so does the uncertainty principle depend upon...

[Hank McCoy]

...the use of light in observations?

[timo]

No, the example with measuring an electrons velocity and position with a photon (ligh) is just an attempt to visualize uncertainty.

[swansont]

The HUP falls directly out of the Fourier transform between conjugate variables. As Atheist said, the use of photon recoil is just a way to visualize it, as it were.

[Mart]

The HUP falls directly out of the Fourier transform between conjugate variables.

This may need unpacking.

 

A Fourier transform is a mathematical procedure.

 

A rectangle has two noticeable features height and width. Height and width are the names we give to these features.

The values of the height and the width can be changed so they're called variables : they can vary.

 

Conjugate variables come in pairs. Conjugate variables depend on each other. In the example of the rectangle: if its area is kept constant then changing the value of its height will involve changing the value of its width.

[goodyhi11]

light is a wave not paritcles

[fuhrerkeebs]

light is a wave not paritcles

 

I'm sure you've heard of a photon?

[Vladimir]

In order to understand quantum mechanics you need to understand that light is both a wave and a particle. Or have teh last 50 years of my life been in vain.

The heisenberg uncertainty to my understanding is due to the fact that we can measure teh speed of an atom and the direction of the atom but never both. There is no experiment yuo can do that wont change the other one, tehrefore we could tell how fast something was going but never where so as scientists we cant go around saying we dont know so we say uncertain

[5614]

light is a wave not paritcles

 

you should look into QM's wave particle duality, e.g:

http://www.google.co.uk/search?hl=en&safe=off&q=wave+particle+duality

[ed84c]

light is a wave not paritcles

 

Tryout the Double Slit experiment for yourself;

http://www.colorado.edu/physics/2000/schroedinger/two-slit2.html