My Propositions for Foundations of Modern Physics

Universal Wormhole Observers
—My paradigm of modern physics begins with the theoretical perspective of universal wormhole observers (2016, section 5.1; 2021 sections, 2.6-7).
—Universal wormhole observers detect every object in the universe as if the object were local to the observer, regardless of the location of the observer.
—Universal wormhole observers detect no universal timescale.
—Universal wormhole observers detect the preferred universal chronology and similarly the preferred foliation of spacetime.
—Universal wormhole observers require a solution of general relativity that permits the theoretical construction of wormholes.
—Universal wormhole observers by no means imply the realistic possibility of traversable wormholes.
—The ER=EPR conjecture and the pervasiveness of quantum entanglement in laboratories and outer space support universal wormhole observers, but the observers do not depend on the validity of the conjecture.

Quantum Mechanics
—Quantum logic can explain all quantum phenomena (2021, section 2.5.2).
—The von Neumann uncertainty principle refers to the certainty of any quantum state and the uncertainty for the evolution of any quantum system (Hogan and Lakey 2005, pages 293-295).
—Quantum physics and quantum chemistry indicate indeterminism in the universe.
—Gravity involves quantum.

Sources
—Jeffrey A. Hogan and Joseph D. Lakey, "Time-Frequency and Time-Scale Methods: Adaptive Decompositions, Uncertainty Principles, and Sampling," 2005, https://doi.org/10.1007/b139077
—James Goetz, "Semiclassical Theism and the Passage of Planck Times," Theology and Science, 2016, volume 14, issue 3, pages 325-339, https://doi.org/10.1080/14746700.2016. 1191881 or the free preprint at https://philpapers.org/rec/GOESTA-2
—James Goetz, "Theodicy, Supreme Providence, and Semiclassical Theism," Theology and Science, 2021, volume 19, issue 1, pages 42-64, https://doi.org/10.1080/14746700.2020.1825195 or the free preprint at https://philpapers.org/rec/GOETSP-4

major revision 12/7/2023

Copyright © 2022-2023 James Edward Goetz

Universal Wormhole Observers and Clarified PresentismPart 2 of the Semiclassical Cosmological Argument in Sum

In my previous post, I described my universal wormhole observers. Here, I describe how the observers support clarified presentism.

First, I define presentism. Presentism means that only the present exists while the past and future do not exist.

Second, clarified presentism in my 2021 article means phenomena exist only in the present and do not exist in the past or future.

Third, all universal wormhole observers, regardless of their location, detect the preferred universal chronology. Therefore, all of them also detect the associated preferred foliation of spacetime.

(Spacetime refers to the four-dimensional geometry that unifies the three dimensions of space and the one dimension of time. And an event is a point in spacetime with three spatial coordinates and one time coordinate.)

The Preferred Universal Chronology
Albert Einstein's theory of special relativity in 1905 proved the impossibility of classical absolute space and time. For example, special relativity logically implies the relativity of simultaneity, which means that no two events that are distant from each other have the same chronology from every possible reference frame.

For instance, the relativity of simultaneity implies the following scenario:

—Event A and Event B are distant from each other.
—Some distant observers detect that Event A and Event B occur at the same time.
—Other distant observers detect that Event A occurs before Event B.
—Still, other distant observers detect that Event A occurs after Event B.

And the implications of special relativity quickly led to disbelief in the possibility of a preferred reference frame for a universal chronology.

However, universal wormhole observers bridge through all of the distance in the universe. And all universal wormhole observers, regardless of their reference frame, detect the same universal chronology.

Clarified Presentism versus Eternalism
I earlier defined that clarified presentism means that phenomena exist only in the present and do not exist in the past or future. However, most living philosophers of time hold to eternalism. That is, eternalism means that all phenomena from what we consider the past, present, or future have always existed and will always exist.

(Presentism is a type of A-theory of time while eternalism is related to the B-theory of time.)

Contemporary models of eternalism typically incorporate modern physics while focusing on the relativity of simultaneity. For example, C. Wim Rietdijk in 1966 proposed eternalism based on special relativity and said, "A proof is given that there does not exist an event, that is not already in the past for some possible distant observer at the (our) moment that the latter is 'now' for us."

