Thomas Lee Abshier, ND
—-
Author, Speaker
Naturopathic Physician
Christian Counselor
—
Medical Consultations
Marriage Counseling
Seminars, Speaking
Books, Articles
Audio, Video
—
(503) 255-9500
drthomas@naturedox.com
Portland, Oregon
Wave Particle Duality
Thomas Lee Abshier, ND
Having built a theory on the fundamental nature of the electron and positron, it
is necessary to understand the nature of the electron. There is significant controversy
about the essential nature of the electron because of the contradictory implications
of some very important experiments. In particular, the dual slit interferometer
and other experiments have yielded experimental results that imply the electron is
a wave. Other experiments such as the Cathode ray tube indicate that the electron
is a particle. Thus, to base a theory on a particle, there should be good experimental
evidence that illuminates the actual structure, nature, and behavior of that particle.
The dual slit interferometer experiment is constructed to allow only one electron
at a time to pass through a mask with two narrow and closely spaced slits. After
going past the slits, the electron proceeds to strike a photographic plate and make
a light spot on the film when developed. A foundational assumption about the nature
of a particle is that it will pass through only one slit or the other. Then, after
passing the slit, it will make a pattern on the target that corresponds to the expected
behavior of a single particle going through one of the slits. But instead of showing
a composite pattern reflective of a random distribution of particles going through
one slit or the other, this experiment gives evidence that every electron has acted
like a wave. In other words, the electron appears to have entered both slits at
the same time, interfered with itself, and produced interference patterns on the
film image. Such a result is consistent with a wave-front hitting both slits at
the same time.
If the electron is a wave, we can construct a theory around that reality. But, other
experiments clearly show the electron acts like a particle. Thus, any theory based
on the nature of the electron is necessarily clouded by the same ambiguity we see
in the experimental evidence.
We see evidence of the electron’s particulate nature in experiments and applications
such as cloud chambers, particle accelerators, charge accumulators, electronic devices,
batteries, Cathode ray tubes, and circuit phenomenon. The paradoxical nature of
the electron, acting like a wave in some situations and particle in others, is called
the Wave-Particle Duality. Modern Physics has simply institutionalized and embraced
this dual behavior into the heart of its theories. Thus, the space-distributed behavior
of electrons is explained using the theories of Quantum Mechanics. As a result,
on this very small scale the entire universe appears indeterminate and fuzzy.
This causes us to consider the more relevant philosophical question is, “Is anything
knowable or solid in our moral, conscious, political, social, and spiritual lives?”
The answer to this question is “yes”, but the standard by which we know and judge
is dependent upon the entirety of our relationship with the fullness of each circumstance,
and our judgment must be compared with the judgment that God would make in this exact
circumstance.
Thus, we might consider that because there is no single yes or no answer to any situation,
that there are no absolutes. But this perspective is shallow. A more holistic and
deep perspective sees that life, like the electron, is composed of many particles,
they both have a central organizing force. And, just as the electron extends its
influence out over a large domain and responds to many stressors, so too each person’s
influence and persona extend broadly beyond the body. To consider the electron
or the person to be a particle with only local influence would be small and crude,
but to allow for an extended influence and consider that to be part of the body and
electron, that gives richness and depth and complexity to each layer of life in the
inanimate and the organic world.