what the bleep do we know?

Question

whats the deal with this movie?
Theres a point they made that at the quantum level a particle of matter shot through 2 slits will behave differently when its observed from when it is not being obsreved. Sometimes it behaves as whatever and sometimes it acts like a wave. Anyway...Is that true, or did they just make it up for a more interesting movie? where can I get more info about this subject, please no wikipedia.

Answer 1

It's true, although it sounds like they may have overstepped their bounds as concerns observation. Everything else is true, and it is true that the subject of what exactly observation does to a system is a big question in quantum physics.

Double slit diffraction experiments display the wave nature of matter, and these experiments have been done many times. Try googling "double slit electron diffraction."

The particle nature of subatomic... particles can be shown by the release of single particles from some radioactive materials, by particle accelleration experiments, and by indivisibility of the masses of some substances. Also, photomultiplier tubes will create voltages in quanta, implying particulate nature for electrons.

Answer 2

What you are describing (but so poorly that it has obviously never been explained to you very clearly!) is the experiment that established the "wave/particle duality" of light. Common sense would suggest that while "light" might either be made of little particles (photons), or maybe it's more like heat or sound travelling through the air (waves), but whhen you do certain experiments it's quite easy to prove that light is BOTH, which is just plain weird.

If you think about it, the truth is that all science is based on "best explanations" that we can come up with at the time. When a better explanation comes along, science is always ready to embrase it, that's how we make progress.

What the "duality" of light shows us is that our "common sense" notion that "particles are particles" and "waves are waves" (or that matter & energy are somehow "different things" is really an illusion.

Answer 3

I think the movie is based more on the discovery made several years ago that a partical can be observed as being in two places at the same time. A partical can alsobe observed moving from Point A to Point C without passing through Point B. This discovery has given contemporary philosophers a great deal to think about in terms of human potential and limiting beliefs which is what the film was all about (to me at least!) The website www.what the bleep.com has a lot of interesting resources on the theories of quantum physics, the film, and suggested readings.

Answer 4

The movie was paid for and made by students of the Ramtha School of Enlightenment. The "Master Teacher" of the school is a woman named JZ Knight claims to channel Ramtha, a 35,000 year old warrior from Atlantis. There's a little real science in the movie, but it's presented in a way that supports the teachings of "Ramtha." I wouldn't trust it.