We’ve talked often in the past about the weirdness of the quantum world, and related topics such as the theory of parallel universes and the idea of ‘quantum consciousness‘. For a long while, any suggestion that such weirdness could cross over into the ‘macro’ world (ie. big things, rather than at quantum scales) was rebutted quickly – quantum effects were said to exist only in the quantum world. However, that assumption has been challenged over the years, and could possibly be refuted entirely by the work of Aaron O’Connell, as he explains in this TED talk: “Making sense of a visible quantum object”.
[I]n an experiment remarkable both for it’s conceptual simplicity and technical difficulty, O’Connell was the first person to measure quantum effects in an object large enough to see with the naked eye. Named Breakthrough of the year by Science Magazine, the experiment shattered the previous record for the largest quantum object, showing decisively that there is no hard line between the quantum and everyday worlds.
Thanks to my ‘lil Sis for the heads-up.
Update: Kat also pointed out this TED blog:
