Quantum weirdness and Bell's theorem

Although I was nearly certain I wrote a post about Bell's Theorem in the summer of 2006, it appears I started a post on it then modified it to talk about Hume and creationism. At some point the post got so long and complex I cut out quantum stuff entirely.

At any rate, Wired has an article explaining that a recently-published study has shown quantum entanglement, which is the heart of Bell's Theorem, on a scale never before seen.

In the new study, researchers used a microwave pulse to attempt to entangle the electrical currents of the two superconductors. If the currents were quantum-mechanically linked, one current would flow clockwise at the time of measurement (assigned a value of 0), while the other would flow counterclockwise when measured (assigned a value of 1), Martinis says. On the other hand, the currents’ directions would be completely independent of each other if everyday, classical physics were at work.

After attempting to entangle the superconducting circuits, Martinis and his team measured the directions of the currents 34.1 million times. When one current flowed clockwise (measured as a 0), the team found, the other flowed counterclockwise (measured as a 1) with very high probability. So the two were linked in a way that only quantum mechanics could explain.

Refs:

1. "Is the moon there when nobody looks? Reality and the quantum theory" (PDF, 267k), N. David Mermin, Physics Today (April 1985)
2. Bell's Theorem with Easy Math, by David R. Schneider
3. Quantum Entanglement and Information, Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy