Why the most important topic in physics could be statistical mechanics

Statistical mechanics helps us relate the quantum world to objects that appear solid and are not governed by the whims of observation, but there are still questions to be answered. chanda prescod-weinstein

To chanda prescod-weinstein

I recently passed an office in the physics department with a sticker that read, “Heisenberg may or may not have been here.” This is part of the consent for the amount kittens to be either dead or alive while in an unobserved box. We won’t be sure until we see it.

This feline thought experiment is intended to help visualize the deep conceptual difficulties of quantum mechanics. That is, the fact that the act of observing seems to determine the state of matter. This is due to the stochastic nature of quantum mechanics…