Editing Quaternion (section)

=== Quaternions in physics ===

The finding of 1924 that in [[quantum mechanics]] the [[Spin (physics)|spin]] of an electron and other matter particles (known as [[spinors]]) can be described using quaternions (in the form of the famous [[Pauli matrices|Pauli spin matrices]]) furthered their interest; quaternions helped to understand how rotations of electrons by 360° can be discerned from those by 720° (the "[[Plate trick]]").<ref>{{cite web |last1=Huerta |first1=John |title=Introducing The Quaternions |url=http://math.ucr.edu/~huerta/introquaternions.pdf |access-date=8 June 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141021093534/http://math.ucr.edu/~huerta/introquaternions.pdf |archive-date=2014-10-21 |url-status=live |date=27 September 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |first=Charlie |last=Wood |title=The Strange Numbers That Birthed Modern Algebra |date=6 September 2018 |work=Abstractions blog |publisher=Quanta Magazine |url=https://www.quantamagazine.org/the-strange-numbers-that-birthed-modern-algebra-20180906/}}</ref> {{As of|2018}}, their use has not overtaken [[orthogonal group|rotation groups]].<ref group=lower-alpha>A more personal view of quaternions was written by [[Joachim Lambek]] in 1995. He wrote in his essay ''If Hamilton had prevailed: quaternions in physics'': "My own interest as a graduate student was raised by the inspiring book by Silberstein". He concluded by stating "I firmly believe that quaternions can supply a shortcut for pure mathematicians who wish to familiarize themselves with certain aspects of theoretical physics." {{cite magazine |author=Lambek, J. |title=If Hamilton had prevailed: Quaternions in physics |year=1995 |magazine=Math. Intelligencer |volume=17 |issue=4 |pages=7–15 |doi=10.1007/BF03024783}}</ref>