THE FIRST APPEARANCE OF SCHRODINGER'S CAT

SCHRODINGER, Erwin. "Die Gegenwartige Situation in der Quantemechanik." IN: Die Naturwissenschaften. Berlin: Julius Springer, 1935. Royal octavo, contemporary half black cloth with marbled boards. $2500.

First edition of the famed "Schrödinger's cat" thought experiment, illustrating one of the central paradoxes of quantum theory.

"In the 1930s quantum theory pioneer Erwin Schrödinger proposed his famous thought experiment, in which a cat in a closed box appears to be both alive and dead at the same time until someone observes it, as a demonstration of the philosophical paradoxes involved in quantum theory. The possibility of the experiment's actually being done could have far-reaching effects on the heated philosophical debate about the meaning of quantum theory. On the practical side, atoms held in two different superimposed quantum states could serve as logic elements in quantum computers, which might be able to make use of the superpositions to carry out many calculations simultaneously" (Brittanica). As a thought experiment only, no cats were harmed, but the result was a continuing debate with numerous conflicting interpretations, and the notion of a "cat state," the quantum superposition of two distinct states, which has been achieved experimentally. Schrödinger's piece is printed in three parts across three separate issues: pp. 805-11 in issue 48 (29 November, 1935), pp. 821-828 in issue 49 (6 December 1935) and pp.844-49 in issue 50 (13 December 1935). Library and deaccession stamps, including to general title page.

Some pages slightly stuck together, not affecting Schrödinger's paper. Boards a bit rubbed. The first appearance of one of the great though experiments of modern physics.