The wavefunction is often described as the quintessential expression of potential in quantum mechanics. Within the relational ontology, it also illustrates how our understanding of potential itself has evolved — from intuitive readiness to structured, relational, and historically evolving possibility.
1. From Readiness to Relational Structure
Initially, the wavefunction was read as a system poised to realise outcomes. Some states seemed more “ready” than others, with readiness comprising inclination (tendencies) and ability (capacity to realise outcomes). This intuitive picture conveyed differentiation, but it relied on metaphors of latent content and temporal waiting.
The next refinement discarded these metaphors, treating the wavefunction as a space of possibilities: a formal, relational map of what can occur, defined entirely by the system’s structure rather than by stored readiness.
2. Potential is the System
A crucial shift recast the wavefunction itself as the system of potential. Measurement outcomes are not triggers or activations; they are instances that satisfy the system’s relational constraints. Novelty arises relationally, without latent content or hidden mechanisms.
3. Perspective and Sub-Potentials
Through the perspectival cut, the wavefunction’s dual nature becomes clear: from one view, it is potential; from another, a measurement outcome is an instance. Within the system, specific eigenstates or sectors serve as sub-potentials, locally constrained possibilities that explain patterned outcomes without creating new ontological layers.
4. Horizon and Emergence
The wavefunction has a horizon — the relational edge of what could occur next. Each measurement or interaction reshapes this edge, making novelty explicit. The horizon captures openness and emergent possibilities without invoking readiness or latent content.
5. Evolution of Potential
Potential itself evolves. Prior measurements and interactions influence which states remain available, shaping future possibilities. This evolution is relational and non-teleological: the wavefunction records the historical shaping of potential, preserving generativity while remaining consistent with the system-as-theory perspective.
6. Rejecting Misleading Conceptions
Several classical intuitions are rejected: the wavefunction is not causal power, latent content, value-laden, or a pre-meaning substrate. These readings would conflict with the relational, perspectival nature of potential.
7. Continuity and Transformation
The wavefunction, read through this evolving lens, illustrates the maturation of the concept of potential. From readiness to relational structure, from perspectival cuts to horizons and historical evolution, it embodies the same conceptual transitions. It is at once familiar and transformed: a living, relational, evolving system of potential, with constraints, edges, and history, but no hidden or stored content.
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