My impression, Paul; is that Dick only avoids talking to me because I understand too well what he is talking about; but maybe he is upset when I jump ahead of him and find things he doesn't want to know about?
Do you agree that his whole paper is describable as "comparing and matching patterns"?
Can I recommend to you the book: "The Emperor's New Mind" by Roger Penrose. There is a lot of physics in that book.
If only Dick would read that book. Do you realise it is well known that Schrodinger's equation is intimately related to Hamilton's and Maxwell's equations; and has connections with Dirac's equation.
On page 289 one learns how with a single photon, Schrodinger's equation actually BECOMES Maxwell's equations. Also one learns how for the state of a single electron, Schrodinger's equation becomes Dirac's wave equation for the electron!
He even mentions the curious fermionic property under 360 rotation regarding Dirac's equation.
My guess is that what Dick is dealing with in his paper is the actual nature of what are called "probability amplitudes".
I have found a connection between what Dick is doing, and that concept.
In quantum physics, they don't just do (p x 'alternative A' plus q x 'alternative B'), where p is probability of A happening and q is probability of B happening. If A and B are the only alternatives, p + q = 1. Or the sum could be less than 1 where p:q gives the ratio of the probability of A happening to that of B happening.
I think Dick is looking at OVERLAPS of probabilities.
In quantum physics they do something that looks similar to: where you do an experiment many times; with p number of A results and q number of B results (to go from ratios to actual probabilities, renormalise by p + q =1).
But they have p and q as complex numbers, called w and z. These things that are not probabilities but behave in many ways like probabilities are called probability amplitudes. If you figure out exactly what game is being played when people talk of "complex numbers"; I think it's clear enough to do; then you find you are playing the same game Dick is playing in his paper.
Maybe you can talk to me if Dick will not. I have learned some more of the technical mathematical aspects. But I think its able to be simplified. To keep computer costs down, I can't write often and need to get to the crunch issues in his paper very fast. |