Heisenberg's uncertainty principle: what is it?

Let's imagine that a fly flies constantly around us making concentric circles, with such a speed that we are unable to follow it with the naked eye. As its buzz disturbs us, we want to know its exact location..

For this we will have to develop some kind of method that allows us to see it. It may occur to us, for example, to surround the area of ​​a substance that may be affected by its passage, so that we can locate its position. But this method will slow down your speed. In fact, the more we try to find out where it is, the more we are going to have to slow it down (since it keeps moving). The same thing happens when we take the temperature: the instrument itself has a certain temperature that can cause the alteration of the original temperature of what we want to measure.

These hypothetical situations can be used as an analogy to what happens when we want to observe the motion of a subatomic particle such as an electron. And it also works to explain the Heisenberg uncertainty principle. In this article I will briefly explain what this concept consists of.

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Werner Heisenberg: brief review of his life

Werner Heisenberg, German scientist born in Würzburg in the year 1901, he is mainly known for his participation in the development of mechanics quantum science and for having discovered the uncertainty principle (and also for giving the nickname protagonist of breaking bad). Although he initially trained in mathematics, Heisenberg would end up with a doctorate in physics, a field in which he would apply elements of mathematics such as matrix theory.

From this fact, the mechanics of matrices or matrix would end up arising, which would be fundamental when establishing the principle of indeterminacy. This scientist would contribute greatly to the development of quantum mechanics, developing matrix quantum mechanics for which he would end up receiving the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1932.

Heisenberg would also be in charge during the time of Nazism the construction of nuclear reactors, although his efforts in this area were unsuccessful. After the war, he would declare along with other scientists that the lack of results was premeditated in order to avoid the use of atomic bombs. After the war he would be locked up along with other different German scientists, but he ended up being released. He died in 1976.

Heisenberg's uncertainty principle

Heisenberg's uncertainty or indeterminacy principle establishes the impossibility at the subatomic level of know at the same time the position and the moment or quantity of movement (the speed) of a particle.

This principle comes from the fact that Heisenberg observed that if we want to locate an electron in space it is necessary to bounce photons off it. However, this produces an alteration in its moment, so that what makes it possible for us to locate the electron makes it difficult to accurately observe its linear momentum.

The observer alters the environment

This impossibility is due to the process itself that allows us to measure it, since when measuring the position the same method alters the speed at which the particle travels.

In fact, it is established that the greater the certainty of the particle's position, the less knowledge of its momentum or momentum, and vice versa. It is not a matter of the measurement instrument itself altering the movement or that it is imprecise, simply that the fact of measuring it produces an alteration.

In conclusion, this principle means that we cannot accurately know all the data regarding the behavior of the particles, since the precise knowledge of an aspect supposes that we cannot know with the same level of precision the other.

Relating the uncertainty principle with Psychology

It may seem that a concept of quantum physics does not have much to do with the scientific discipline that studies the mind and mental processes. However, the general concept behind the Heisenberg uncertainty principle It is applicable within psychology and even in the social sciences.

Heisenberg's principle assumes that matter is dynamic and not entirely predictable, but rather that it is in continuous movement and it is not possible to measure a certain aspect without taking into account that the fact of measuring it will alter others. This implies that we have to take into account both what we observe and what we do not.

Linking this to the study of the mind, mental processes or even social relationships, this means that the act of measuring a phenomenon or mental process means focusing on it, ignoring others and also assuming that the very act of measuring can cause an alteration in what is we measure. psychological reactance, for example, indicates this effect.

Influencing the object of study

For example, if we try to assess a person's attention span, this she can get nervous and get distracted thinking that we are evaluating her, or it can be a pressure that makes you concentrate more than would be normal in your daily life. Focusing and delving into only one specific aspect can make us forget others, such as the motivation in this case to take the test.

Likewise, it is not only relevant at the research level but can be linked to the perceptual process itself. If we focus our attention on one voice, for example, the others will be muffled.

The same thing happens if we stare at something: the rest loses sharpness. Even can be observed at the cognitive level; if we think about an aspect of reality and delve into it, we are going to leave aside other aspects of said reality in which we participate.

It also occurs in social relationships: for example, if we think that someone is trying to manipulate us, we will stop paying as much attention to what it tells us, and the same can happen to the reverse. It's not that we can't ignore the rest, but that the more we focus on something and the more precise we are in said something, the less we are able to detect something different at the same time.

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Bibliographic references:

• Stephen, S. and Navarro, R. (2010). General Chemistry: Volume I. Madrid: Editorial UNED.

• Galindo, A.; Pascual, P. (1978). Quantum mechanics. Madrid: Alhambra.