Rietdijk noted that special relativity implies that all events that are present to humans on Earth are already in the past for some distant observer. And from this, he argues that everything considered in the past, present, or future has always existed and will always exist.

And the argument for eternalism based on special relativity is called the Rietdijk-Putnam argument. (Putnam in 1967 proposed a similar argument.)

However, universal wormhole observers bridge through the relativity of simultaneity and permit a preferred universal chronology, which supports clarified presentism.

In the next post, I will use the points from parts 1 and 2 to set the stage for my semiclassical cosmological argument.

Sources
—Albert Einstein, "Relativity: The Special and the General Theory," translated by Robert W. Lawson, 1920
—C. Wim Rietdijk, "A Rigorous Proof of Determinism Derived from the Special Theory of Relativity," Philosophy of Science, 1966, volume 33, issue 4, pages 341–344, https://doi.org/10.1086/288106 or https://www.jstor.org/stable/186637
—Hilary Putnam, "Time and Physical Geometry," The Journal of Philosophy, 1967, volume 64, issue 8, 240-247, https://doi.org/10.2307/2024493 or https://www.jstor.org/stable/2024493
—James Goetz, "Theodicy, Supreme Providence, and Semiclassical Theism," Theology and Science, 2021, volume 19, issue 1, pages 42-64, https://doi.org/10.1080/14746700.2020.1825195 or the free preprint at https://philpapers.org/rec/GOETSP-4

The Three-Part Series
1) Quantum Entanglement, ER=EPR, and Observers: Part 1 of the Semiclassical Cosmological Argument in Sum
2) Universal Wormhole Observers and Clarified Presentism: Part 2 of the Semiclassical Cosmological Argument in Sum
3) The Argument: Part 3 of the Semiclassical Cosmological Argument in Sum

Copyright © 2022 James Edward Goetz

Quantum Entanglement, ER=EPR, and ObserversPart 1 of the Semiclassical Cosmological Argument in Sum

I introduced my cosmological argument in my 2021 paper "Theodicy, Supreme Providence, and Semiclassical Theism." Here, I will summarize my argument for a general audience.

I will begin by defining the term cosmological argument. That is, a cosmological argument uses premises and deduction to prove the existence of God by logically implying the necessity of God and the dependency of all natural phenomena.

Next, I will divide my summary into three parts. And the first two set the stage for Part 3 which focuses on my definition of God and my argument.

This first part centers on my hypothetical model of universal wormhole observers and its relationship to quantum entanglement. Now, I will describe observers, wormhole theory, and quantum entanglement.

First, Albert Einstein used hypothetical observers to illustrate his introduction to the theory of special relativity. And the observers function as a reference frame for making measurements.

Second, Einstein and Nathan Rosen in 1935 introduced what are called either Einstein-Rosen bridges or wormholes. For example, some solutions for the theory of general relativity permit the mathematical construction of wormholes, and wormholes connect otherwise distant (causally disconnected) regions of space and time.

Third, quantum entanglement refers to distant particles that act as if entangled (causally connected).

Also, Einstein, Boris Podolski, and Rosen in 1935 analyzed entangled electrons and defined a thought experiment known as the Einstein-Podolski-Rosen paradox or simply the EPR paradox. The trio juxtaposed the following while defining their paradox:

—Special relativity implies no possibility of distant particles interacting with each other.
—Cases of distant electrons exhibit correlating action with no evidence of determinism caused by local variables.

And Einstein, Podolski, and Rosen concluded that relativity never permits exceptions for distant particles to entangle while the authors proposed local hidden-variable theory. That is, undetectable local variables caused the determinism of electrons to appear as if they interact with each other at a distance while they never actually interact at a distance.

Eventually, Einstein made his famous quip about "spooky action at a distance." He said this while colorfully rejecting the possibility of quantum entanglement.

However, the 2022 Noble Prize in Physics went to Alain Aspect, John Clauser, and Anton Zeilinger for their research on entangled photons.

The ER=EPR Conjecture
Juan Maldacena and Leonard Susskind in 2013 proposed the ER=EPR conjecture. For example, ER refers to Einstein-Rosen bridges (wormholes) and EPR refers to the EPR paradox. More specifically, the ER=EPR conjecture proposes that each case of quantum entanglement involves a quantum wormhole.

