by Lee Smolin
academic freedom, 316
academic landscape (physics, science)
competition, 264
consensus establishment/enforcement, 345
decline in physics graduates, 266
freshman quantum mechanics courses, 265–66
innovation, 265–67, 344–48, 350, 351–53
music industry comparison, 347
power and seniority, 332, 344–48
professionalized universities, 264–66, 312
risk, xvi, xxi, 294, 330–31, 342–44, 353
seers and, 265–67, 314, 315–16, 318–19, 320–25, 326–31, 344–48, 350, 351–53, 370 n14
sociology of, 267
teacher evaluation, 342
tenure, 345–46
younger researchers and, 344, 345–47, 350
See also Peer review
accelerating motion, 39–40, 360 n2 (ch. 3)
acceleration, 22
Adelberger, Eric, 217
Aerospace Corporation’s Compact High Accuracy Satellite Motion Program, 214
aether
atoms, electrons, and, 34–35
characteristics of, 34
Earth’s motion and, 37
electricity, magnetism, and, 38
invention of, 20, 34
knot theory, 35
light and, 20, 34
Maxwell and, 34, 53
theory failure, 38, 67
African Americans in science, 335–37
Against Method (Feyerabend), 290
AGASA (Akeno Giant Air Shower Array) experiment, 221–22, 226
Akulov, Vladimir, 68, 69
Alberts, Bruce, 344
Albrecht, Andreas, 230
alpha (fine structure constant), 216–17
Ambjøn, Jan, 242, 243
Amelino-Camelia, Giovanni
and DSR, 229, 230–31, 232, 233–34
probing of Planck scale, 225–26, 230–31
special relativity-Planck length paradox, 227, 228–29
anthropic principle
acceptance by some, 161–62, 163, 164–67, 168–70
carbon nuclei properties, 165
cosmological constant, 165–66
cosmological natural selection and, 167–68
description, 161–62
fallacious examples, 163–67
fallacious principle and, 164–65
as landscape (string) theory “solution,” 161–62, 168–69
planet biofriendliness example, 163–64
as poor basis for science, 162, 254
prediction problem with, 163, 168–69
randomly distributed parameters problem of, 166
universes biofriendliness example, 163, 164–65, 167
antibranes, 157
antiquark, 56
approximate duality, 130
Aristotle
failure of theories, 3
motion and, 22
unification proposals, 20–21, 23, 24
universe as static, 151
Arkani-Hamed, Nima, 170, 173
art and imaginative world, 297
Ashtekar, Abhay, 239, 249
atomic realm of physics, viii, 5–8
atomism, 19
Auger cosmic-ray detector experiment, 222, 235–36
axion, 192 “axis of evil,” 208
background-dependent theories
ignoring gravity and, 54
Newtonian point of view and, 44, 54
string theory problems with, 83, 146–47, 184–86, 191, 198, 239, 255, 271
background-independent theory
as basic, 82–83
general relativity, 44, 54, 81–83, 174, 184–85
geometry of space, 44, 54, 81–82
quantum gravity approaches/theory, 83, 85, 86, 239, 247, 249, 251–52, 253, 255, 317
spatial dimensions, 82
time, 44, 54, 82
Baez, John, 313
Bak, Per, 342–43
Banks, Thomas, 147
Barbour, Julian, 321–22, 326, 353
Barrett-Crane model, 250
Bekenstein, Jacob
black holes, 90–91, 139, 190, 191, 250
MOND, 212
Beller, Mara, 309
Bell, John Stewart, 324–25
Bergmann, Peter, 86, 263
Berkovits, Nathan, 187, 280
Big Bang
brane worlds, 174
as consensus view, x
cosmic strings, 171
general relativity, 44
Bilson-Thompson, Sundance, 253–54
biology before/after Darwin, 19
Bjorken, James, 56, 315
black holes
branes and, 138–41
discoveries of, 90–91
entropy and, 90, 91, 139, 190, 250
extremal/near-extremal black holes, 139–40, 190, 283
final fate of, 91
gamma-ray bursts and, 224
general relativity and, 44
horizon of, 89–90, 322
information and, 91, 145, 190, 251
information paradox, 91
loop quantum gravity and, 250–51
negative dark energy and, 145
quantum theory and, 89–91, 189–91
