Classical and Quantum Causal Interventions
Characterising causal structure is an activity that is ubiquitous across the sciences. Causal models are representational devices that can be used as oracles for future interventions, to predict how values of some variables will change in response to interventions on others. Recent work has generali...
| Main Authors: | , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2018-09-01
|
| Series: | Entropy |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://www.mdpi.com/1099-4300/20/9/687 |
| _version_ | 1798041557045084160 |
|---|---|
| author | Gerard Milburn Sally Shrapnel |
| author_facet | Gerard Milburn Sally Shrapnel |
| author_sort | Gerard Milburn |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Characterising causal structure is an activity that is ubiquitous across the sciences. Causal models are representational devices that can be used as oracles for future interventions, to predict how values of some variables will change in response to interventions on others. Recent work has generalised concepts from this field to situations involving quantum systems, resulting in a new notion of quantum causal structure. A key concept in both the classical and quantum context is that of an intervention. Interventions are the controlled operations required to identify causal structure and ultimately the feature that endows causal models with empirical meaning. Although interventions are a crucial feature of both the classical and quantum causal modelling frameworks, to date there has been no discussion of their physical basis. In this paper, we consider interventions from a physical perspective and show that, in both the classical and quantum case, they are constrained by the thermodynamics of measurement and feedback in open systems. We demonstrate that the perfect “atomic” or “surgical” interventions characterised by Pearl’s famous do-calculus are physically impossible, and this is the case for both classical and quantum systems. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-11T22:23:10Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-bf68bfd694d44649ac78320efab18d9c |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1099-4300 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-11T22:23:10Z |
| publishDate | 2018-09-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Entropy |
| spelling | doaj.art-bf68bfd694d44649ac78320efab18d9c2022-12-22T04:00:01ZengMDPI AGEntropy1099-43002018-09-0120968710.3390/e20090687e20090687Classical and Quantum Causal InterventionsGerard Milburn0Sally Shrapnel1Centre for Engineered Quantum Systems, School of Mathematics and Physics, The University of Queensland, Brisbane 4067, AustraliaCentre for Engineered Quantum Systems, School of Mathematics and Physics, The University of Queensland, Brisbane 4067, AustraliaCharacterising causal structure is an activity that is ubiquitous across the sciences. Causal models are representational devices that can be used as oracles for future interventions, to predict how values of some variables will change in response to interventions on others. Recent work has generalised concepts from this field to situations involving quantum systems, resulting in a new notion of quantum causal structure. A key concept in both the classical and quantum context is that of an intervention. Interventions are the controlled operations required to identify causal structure and ultimately the feature that endows causal models with empirical meaning. Although interventions are a crucial feature of both the classical and quantum causal modelling frameworks, to date there has been no discussion of their physical basis. In this paper, we consider interventions from a physical perspective and show that, in both the classical and quantum case, they are constrained by the thermodynamics of measurement and feedback in open systems. We demonstrate that the perfect “atomic” or “surgical” interventions characterised by Pearl’s famous do-calculus are physically impossible, and this is the case for both classical and quantum systems.http://www.mdpi.com/1099-4300/20/9/687causalitycontrolquantum thermodynamicsquantum measurement |
| spellingShingle | Gerard Milburn Sally Shrapnel Classical and Quantum Causal Interventions Entropy causality control quantum thermodynamics quantum measurement |
| title | Classical and Quantum Causal Interventions |
| title_full | Classical and Quantum Causal Interventions |
| title_fullStr | Classical and Quantum Causal Interventions |
| title_full_unstemmed | Classical and Quantum Causal Interventions |
| title_short | Classical and Quantum Causal Interventions |
| title_sort | classical and quantum causal interventions |
| topic | causality control quantum thermodynamics quantum measurement |
| url | http://www.mdpi.com/1099-4300/20/9/687 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT gerardmilburn classicalandquantumcausalinterventions AT sallyshrapnel classicalandquantumcausalinterventions |