| Recently, I watched a TV documentary on Albert | | | | world, knowing the exact location and speed of a |
| Einstein. One of the statements made in the video | | | | particle at the same time is impossible as was |
| caught my attention: Einstein's life work was riddled | | | | explained by the Heisenberg uncertainty principle |
| with contradictions. He was a pacifist, yet his work | | | | (outside the scope of this article). |
| was crucial in the eventual development of the atomic | | | | The way GPS technology has now entered our |
| bomb. He derided quantum mechanics, yet his work | | | | consciousness would indicate (to me) that knowing our |
| and ideas were instrumental in the development of | | | | location is just a bit more important than how fast we |
| quantum physics. | | | | are going. This doesn't surprise me; we are usually |
| The documentary posited that Einstein's personal | | | | more curious about our place in the universe than our |
| "prejudices" made it impossible for him to accept the | | | | speed through it. When you call your spouse on the |
| principles of quantum physics because if true, the new | | | | cell phone you're more likely to ask "where are you?" |
| science explained that God had not created the | | | | than "how fast are you going?" |
| elegant, well-ordered universe that Einstein had always | | | | Of all the applications of GPS technology, the one I |
| admired. | | | | personally consider most important is the ability we |
| Yet, quantum physics has led to the development of | | | | parents now have to keep track of our children. |
| technologies that, today, we take for granted. | | | | Devices have come on the market that use GPS |
| Technologies like the microprocessor. | | | | technology to beam your child's location in real time to |
| I'm not sure why, but I find that GPS technology (which | | | | your computer or PDA. |
| has been made possible by the advent of the | | | | Ironic, but I consider that ability about as elegant and |
| microprocessor) is perhaps the most fascinating | | | | well-ordered as anything in our universe. I wonder if |
| aspect of the quantum physics story. In the quantum | | | | Einstein would agree? |