radiation of, 91
spacetime bounce and, 251
string theory limitations on, 189–91
temperature and, 90, 91, 139, 190, 250–51
temperature-mass relationship, 90
Bohn, David, 323, 369 n21
Bohr, Niels
and quantum theory debate, 7
as seer, 309, 311
unified field theory, 51–52
Boltzmann, Ludwig, 241
bosons
description, 67
sharing states by, 68
string theory invention, 105, 106, 112
supersymmetry and, 92, 94
weak, 58
See also specific types
Bousso, Raphael, 155, 158
Brahe, Tycho, 27, 29
branes
black holes and, 138–41
definition/description, 136–38, 138, 155
extremal brane systems, 139–40
stabilizing higher dimensions with, 155–59
string theory limitations on, 189–90
brane worlds, 138, 174
Brief History of Time, A (Hawking), 243
Bronstein, Matvei Petrovich, 85–86
Brout, Robert, 61
Bruno, Giordano, 18, 19, 23
Calabi, Eugenio, 122–23
Calabi-Yau spaces, 122–23, 156
Candelas, Philip, 122–23
Carnap, Rudolf, 296
Catholic Church and unification of sun, stars, 18–19, 23
causal dynamical triangulation, 242–43, 242
causal set theory, 243–44
causal structure of spacetime, 241
Challenger disaster, 286
Chandrasekhar, Subrahmanyan, 269
Chronicle of Higher Education, 345
Clausius, Rudolf, ix
Coleman, Sidney, 221, 289
conformal field, 195
Connes, Alain, 245
on narrowness of string research, 275
on innovation and younger scientists, 346–47
noncommutative geometry, 246–47, 275
constants, 215–17
constants in string theory, 108–9
constructive theories, 10–11
Copeland, Edmund, 171–72
Copernican revolution, 3, 20–21, 23, 24
Cosmic Landscape, The (Susskind), 276
cosmic microwave background
cutoff and cosmological constant, 207
description, 205, 206
inflation theory and, 207–8
quantum gravity effects, 251
temperature fluctuations in, 205
cosmic rays
AGASA (Akeno Giant Air Shower Array) experiment, 221–22, 226
Auger cosmic-ray detector experiment
, 222, 235–36
cosmic microwave radiation and, 220, 221
energy/speed of light and, 219, 221
GZK prediction/cutoff, 220–21
pions and, 220, 221
possible breakdown of special relativity and, 221–22, 225–26
protons and, 219, 220–21
source of, 219, 220
cosmic strings, 171, 172
cosmological constant
causal set theory and, 243
definition/description, 150, 204
Einstein, 151–52
energy density of empty space, 151
expanding universe and, 152–53
history of, 150–52
“problem” reversal, 247
scale of, 204–5
Stanford group’s positive constant work, 156–57, 197
string theory problems with, 153–60, 180, 189
uncertainty principle, 152
cosmological constant, new approach
accelerations and, 209–14
cosmic microwave background and, 204–5, 206, 207–8
dark matter and, 210, 211, 212, 213
Milgrom’s law/MOND and, 210–13
neutrino masses and, 217
scale of, 204–5
similar scales to, 205, 207–14, 217–18
spacecraft trajectories and, 213–14
speed of light and, 209
cosmological natural selection, 167–68
cosmology
early discoveries in, x–xi
problem of quantum gravity and, 5–8, 12, 13
See also universe
crafts function, 297
craftspeople
description, 309, 314, 351
normal science and, 310, 311–12, 314, 324
string theorists as, 313–14
Crane, Louis, 313, 317
creationism, 25–26
Cushing, John, 370 n14
Dalton, John, viii
dark energy
amount of, 16
cosmological constant and, 150
discovery of, 149–50
effects of, xii, 150
negative, 142, 143, 145
as problem, 13, 16
string theory problems with, 191–92
supernova observation and, 150, 363 n1 (ch. 10)
tension and, 15–16
dark matter
acceleration and breakdown in Newton’s laws, 210, 211, 212, 213
amount of, 16
electromagnetic field, 10–11
as missing matter, 14–15
as problem, 13, 16, 209
