In this post, we explore how quantum space must be reimagined, not as a pre-existing expanse, but as a field of relational affordance—structured by potentiality, shaped by interaction, and irreducible to geometry alone.
1. The Collapse of Classical Geometry
Quantum phenomena challenge the notion of space as fixed:
-
Entanglement defies spatial separation: distant particles exhibit correlated behaviour that classical spacetime cannot accommodate,
-
Superposition implies that quantum states are not in space in the classical sense—they exist in configuration space, a higher-dimensional, abstract space of relational possibility,
-
Measurement events define positions, but until then, “where” a particle is cannot be definitively stated.
This suggests that space is not a container that holds particles, but a relational matrix defined by the interactions that can (or cannot) occur.
2. Space as a Relational Construct
From a relational standpoint:
-
Spatial structure is emergent from the relations among elements,
-
“Location” is not absolute, but a networked condition—a set of potential interactions constrained by systemic coherence,
-
Geometry is secondary, arising from more fundamental patterns of relational constraint and possibility.
This is echoed in various physical theories:
-
In loop quantum gravity, space is quantised—made of networks of relations (spin networks),
-
In quantum field theory, particles are local excitations of fields, not occupants of a pre-existing volume.
3. Spatiality and Quantum Potential
If quantum potential is real, then space becomes:
-
A topology of potential: a structured field where different regions afford different kinds of actualisation,
-
Not uniform or neutral, but differentiated by constraint, shaped by the histories and possibilities of the system,
-
Defined through measurement and interaction—not as a pre-given grid, but as an emergent property of coherence.
Where something can be is as ontologically significant as where it is.
4. The Role of Measurement
Measurement reconfigures quantum space:
-
It punctualises the field, marking a local actualisation,
-
It alters the potential landscape, collapsing or redistributing possibilities,
-
Thus, spatiality is not simply observed; it is enacted and transformed.
Space becomes an active participant in becoming, not a passive background to it.
5. Philosophical Implications
This shift requires us to:
-
Abandon the view of space as an inert stage for objects,
-
Embrace spatiality as relational, contingent, and processual,
-
Recognise that spatial distinctions depend on coherence and constraint, not separation and extension.
In quantum physics, space is not where things are, but where things can happen—and that “where” is a function of relation.
Closing
Quantum theory asks us to reimagine space as an evolving structure of potential—fluid, contextual, and emergent. It is not a stage upon which reality unfolds, but a dimension of becoming shaped by relation.
In the next post, we’ll explore how this reimagining of space invites a corresponding revision of time—not as a universal clock, but as a process of differentiation and synchronisation across relational fields.
No comments:
Post a Comment