The measurement problem is the unresolved issue of how (and even if) the collapse of the wave function exactly occurs. Schrödinger’s cat is an icon of this problem. Relation physics can provide assistance in this matter. Fundamentally, it involves the incompatibility of two complementary paradigms, each with its own language. The terms ‘particle’, ‘isolated’, ‘stable’, and ‘objective’ belong to the paradigm of analysis, fitting into the macro level. On the quantum level, it primarily requires the paradigm of synthesis with concepts such as ‘probability distribution’, ‘shared information’, ‘superposition’, ‘entanglement’, ‘coherence’, ‘relation’, and ‘subjective’ (in the sense of ‘in relation to’).

The measurement problem asserts that it is impossible and incomprehensible to calculate or deduce in any way the outcome of a collapse of a wave function or superposition. From numerous potential values in superposition, one reality emerges. What happens to the other candidates? In terms of relation physics, those other candidates – the other information – get redistributed across the environment towards the most probable options.

Consider it from a relation perspective. What if, during a measurement (observation, event, interaction), the redistribution of shared information to other positions results in a transformation of all involved parties? As the entire universe is interconnected, this is incalculable. During redistribution, information also jumps from the object that is being measured to the observer. This creates an entanglement between the object and the observer, leading to a sharing of information. In this way, the observer acquires knowledge (the sought-after value) about the object. This knowledge is subjective. As a result of the measurement, both the observer and the object changed.

During observation/measurement, both parties undergo changes, resulting in a new, shared entanglement after the measurement. A measurement on the smallest conceivable element can result in the largest possible change to this element. A photon, for instance, can be absorbed or created.

This change in both parties, resulting in a new, shared entanglement, is also part of Heisenberg’s uncertainty principle. As a result, only one property of a quantum particle can be measured.

Collapse, measurement, and observation mark the ‘point of no return’. This doesn’t happen as long as (for example) a photon can still share its information in a more or less neutral field. Once the photon must share its information with ‘something larger’, making reversibility impossible, there is a collapse, measurement, or observation. This marks the transition to the macroscopic level. It also involves the encounter between the small (‘elementary particle’ from a neutral environment) and the large (a more complex quantum system).