Heisenberg Dies: Quantum Pioneer Leaves Uncertain Legacy
Werner Heisenberg published his uncertainty principle in 1927 when he was twenty-five, upending three centuries of physics in eight pages. You cannot know precisely both the position and momentum of a particle at the same time — the act of measuring one disturbs the other. This wasn't a limitation of instruments. It was a property of reality. Classical physics assumed a clockwork universe. Heisenberg proved the clockwork had been an illusion.
February 1, 1976
50 years ago
What Else Happened on February 1
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