Another 100 Years of Quantum Interpretation?

TL;DR

The paper argues that interpretations of quantum mechanics are not the only way to explain its success and proposes assessing interpretations based on their potential to guide us toward a more fundamental quantum gravity theory.

Contribution

It introduces a novel approach to evaluate quantum interpretations by their heuristic and unificatory potential for discovering a more fundamental theory.

Findings

Proposes a new framework for assessing quantum interpretations.

Highlights the importance of reductive explanations over interpretations.

Suggests that interpretations can aid in developing quantum gravity theories.

Abstract

Interpretation is not the only way to explain a theory's success, form and features, and nor is it the only way to solve problems we see with a theory. This can also be done by giving a reductive explanation of the theory, by reference to a newer, more accurate, and/or more fundamental theory. We are seeking a theory of quantum gravity, a more fundamental theory than both quantum mechanics and general relativity, yet, while this theory is supposed to explain general relativity, it's not typically been thought to be necessary, or able, to explain quantum mechanics -- a task instead assigned to interpretation. Here, I question why this is. I also present a new way of assessing the various interpretations of quantum mechanics, in terms of their heuristic and unificatory potential in helping us find a more fundamental theory.