Reasoning across spacelike surfaces in the Frauchiger-Renner thought experiment

2025/03/02 by Jeffrey M. Epstein, Epstein, Jeffrey M. · 1 voice
Arts and Humanities · Computer Science · Neuroscience · Physics and Astronomy · #Aesthetic Perception and Analysis #Philosophy and History of Science #Semantic Web and Ontologies #physics.hist-ph #quant-ph

paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.2503.00966

openalex publication_date 2025/03/02 · openalex created_date 2025/10/12 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28

Abstract

The Frauchiger-Renner argument purports to show that the standard framework of quantum mechanics yields a contradiction when used to reason about systems containing agents who are themselves using quantum mechanics to perform deductions. This has been framed as an obstacle to taking quantum mechanics to be a complete theory. I formalize the argument in two closely related ways and elucidate the source of the paradox, clarifying the flaw in the original argument.

Discussions

• I've spent some time thinking about this now, and I think that what Frauchiger-Renner shows us can be summed up as "QM doesn't allow the combination of inferences corresponding to multiple cuts throug [bsky, 6 points, 0 comments]

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