It’s digital but not as we know it

Abstract

I describe some of the problems which occur when we think of the microworld as having similar properties to the macroworld of our everyday experience. In mathematics this leads to an over-reliance on approximation, and in physics to problems related to thermodynamics, problems which I see as underlying some of the weirdness of quantum theory. I explore some of the possible ways to deal with this, and look forward to a greater use of computer simulations in science, and in particular in investigating foundational issues in physics.