string theory problems with, 191–92
Darwin, Charles, 19, 322
Dawkins, Richard, 167
D-branes. See branes
de Broglie, Louis, 7, 309, 323
decoherence, 252–53
Dell, John, 96
De Rujula, Alvaro, 338–39
Descartes, René, 256–57
Deser, Stanley, 92, 93, 97
Deutsch, David, 325
De Wit, Bernard, 147
DeWitt, Bryce
black holes, 145, 251
quantum gravity, 87, 88
as seer, 313
Wheeler-DeWitt equation, 314–15
D’Hoker, Eric, 187, 280
Dimopoulos, Savas, 173
“dinosaurs in Africa” (creationism), 25–26
Dirac, P.A.M., 86
distance. See units of distance/time
Doppler shift/effect
quasar study and, 216
spacecraft trajectories and, 213
Dowker, Fay, 313
Dreyer, Olaf, 153, 247
DSR (deformed/doubly special relativity) theory
criticism of, 233
description, 226–27, 232–36
development of, 227, 228–32
DSR II, 232
loop quantum gravity predictions on, 252
as real science, 236, 237, 238
soccer-ball problem of, 235
special relativity and, 227, 229, 236
2 + 1 quantum gravity, 234–35
dualities
of strings and fields, 110–11
types of, 130–31
Dukas, Helen, 49
Dvali, Gia, 173
Dyson, Freeman, x, xxiii, 49–50, 278
eclipses, 101–2
Eddington, Arthur, 43
Ehrenfest, Paul, 48
Einstein, Albert
accelerating motion, 39–40
appreciation for, 80–81
atoms and, ix–x, 241
cosmological constant, 151–52
debate over quantum theory, 7, 9
Earth’s motion, 37
general relativity, 43
hidden-variables theory, 323
historical/philosophical context of science, 310–11, 312
at Institute for Advanced Study, 49–50
as quantum theory founder, 4, 7
as seer, 309, 311, 314, 322, 328, 353
special relativity, 36, 37, 38, 42
theories of principle vs. constructive theories, 10
unification of electricity and magnetism, ix, 36
unification of gravity and relativity, 39
unification of motion and rest, 39
unified field theory, 49–50, 51–52, 53
universe as evolving concept, 150–52
See also specific works
electric field, Faraday’s studies of, 31, 32. See also electromagnetic field
electricity and magnetism. See unification of electricity and magnetism
electromagnetic field
as basic type, 38
as constructive theory, 10–11
as geometry of space dimension, 47
photon affinity and, 68
electron
Kaluza-Klein theory and, 46
as constructive theory, 10
as wave/particle, 6
electroweak force. See Weinberg-Salam model of electroweak force
electroweak theory, 11
eleven-dimensional supermembrane theory, 135
Ellis, George, 322–23
emergence (arising of new properties), 131–32
emergent particle, 132
emergent properties
definition/description, 132
strings, gauge theory and, 142
emergent string
definition/description, 132
electric field lines and, 141
fundamental strings vs., 132–33
End of Time, The (Barbour), 321
Englert, François, 61
epicycles, xvii, 21, 24, 195–96, 218
equivalence principle, 40, 41, 42–43
eternal inflation, 162, 167–68, 215
Euclid, 41, 44
Euclidean geometry, 41, 42, 44, 81
evolution, 19, 25–26
exact duality
definition/description, 130
T-dualities as, 135–36
exclusion principle, and fermions, 67–68
extra dimensions
search for, 172–73
stability, 155, 158
verification of, 172–74
extremal/near-extremal black holes, 139–40, 190, 283
Fabric of the Cosmos, The (Greene), xv
Fabric of Reality, The (Deutsch), 325
Faddeev, Ludwig Dmitrievich, 88
Faraday, Michael
electric, magnetic field studies of, 31–32, 110
as mechanist, 33
Farhi, Edward, 64–65
Faster Than the Speed of Light (Magueijo), 230
fermions
exclusion principle and, 67–68
Kostant and, 96
string theory invention, 105, 106, 111, 112
supersymmetry, 92, 94
Feyerabend, Paul
experimental anomalies, 154, 304
science views and, 290–91, 292, 293, 296, 304