Sheldon Goldstein

Key takeaways

Sheldon Goldstein belongs to physics; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Sheldon Goldstein to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Sheldon Goldstein from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Sheldon Goldstein (born October 24, 1947, in Augusta, Georgia) is an American theoretical physicist. He introduced the term "Bohmian mechanics".

Biography Goldstein graduated from Yeshiva University with a B.A. in 1969, a B.S. in 1971, and a Ph.D. in physics in 1973. His Ph.D. thesis, supervised by Joel Lebowitz, is entitled Ergodic Theory and Infinite Systems Since 1977 Goldstein has been a professor at Rutgers University. His research deals with the foundations of quantum mechanics and, especially, theoretical developments of De Broglie–Bohm theory. His collaborators include Joel Lebowitz and Detlef Dürr. In a 1981 paper, Goldstein and Oliver Penrose described a new method of defining nonequilibrium entropy in statistical mechanics. Goldstein contributed the article Bohmian Mechanics to the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy.

For two academic years from 1973 to 1975, Goldstein was at the Institute for Advanced Study. He is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. He is a member of the board of governors of the John Bell Institute for the Foundations of Physics (founded by Tim Maudlin). Sheldon Goldstein and Rebecca Newberger Goldstein, a novelist and philosopher, were married from 1969 to 1999, until they divorced. They are the parents of the novelist Yael Goldstein Love and the poet Danielle Blau.

Selected publications Goldstein, Sheldon (1980). "Remarks on the global Markov property". Communications in Mathematical Physics. 74 (3): 223–234. Bibcode:1980CMaPh..74..223G. doi:10.1007/BF01952887. S2CID 119956310. De Masi, A.; Ferrari, P. A.; Goldstein, S.; Wick, W. D. (1989). "An invariance principle for reversible Markov processes. Applications to random motions in random environments". Journal of Statistical Physics. 55 (3–4): 787–855. Bibcode:1989JSP....55..787D. doi:10.1007/BF01041608. S2CID 7114282. Berndl, K.; Daumer, M.; Dürr, D.; Goldstein, S.; Zanghì, N. (1995). "A survey of Bohmian mechanics". Il Nuovo Cimento B. 110 (5–6): 737–750. arXiv:quant-ph/9504010. Bibcode:1995NCimB.110..737B. doi:10.1007/BF02741477. S2CID 119340618. Goldstein, Sheldon (1996). "Bohmian Mechanics and the Quantum Revolution". Synthese. 107 (1): 145–165. arXiv:quant-ph/9512027. doi:10.1007/BF00413904. JSTOR 20117507. S2CID 44120976. Berndl, Karin; Dürr, Detlef; Goldstein, Sheldon; Zanghì, Nino (1996). "Nonlocality, Lorentz invariance, and Bohmian quantum theory". Physical Review A. 53 (4): 2062–2073. arXiv:quant-ph/9510027. Bibcode:1996PhRvA..53.2062B. doi:10.1103/PhysRevA.53.2062. PMID 9913109. S2CID 7576353. Goldstein, Sheldon (1998). "Quantum Theory without Observers—Part Two". Physics Today. 51 (4): 38–42. Bibcode:1998PhT....51d..38G. doi:10.1063/1.882241. Van Kampen, Nico G.; DeWitt, Bryce; Goldstein, Sheldon; Bricmont, Jean; Griffiths, Robert B.; Omnès, Roland (2000). "Quantum Histories, Mysteries, and Measurements". Physics Today. 53 (5): 76–83. Bibcode:2000PhT....53e..76V. doi:10.1063/1.883089. (4 letters independently written by 4 different authors with a reply from Griffiths and Omnès) Dürr, Detlef; Goldstein, Sheldon; Tumulka, Roderich; Zanghì, Nino (2005). "Bell-type quantum field theories". Journal of Physics A: Mathematical and General. 38 (4): R1–R43. arXiv:quant-ph/0407116. doi:10.1088/0305-4470/38/4/R01. S2CID 15547226. Goldstein, Sheldon (2010). "Bohmian Mechanics and Quantum Information". Foundations of Physics. 40 (4): 335–355. arXiv:0907.2427. Bibcode:2010FoPh...40..335G. doi:10.1007/s10701-009-9319-4. S2CID 5670604. Cushing, J. T.; Fine, Arthur; Goldstein, S. (April 17, 2013). Bohmian Mechanics and Quantum Theory: An Appraisal. Springer. ISBN 9789401587150. Dürr, Detlef; Goldstein, Sheldon; Norsen, Travis; Struyve, Ward; Zanghì, Nino (2014). "Can Bohmian mechanics be made relativistic?". Proceedings of the Royal Society A: Mathematical, Physical and Engineering Sciences. 470 (2162). doi:10.1098/rspa.2013.0699. PMC 3896068. PMID 24511259. Goldstein, Sheldon; Zanghì, Nino (2022). "Remarks About the Relationship Between Relational Physics and a Large Kantian Component of the Laws of Nature". Rethinking the Concept of Law of Nature. Jerusalem Studies in Philosophy and History of Science. pp. 225–257. arXiv:2111.09609. doi:10.1007/978-3-030-96775-8_9. ISBN 978-3-030-96774-1. Dürr, Detlef; Goldstein, Sheldon; Zanghì, Nino (November 6, 2012). Quantum Physics Without Quantum Philosophy. Springer. ISBN 9783642306907. Bassi, Angelo; Goldstein, Sheldon; Tumulka, Roderich; Zanghì, Nino (eds.). Physics and the Nature of Reality: Essays in Memory of Detlev Dürr. Fundamental Theories of Physics Book 215. Springer. ISBN 978-3031454332; release date February 5, 2024{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: postscript (link)

References

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Sheldon Goldstein

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Sheldon Goldstein claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In physics, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Sheldon Goldstein before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Sheldon Goldstein ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Sheldon Goldstein

In research: Sheldon Goldstein appears in physics research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Sheldon Goldstein in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Sheldon Goldstein is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1947 births, American mathematical physicists, American theoretical physicists, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Sheldon Goldstein outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

How to study Sheldon Goldstein in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Sheldon Goldstein means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Sheldon Goldstein out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Sheldon Goldstein in simple terms?

Sheldon Goldstein (born October 24, 1947, in Augusta, Georgia) is an American theoretical physicist. He introduced the term "Bohmian mechanics".

Why does Sheldon Goldstein matter?

Because it connects several physics ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Sheldon Goldstein?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Sheldon Goldstein.