Palmer's RaQM Theory Eliminates Quantum Spookiness
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- Tim Palmer at the University of Oxford has proposed 'Rational Quantum Mechanics' (RaQM), a new framework that bans irrational numbers from the Hilbert space structure originally established by John von Neumann
- Under RaQM, any arrow in Hilbert space whose length would square to an irrational number is forbidden, leaving 'mathematical fissures' in the abstract space; Palmer says 'nature abhors a continuum'
- Palmer argues RaQM eliminates entanglement's 'spooky action at a distance' and superposition oddities, because some measurements become mathematically impossible rather than requiring non-locality
- RaQM would also cap the power of quantum computers, and if correct, would prevent them from running Shor's algorithm — the factoring algorithm at the heart of the threat that quantum computers break widely used encryption
- Palmer estimates the maximum information capacity per qubit under RaQM at 2^400 bits, which he describes as more than 10 billion quadrillion quadrillion times larger than the estimated number of atoms in the universe
- Running Shor's algorithm is currently estimated to require about 500,000 qubits — hundreds of times more than existing quantum computers — and RaQM would render even that scale insufficient
- Howard Wiseman at Griffith University says the impact on physics would 'pale against the impact it would have on physics, which would be the biggest revolution since quantum mechanics itself'
Why it matters: If Palmer is right, the billions invested in quantum computing to run Shor's algorithm would hit a fundamental mathematical ceiling. Governments, firms, and cryptographers preparing for Q-Day — when quantum computers break current encryption — would have to reassess whether that day will ever arrive.
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