The Uncertainty Principle | Nature


Play all audios:

    

ABSTRACT MR. W. L. COWLEY1 raises a point of some importance to a popular presentation of quantum theory. The understanding of the Uncertainty Principle is confused by there being two quite


distinct ideas associated with the one name. Mr. Cowley's discussion of Heisenberg's uncertainty principle relates to the form of it which could be derived from the old quantum


theory of Planck, Einstein and Bohr (one may call it'uncertainty I'). As he remarks, books intended for wide circulation usually introduce the principle in this form, by describing


the ‘microscope experiment', and often take it no further. However, the connexion between uncertainty I and uncertainty II (which depends on the new quantum theory) is slight. The old


quantum theory only recognized the so-called ‘wave-particle duality’ of light, and not of matter ; uncertainty I is a rather artificial statement about the precision of observation


practicable with an optical microscope. In the new quantum theory of de Broglie and others, however, the ‘duality’ is formulated for matter also, and uncertainty II expresses a consequence


of this. Access through your institution Buy or subscribe This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution ACCESS OPTIONS Access through your institution Subscribe to


this journal Receive 51 print issues and online access $199.00 per year only $3.90 per issue Learn more Buy this article * Purchase on SpringerLink * Instant access to full article PDF Buy


now Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout ADDITIONAL ACCESS OPTIONS: * Log in * Learn about institutional subscriptions * Read our FAQs * Contact customer


support SIMILAR CONTENT BEING VIEWED BY OTHERS RETRODICTION BEYOND THE HEISENBERG UNCERTAINTY RELATION Article Open access 09 November 2020 A STRONG NO-GO THEOREM ON THE WIGNER’S FRIEND


PARADOX Article 17 August 2020 A JUSTIFICATION OF THE INVARIANCE OF THE SPEED OF LIGHT BY QUANTUM THEORETICAL CONSIDERATIONS Article Open access 13 January 2021 REFERENCES * Cowley, W. L.,


_Nature_, 163, 492 (1949). Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar  Download references AUTHOR INFORMATION AUTHORS AND AFFILIATIONS * St. John's College, Cambridge H. V. STOPES-ROE Authors *


H. V. STOPES-ROE View author publications You can also search for this author inPubMed Google Scholar RIGHTS AND PERMISSIONS Reprints and permissions ABOUT THIS ARTICLE CITE THIS ARTICLE


STOPES-ROE, H. The Uncertainty Principle. _Nature_ 164, 245–246 (1949). https://doi.org/10.1038/164245a0 Download citation * Issue Date: 06 August 1949 * DOI:


https://doi.org/10.1038/164245a0 SHARE THIS ARTICLE Anyone you share the following link with will be able to read this content: Get shareable link Sorry, a shareable link is not currently


available for this article. Copy to clipboard Provided by the Springer Nature SharedIt content-sharing initiative