Author Archives: bdribus

This Saturday I am presenting a talk on the role of path algebras in quantum causal theory at the Conference on Ordered Algebraic Structures at Louisiana State University. Below are my slides: Path Algebras in Quantum Causal Theory The slides … Continue reading →

The following paper, which I recently posted on the arXiv, outlines many of my ideas about quantum causal theory. On the Axioms of Causal Set Theory

The following paper presents five projects on connections among graph theory, relativity, and quantum computing, suitable for undergraduates.  These projects are currently being used in the quantum information seminar at Louisiana State University.  Pending appropriate support, I hope to produce … Continue reading →

Group representation theory lies at the heart of modern physics as the mathematical expression of symmetry, remaining perhaps the most promising vehicle for initial progress beyond relativity and the standard model.  Covariance in relativity is expressed locally in terms of … Continue reading →

If spacetime degenerates into a nonmanifold structure near the Planck-scale, the number of fundamental elements involved in even the smallest-scale interactions currently observable might be very large: possibly on the order of Avogadro’s number.   This statement applies not only to … Continue reading →

George Ellis and a few other physicists have recently introduced the idea of top-down causation in fundamental physics.  In the context of classical spacetime, the hypothesis of top-down causation is that causal relationships among subsets of spacetime are not completely … Continue reading →

 Shape dynamics, invented by Julian Barbour, is a theory of spacetime that applies an action principle, called Jacobi’s principle, and a procedure called best matching, to a configuration space of conformal 3-manifolds, called shape space, to recover the Hamiltonian formulation … Continue reading →

The following are some new ideas about physics.    I have most of these ideas partially written up, but I am so busy with other work at present that it may be some time before I can put them into a … Continue reading →

This image illustrates the behavior of a particular quantum circuit.  To be precise, this circuit is an iterated quantum controlled NOT gate (QCNOT) with a twist of 45.5 degrees in the Hopf fiber containing the identity.   This means that one … Continue reading →

The Foundational Questions Institute (FQXi) is currently holding an essay contest on the foundational assumptions of modern physics.  The purpose of the contest is to generate discussion about which of the assumptions of modern physics are wrong and what new … Continue reading →