What Does the Double Slit Experiment Reveal About Quantum Reality?

[medman1234]

Sorry for the rambling nature of this post.
Hello,I am not a student or teacher.Just a regular person,browsing Youtube.I came across the delayed choice eraser.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delayed_choice_quantum_eraser


I am confused...
Does that mean that anything that will never be observed does not exist?

I have seen different types of delayed choices.
If the you hold the results"interference or not" in 1 hand,hold the results of "which path" in the other.If I look at the results of "which path" first,then the results of "interference or not" would be no interference.If I erase the "which path" info ,then look at the results of which path,it is an interference pattern.
Is this right?

If the potential for being known changes what is observed,any information gathered from these experiments could never be used to solve this problem.

The more I think about it the more confusing it is.
Am I getting this right?

What if the path of one slit was made longer by reflecting it around more.Then just use the time the particle/wave takes to hit to determine its path.
How do I stop the madness.
I think I have a cramp in my head now.I wish I had never seen this..lol

 

[DrChinese]

1. Does that mean that anything that will never be observed does not exist?

2. If the you hold the results"interference or not" in 1 hand,hold the results of "which path" in the other.If I look at the results of "which path" first,then the results of "interference or not" would be no interference.If I erase the "which path" info ,then look at the results of which path,it is an interference pattern.
Is this right?

If the potential for being known changes what is observed,any information gathered from these experiments could never be used to solve this problem.

3. What if the path of one slit was made longer by reflecting it around more.Then just use the time the particle/wave takes to hit to determine its path.

Welcome to PhysicsForums, medman1234!

1. Observation changes the properties of what exists. Rather than saying observation changes IF it exists. This is a direct consequence of the Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle.

2. Not quite. The ordering does not change the outcome. The only thing that matters to whether there is interference is if it is possible, from the results, to determine which path info.

3. If you can determine the path, there will be no interference. There are many ways to accomplish this, same outcome.

 

[medman1234]

Thanks fore the reply.
So its just the potential for knowing.So any information gained cannot be used,ever,to find the path.New ways to interpret the info will never work.Since in order to work there had to be potential.
No beginning,no end?(I don't know what I mean by that it just popped in my head.)or pooped in my head,however you want to look at it.

How can this be used?
How can't this be used?
This is crazy.

no cause and effect,wave collapse,reality,matter does not exist,...{ಠ_ಠ}

It's like when something is just on the tip of your tongue but you just can't seem to reach it.
It seems like it's just right there,then poof,gone...