approach to Quantum Theory

About this episode

Robinson, Tim, and Jacob discuss Jacob's 'Indivisible Approach' to quantum mechanics and its implications for the foundations of physics.

Tim Maudlin is Professor of Philosophy at NYU and Founder and Director of the John Bell Institute for the Foundations of Physics. Jacob Barandes is Senior Preceptor in Physics at Harvard University, where he works widely across the philosophy of physics, with focuses on the foundations of quantum mechanics, the philosophy of spacetime, and the metaphysics of laws. In this episode, Robinson, Tim, and Jacob discuss Jacob’s novel approach to quantum mechanics, which he calls the “Indivisible Approach”. More particularly, they discuss the problems at the core of quantum mechanics, the ontology of the theory, causality and quantum phenomena, probability, and more. If you’re interested in the foundations of physics, then please check out the JBI, which is devoted to providing a home for research and education in this important area. Any donations are immensely helpful at this early stage in the institute’s life. Tim’s Website: www.tim-maudlin.site The John Bell Institute: https://www.johnbellinstitute.org Jacob’s Website: https://www.jacobbarandes.com The Stochastic-Quantum Correspondence: https://philosophyofphysics.lse.ac.uk/articles/10.31389/pop.186 Historical Debates over the…

People in this episode

Host: Robinson Erhardt

Guests: Tim Maudlin, Jacob Barandes

Topics covered

• quantum mechanics
• philosophy of physics
• foundations of physics
• causality
• ontology
• probability

Keywords

• quantum theory
• Indivisible Approach
• philosophy of spacetime
• metaphysics of laws
• causality
• probability
• wave function

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: NYU, John Bell Institute for the Foundations of Physics, Harvard University, JBI, www.tim-maudlin.site, https://www.johnbellinstitute.org, https://www.jacobbarandes.com, https://philosophyofphysics.lse.ac.uk/articles/10.31389/pop.186, https://arxiv.org/abs/2602.09397, https://arxiv.org/abs/2602.10569

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