QuantumQuokka
Information Theory of Action Circular Reasoning
Information Theory of Action: Reconstructing Quantum Dynamics from Inference over Action Space
Published: 12 May 2026 · Updated: 13 July 2026
Read the original sourceWhat the paper says
The paper claims to derive quantum mechanics from information-theoretic principles.
The Critique
This is philosophical sleight of hand. You can't claim to have explained quantum mechanics when you've baked the formalism into your assumptions. The derivation assumes 'action additivity' and 'probability normalization' as primitive postulates, but these are essentially equivalent to the quantum mechanical principles they're trying to derive.
Why It Matters
If the derivation is circular, it's not a reconstruction of quantum mechanics from information theory but a reformulation. This matters for foundational physics programs seeking to derive quantum mechanics from more primitive principles.
What They Missed
The 'finite resolution scale' that makes action contributions indistinguishable is identified with ℏ empirically—but this is circular: ℏ already contains quantum mechanics.
The Big Question
Can quantum mechanics truly be derived from information-theoretic principles, or will any such derivation necessarily assume what it seeks to prove?