(A quantum wormhole has a radius of 1 Planck length, and a Planck length is the theoretically smallest possible measurement of spatial distance and equals 10 to the negative power of 33 meters.)

In my 2021 paper, section 2.6, I referenced fascinating examples that imply the ubiquity of quantum entanglement.

For example, one astrophysics project discovered "30,000 pairs of entangled photons in the Milky Way that were entangled for at least 600 years."

Another project detected two photons that survived entanglement for 8 billion years. And 2,000 light-years separate the photons. (The 2,000 light-years equal 1 quadrillion miles.)

The 8 billion years is older than the Sun. And the 2,000 light-years are "23 times the distance from the Sun to its closest neighboring star," Proxima Centauri.

Also, laboratories routinely generate entangled photons. And they use the established entangled pathways for quantum teleportation.

(Quantum teleportation involves the immediate transfer of quantum information from one location to a distant location.)

In the context of the ER=EPR conjecture, the universal pervasiveness of quantum entanglement implies the pervasiveness of quantum wormholes.

Further, in each case of entanglement, a quantum wormhole connects the otherwise distant particles. Therefore, the entangled particles are distant from each other in the context of space but connected in the context of the quantum wormhole.

Universal Wormhole Observers
I introduced a model of hypothetical universal wormhole observers in my 2016 paper "Semiclassical Theism and the Passage of Planck Times." And I refined the model in 2021 while incorporating the ER=EPR conjecture and the latest research on quantum entanglement.

First, I clarify that the term universal wormhole refers to the universal potential for wormholes and does not imply the realistic possibility of any wormhole that permits particles to travel through it. (A theoretical wormhole that permits one or more particles to travel through it is called traversable wormhole.)

Second, a universal wormhole observer detects everything in the universe with no interval between the observer and the object.

Third, the next post addresses the nature of the past and future in the context of universal wormhole observers.

Sources
—Albert Einstein, Boris Podolsky, and Nathan Rosen, "Can Quantum-Mechanical Description of Physical Reality Be Considered Complete?" Physical Review, 1935, volume 47, pages 777-780, https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRev.47.777
— Albert Einstein and Nathan Rosen, "The Particle Problem in the General Theory of Relativity, Physical Review, 1935, volume 48, pages 73-77, https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRev.48.73
—Juan Maldacena and Leonard Susskind, "Cool Horizons for Entangled Black Holes," Fortschritte der Physik (Progress of Physics), 2013, volume 61, issue 9, pages 781-811, https://doi.org/10.1002/prop.201300020
—James Goetz, "Semiclassical Theism and the Passage of Planck Times," Theology and Science, 2016, volume 14, issue 3, pages 325-339, https://doi.org/10.1080/14746700.2016.1191881 or the free preprint at https://philpapers.org/rec/GOESTA-2
—James Goetz, "Theodicy, Supreme Providence, and Semiclassical Theism," Theology and Science, 2021, volume 19, issue 1, pages 42-64, https://doi.org/10.1080/14746700.2020.1825195 or the free preprint at https://philpapers.org/rec/GOETSP-4

The Three-Part Series
1) Quantum Entanglement, ER=EPR, and Observers: Part 1 of the Semiclassical Cosmological Argument in Sum
2) Universal Wormhole Observers and Clarified Presentism: Part 2 of the Semiclassical Cosmological Argument in Sum
3) The Argument: Part 3 of the Semiclassical Cosmological Argument in Sum

Copyright © 2022 James Edward Goetz

Astronomical Entanglement and ER=EPR Indicate the Universal Wormhole

For Immediate Release

Astronomical quantum entanglement and quantum teleportation indicate nothingness and the universal wormhole. Researcher James Goetz proposes that the recent discovery that quantum entanglement extends to 2,000 light-years (10 quadrillion kilometers) and the ER=EPR conjecture indicate the existence of nothingness and the universal potential for quantum wormholes.

"ER=EPR" is a pseudo acronym that refers to Einstein-Rosen bridges and the EPR paradox. The ER=EPR conjecture says that any pair of entangled particles (EPR) is connected by an Einstein-Rosen bridge (ER), while ER is commonly called a "wormhole." No scientific evidence indicates the reality of any traversable wormhole which would have mouths at each end that permit particles to transport back and forth through the wormhole. However, quantum wormholes have no traversable mouths. The physics that indicates the impossibility or unlikeliness of traversable wormholes has nothing to do with the ER=EPR conjecture.

