More than One Way to Skin a Schrödinger Cat: Considering Bohr's Philosophy-Physics and Everett's Many-Worlds Interpretation

In this thesis, I argue that, contrary to the historical opposition between Niels Bohr and Hugh Everett's respective interpretations of quantum mechanics, their views share several common goals and metaphysical similarities. Their theories, while they have their disagreements, make many compatible claims with one another, although the conclusions they reach are different. They went about modeling physical reality in distinct ways, but I argue first that these apparent incompatibilities are not so dissimilar as commonly believed and second that Everett manages to improve upon Bohr's theory for a more coherent account of physical reality. I demonstrate this by 1) looking at Bohr's interpretation of quantum mechanics, as understood by Karen Barad, and his solution to (or perhaps more appropriately, his denial of) the measurement problem; 2) looking at Everett's interpretation of quantum mechanics, in part as made popular by Bryce DeWitt, and his solution to (or denial of) the measurement problem; and 3) comparing and contrasting Bohr and Everett's interpretations in order to show that Bohr's view can be understood as laying down the metaphysical framework for Everett's view, which ultimately leads to a more cogent, consistent, and compelling understanding not only of the measurement problem of quantum mechanics, but also of the nature of the multiverse.