Intelligent(?) Particles

Question

Quite a while ago I read about a series of experiments that basically suggested that a certain kind of particle/atom/(something) were "intelligent" and could appear in two places at once, or essentially could "tell the future" when it came to navigating a "maze" ...I think it might have involved lasers or mirrors?

Does any one a) know what I'm talking about, and b) have links/further information on it?

Really don't have much more recollection than that I'm afraid.

This will probably come across as a rather vague question so my apologies but hopefully someone will know what I'm talking about!

Could be quantum computation. Honestly though... if intelligent, tell the future, and navigate a maze is all you can remember, then it's gonna be hard to tell if your read something solid or just journalistic novelty. Do you remember where you read it? — Malabarba, Jan 06 '11 at 20:41
Delayed choice quantum eraser experiment? A bit of futuretelling there. And it involves lasers. Google it and see. — Manishearth, Mar 20 '12 at 16:16

score 3 · Answer 1 · edited Mar 02 '11 at 04:12

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I don't know about intelligent, but they have free will. At least if you do. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_will_theorem

edited Mar 02 '11 at 04:12

David Z

76,371

answered Jan 06 '11 at 19:58

pho

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I don't like the use of the word "free will" in that context. If the Wikipedia article is to be believed (and I think it is), what it's really saying is that particles behave in a non-deterministic manner. – David Z Jan 06 '11 at 22:32
But that is the term the authors use! And they say what they mean by it. – MBN Mar 02 '11 at 04:16

voix · Answer 2 · 2011-01-06T22:19:00.087

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Informational interpretation of quantum mechanics

Informational experiments with microparticles and atom

edited Jan 06 '11 at 22:19

answered Jan 06 '11 at 21:59

voix

2,084

score 0 · Answer 3 · answered Mar 05 '11 at 22:40

I remember a paper, details forgotten, published in Foundations of Physics probably during the late 1970s, where the researchers, wondering about the possibility of some kind of intelligence or awareness of quantum particles, tried to measure if photons had any persisting preference for certain fringes when passing through a grating. Light in, say, the 2nd fringe would be put through another grating. Photons that prefer the 2nd fringe would make 2nd fringe brighter than the 1st, 3rd or others relative to predictions of basic optics. They found no such enhancement. I had a good laugh reading the paper. But maybe those research are the ones who went on to do whatever work you're wondering about?

Intelligent(?) Particles

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