The EPR paradox refers to the famous 1935 paper by Albert Einstein, Boris Podolsky and Nathan Rosen which describes what is now called "quantum entanglement" and respective "action at a distance." However, the authors rejected the possibility of entanglement and action at a distance because the theory of relativity implies that the entanglement of causally disconnected particles is impossible. Instead, the authors proposed that the appearance of entanglement was actually determinism caused by hidden variables. Standard physics eventually rejected hidden-variable theory and accepted the reality of quantum entanglement while there is no consensus for the structure of entanglement.

Ironically, later in 1935, Einstein and Rosen published their famous paper about relativity and theoretical 'bridges' that can connect causally disconnected regions of spacetime, that is, wormholes or ER. The irony is that wormhole theory can logically explain the entanglement of otherwise causally disconnected particles, for example, the EPR paradox. Also, nobody proposed a wormhole resolution for the EPR paradox until 2013 when Juan Maldacena and Leonard Susskind published "Cool Horizons for Entangled Black Holes" and introduced ER=EPR. Since then, Google Scholar has compiled over 700 references to ER=EPR.

The most amazing cases of entanglement include laboratory generated quantum teleportation and entangled pairs of photons in outer space. For example, quantum teleportation is the instantaneous transfer of quantum information from one location to a so-called causally disconnected location. Also, some entangled photons have endured for eight billion years while the action at distance expands to 2,000 light-years. The endurance of the entanglement is older than the Sun while the distance of the entanglement is 23 times the distance from the Sun to its nearest neighboring star. The cases of quantum teleportation and astronomical entanglement can be logically explained by the ER=EPR conjecture, while there is no other reasonable explanation for the teleportation and entanglement.

Goetz proposes the ER=EPR conjecture and the ubiquity of entanglement in laboratories and outer space indicate the existence of nothingness and the universal potential for quantum wormholes, that is, the universal wormhole. The universal wormhole has no mouths while it nonetheless can collapse the causal disconnection between any two locations in the universe. This permits a preferred focal pathway for a universal chronology despite the relativity of simultaneity which implies that there is no absolute universal chronology. Also, relativity does not imply the B-theory of time, eternalism and temporal parts. For example, relativity does not imply that objects persist through the time dimension in the same way they extend through the three spatial dimensions. Furthermore, Goetz develops more on modern physics for natural theology in his forthcoming paper "Theodicy, Supreme Providence, and Semiclassical Theism."

Source: James Goetz, "Theodicy, Supreme Providence, and Semiclassical Theism," Theology and Science (forthcoming) https://philarchive.org/archive/GOETSP-4.

Relativity Predicts Universal Wormhole

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Matterless wormhole theory predicts a potential universal wormhole. Researcher James Goetz theorizes that extra-dimensional relativity indicates a possible omnicluster of matterless wormholes or in other words a universal wormhole. Amazing properties of the wormhole include no dimensions and zero distance to all points in the universe. Moreover, a hypothetical observer in the wormhole could observe a universal chronology despite the relativity of time. This modifies the theory of relativity.

The theory is part of Goetz's introduction to the natural theology called semiclassical theism. Goetz proposes a model of God, time, and creation that fits with modern physics, such as relativity, quantum mechanics, quantum gravity, Big Bang cosmology, zero-energy universe and multiverse geometry. This is a theory of everything.

Apart from physics, the universal wormhole theory helps to explain the theology of divine omniscience and omnipresence. Also, semiclassical theism proposes that God is omnipresent in tenseless eternity and tensed creation.

Goetz published the research this August 22 in the online version of Theology and Science, the scholarly journal of the Center for Theology and the Natural Sciences.

See the online version of the paper:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/14746700.2016.1191881

Or freely download the Author's Accepted Manuscript at PhilPapers:
http://philpapers.org/archive/GOESTA-2.pdf
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Source:
James Goetz, "Semiclassical Theism and the Passage of Planck Times," Theology and Science 14:3 (2016), DOI: 10.1080/14746700.2016.1191881.

Copyright © 2016 James Edward Goetz
Permission given for all press releases