When asked ... [about] an underlying quantum world, Bohr would answer, 'There is no quantum world. There is only an abstract quantum physical description. It is wrong to think that the task of physics is to find out how nature is. Physics concerns what we can say about Nature.'
While the finish given to our picture of the world by the theory of relativity has already been absorbed into the general scientific consciousness, this has scarcely occurred to the same extent with those aspects of the general problem of knowledge which have been elucidated by the quantum theory.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Niels Bohr suggests that while relativity is widely accepted in understanding the universe, quantum theory's implications for knowledge remain less understood.
In this quote, Niels Bohr reflects on the contrasting acceptance of two foundational theories in physics: relativity and quantum theory. He points out that although the implications of relativity have become well-integrated into scientific understanding and common consciousness, the deeper philosophical and conceptual challenges posed by quantum theory have not yet been fully realized or appreciated by society at large, emphasizing a gap in understanding the nature of knowledge itself.
Themes
In practice
Example use cases
In a lecture about the implications of quantum mechanics on modern science.
More from Niels Bohr
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Similar quotes
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