"Classical mechanics has been developed continuously from the time of Newton and applied to an ever-widening range of dynamical systems, including the electromagnetic field in interaction with matter. The underlying ideas and the laws governing their application form a simple and elegant scheme, which one would be inclined to think could not be seriously modified without having all its attractive features spout. Nevertheless it has been found possible to set up a new scheme, called quantum mechanics, which is more suitable for the description of phenomena on the atomic scale and which is in some respects more elegant and satisfying than the classical scheme. This possibility is due to the changes which the new scheme involves being of a very profound character and not clashing with the features of the classical theory that make it so attractive, as a result of which all these features can be incorporated in the new scheme."
Quote Details
Added by wikiquote-import-bot
Unverified quote
0 likes
Original Language: English
Available Languages (1)
Sources
P. A. M. Dirac, The Principles of Quantum Mechanics (4th ed., 1958), I. The Principle of Superposition - 1. The need for a quantum theory
https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Quantum_mechanics
Revision History
No revisions have been submitted for this quote.
Categories
Quantum mechanics
70 quotes on TrueQuotesView all quotes by Quantum mechanics →
Related Quotes
"We cannot make apparatuses arbitrarily big. ... We might need some extension of quantum mechanics."
"Christian Imbert, to support my project and to act as my thesis advisor. He had advised me to go first to Geneva, to …"
"Quantum mechanics was, and continues to be, revolutionary, primarily because it demands the introduction of radically…"
"No other theory of the physical world has caused such consternation as quantum theory, for no other theory has so com…"
"… that what is proved, by impossibility proofs, is lack of imagination."
"I am a Quantum Engineer, but on Sundays I Have Principles."
"Quantum mechanics had never been wrong. And now we know that it will not be wrong even in these very tricky conditions."
"I'm quite convinced of that: quantum theory is only a temporary expedient."
"This particular question of locality is still open, in my opinion. I think we have not found a way of digesting this …"
"So, what is quantum mechanics? Even though it was discovered by physicists, it’s not a physical theory in the same se…"