Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • News & Views
  • Published:

Nonlinear dynamics

Quantizing the classical cat

Nature volume 430, pages 731–732 (2004)Cite this article

A mathematical analysis of a pendulum system reveals the relevance to quantum systems of the classical concept of ‘monodromy’ — why a falling cat always lands the right way up.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Buy this article

  • Purchase on Springer Link
  • Instant access to full article PDF
Buy now

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

Figure 1

NHPA

Figure 2

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. the Mathematics Institute, University of Warwick, Coventry, CV4 7AL, UK

    Ian Stewart

Authors
  1. Ian Stewart
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Stewart, I. Quantizing the classical cat. Nature 430, 731–732 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1038/430731a

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/430731a

This article is cited by

Search

Advanced search

Quick links

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing