[sjastro]

Originally Posted by CraigS

Hi Steven;

Thanks for your post.
Yes, I agree … its all very interesting, and the differences between the two approaches is more often than not, portrayed in terms of how QM evolved in history, as primarily a challenge to classical physics.

There is no "conflict" between the two theories. QM is an evolution of classical physics. It hasn't replaced classical physics but takes it to a more fundamental level.
The slit experiment is explained classically by treating light as a wave. QM extends this to wave/particle duality.

Steven mentioned the Balmer Series for hydrogen. Is it now possible to generate a discrete spectrum using classical wave principles (I wonder) ?

Bohr came up with a "semi classical" or "classical/QM hybrid" which explained the spectral lines. This was however part of the evolution of classical physics to QM.

Regards

Steven