The RF in RFID, 2nd Edition

Chapter 1

Introduction

1.1 What, When, and Where, Wirelessly

To a quantum mechanic the whole universe is one godawful big interacting wavefunction – but to the rest of us, it’s a world full of separate and distinguishable objects that hurt us when we kick them. At a few months of age, human children recognize objects, expect them to be permanent and move continuously, and display surprise when they aren’t or don’t. We associate visual, tactile, and in some cases audible and olfactory sensations with identifiable physical things. We’re hardwired to understand our environment as being composed of separable things with specific properties and locations. We understand the world in terms of what was where when. So one can forgive us for being disappointed ...