Plot summary: Ok, I know this film was released in the United States in 2004, but it so raised hackles when it debuted in the United Kingdom in 2005 we thought it deserved a mention. Half documentary and half drama, the film features a deaf photographer who discovers that 'quantum physics' can (miraculously) liberate her from anxiety attacks and low self-esteem, interspersed with interviews from scientists and "mystics".
Science review: Quantum physics does highlight a bunch of odd stuff, mysterious things do happen at the quantum level, and yes, it probably is the weirdest part of science. But What the Bleep makes some leaps of faith that we think squarely put it in the bonkers category. In reality, quantum effects are extremely small at large scales and the macro world is almost perfectly described by classical physics.
There have been some worthy conjectures about the link between quantum effects and macro systems. Take the 'Orchestrated Objective Reduction', or Orch OR, theory proposed by Roger Penrose and Stuart Hameroff (who features in the film) that consciousness involes a specific form of quantum computation.
But we give no award for worthy conjectures for this film: quantum mumbo jumbo will not defeat modern medicine. And the intricate mesh of science and pseudo-science that the film foists on its unsuspecting audience is a 'bleep' to unravel.
Award: Biggest quantum leap in the application of quantum physics.
Image: © Revolver Entertainment |
