Reconsidering No-Go Theorems from a Practical Perspective

TL;DR

This paper critiques the traditional interpretation of quantum no-go theorems by emphasizing the importance of context, suggesting they may not be universally restrictive in practical, physical system modeling.

Contribution

It introduces a contextual perspective on no-go theorems, challenging their absolute implications and exploring their relevance in practical physical system construction.

Findings

No-go theorems depend on the context of inquiry.

Certain no-go theorems lose force when applied to physical system modeling.

Implications for classical-quantum boundary understanding.

Abstract

I argue that our judgements regarding the locally causal models which are compatible with a given quantum no-go theorem implicitly depend, in part, on the context of inquiry. It follows from this that certain no-go theorems, which are particularly striking in the traditional foundational context, have no force when the context switches to a discussion of the physical systems we are capable of building with the aim of classically reproducing quantum statistics. I close with a general discussion of the possible implications of this for our understanding of the limits of classical description, and for our understanding of the fundamental aim of physical investigation.