The Physics of Entanglement: Biography as a Sum of Trajectories

The text uses the Feynman path integral as an existential metaphor, opposing the linear vision of life (typical of CVs and LinkedIn) with the image of a 'cloud of possible paths.' The author argues that biography is not merely a sum of facts and achievements, but the result of tension between chosen paths and those abandoned or impossible. Counterfactual knowledge—questions about who we would be under different circumstances—is not a sign of weakness, but intellectual honesty. This approach allows one to strip failure of its totalitarian character; the loss of a specific professional path (e.g., in academia) does not mean a loss of meaning or wasted time, as every trajectory, even an unrealized one, shapes identity and the way of seeing the world.