ABSTRACT

Is quantum mechanics a successful scientific theory? What you have learnt in the first three chapters of this book clearly shows that the answer is “Yes”. Quantum mechanics permits the accurate calculation of many quantities that cannot be predicted in any other way. The frequencies and relative intensities of spectral lines, for example, were utterly mysterious when they were first observed, yet they can now be predicted with great accuracy — thanks to quantum mechanics. Some of the most accurate predictions in the whole of science have been made using quantum mechanics.