It's not so much energy or force as it is... probability.
When an "Either Or" situation occurs on a quantum (that is to say, extremely small, tiniest-things-in-existence-small) level, such as a photon of light nearing a sheet of paper with two closely-placed slits in it, then the result will usually be a combination of both "Either" and "Or".
For the photon going through the slits, if it isn't observed, this'll mean that, contrary to all expectations, it'll go through both slits. Simultaneously. And then it'll interact with itself.
If, on the other hand, we observe it, and find a way to determine which slit it went through, it only goes through one slit, and, thusly, doesn't interact with itself.
The reason for this is that the photon's pretty much a particle and a wave (a probability function) at the same time.
And that's just the basic principle. One of the experiments that Sith's posted above proves that not only does observing the experiment change the result, but it will change the result retroactively. Pretty much, if you're going to observe it, then the result you get will be the result you would have gotten through observing it, even if you haven't actually observed it yet.
Apparently, information can fucking time travel.
Because fuck you, Einstein.
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