The Trouble With Physics: The Rise of String Theory, The Fall of a Science, and What Comes Next
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Smolin and, 290–93
Feynman, Richard
criticism of string theory, 125
discovery of quarks by, 56
graviton problem, 87–88
QED, 55, 278
quantum computers, 325
quantum gravity, 87–88, 98
quantum theory, x
on science, 307
as seer, xxiii, 325
fields
as “fundamental stuff,” 38
laws with, 31
matter and, 38
values of, 31
See also electric field; gravitational field; magnetic field; unified field theory
fifth force, 172
fine structure constant (alpha), 216–17
finite theory, 6
Finkelstein, David, 322
Fischler, Willy, 147
Fock, Vladimir, 231
forces
overview, x, 11, 12, 48–49
value differences/hierarchy of, 70
See also specific types; unification of particles and forces
Frampton, Paul, 77–78
free constants, 12–16, 70
Freidel, Laurent, 234–35
Friedan, Daniel, 194, 268
fundamental strings, 132–33
Galileo Galilei
accomplishments of, xvii
Kepler’s ideas and, 218
method of, 290–91
myth of, 294
principle of relativity and, 22
spatialization of time, 256–57
unification of motion and rest, 21, 22, 24, 39, 203, 219
gamma-ray bursts, 223–24, 225–26
Gamma Ray Large Area Space Telescope (GLAST), 226, 235–36
gamma rays, 224, 226
gauge bosons, 57–58
gauge forces, 57–58
gauge principle/theory
description, 56, 57–58, 93, 361 n2 (ch. 4)
gauge bosons, 57–58
Maldacena and, 141–45, 180, 189, 194–95, 282–83
spontaneous symmetry breaking, 61
standard model and, 56–59, 61, 62, 239
strings and, 141–42
strong nuclear force, 58, 62
symmetry, 56–57
twistor theory, 245
unification of forces with, 56–59, 67
gauge theory-string theory duality, 141–45
Gell-Mann, Murray, 56
general relativity
as background-independent theory, 44, 54, 81–83, 174, 184–85
consequences of, 44
cosmological constant and, 151–53
description, ix
geometry, gravity, and, 67, 94
gravity and, 43, 67, 94
infinite solutions with, 126
infinities problem with, 5
MOND and, 212
non-Einstein approach to, 93
observers and, 58–59
predictions and, 45
reformulation of equations, 239, 249
space, time in, 4, 43, 81–82, 93, 151
symmetry and, 219
understanding of, 13
Georgi, Howard, 266
Geroch, Robert, 92
Girelli, Florian, 235
Glashow, Sheldon
particle physics, 289
special relativity breakdown, 221
string theory criticism, 125
weak force and gauge theory, 58
GLAST (Gamma Ray Large Area Space Telescope), 226, 235–36
gluons, x, 58
Goldberg, Joshua, 263
Golfand, Yuri, 68
Gonzalez-Mestres, Luis, 225
gravitational field
creation of elementary particles and, 89
effects on clocks, 40
effects on light (Einstein), 40–41, 43
unification with electromagnetic field, 38–39
gravitational lensing, 13
gravitinos, 75, 92
gravitons
description of, 85, 92, 106
superpartners of, 75
theory of, 85, 87, 88, 183
gravity
between close objects, 217–18
cosmology and, 5–8, 12, 13
Kepler, 30
Newton, viii, 14, 31, 39
spacetime geometry and, 83
systems with/without energy effects, 362 n5 (ch. 6)
understanding of, 13
unification with electromagnetic fields, 11–12
unification with rest of physics, 43, 54
See also quantum gravity; unification of gravity and electromagnetism; unified field theory
Gravity’s Rainbow (theory/novel), 233
Green, Michael, 114–15, 339
Greene, Brian, xv
Greisen, Kenneth, 220–21
Gross, David, xv, 338, 359 n4
Grothendieck, Alexander, 327–28, 353
ground-state energy. See vacuum (ground-state) energy
groupthink phenomenon, 286–88, 350, 354
Guth, Alan, xi
GZK prediction, 220–21
Hardy, Lucien, 325
Hartle, James, 317
Hawking, Stephen
black holes, x–xi, 90–91, 139, 145, 190, 191, 250
causal structure, 243
one-quantum system, 317
Sciama and, 322–23
Heisenberg, Werner
debate over quantum theory, 7
quantum gravity, 84–85, 86
as seer, 311
unified field theory, 51–52
Hertog, Thomas, 159
Hewett, JoAnne, 268–69
hidden dimensions, geometry of, 120, 122, 130, 136
hidden-variables theory, 323, 324–25, 369 n21
hierarchy problem, 70–72
Higgs, Peter, 61
Higgs boson/particle
as “composite,” 72–74
description, 61, 62, 69
predictions on, 70, 76, 77
search for, 62, 70, 76
as unprotected particle, 72
Higgs field, 62, 247
Higgsino, 74
Higgs phenomenon, 61
Hilbert, David, 45
Hofmann, Stefan, 251
holographic principle, 317, 318–19
Hoppe, Jens, 147
Horowitz, Gary
and Calabi-Yau spaces, 159
Maldacena conjecture, 282
string theory work of, 122–23
Hoyle, Fred, 165
Hubble, Edwin, 152
Hubble Space Telescope, 171
Hull, Christopher, 134
human nature
fooling ourselves, 299, 300
mechanism for correction, 300
trust and, 299–300
See also sociology of physics, string theory
inertia principle, 21
inflation theory
cosmic microwave background, 207–8
description, xi, 207–8
observation discrepancies, 208
scale of uniform universe with, 207–8
uncertainty principle and, 207
Isham, Christopher, 313, 326
Jacobson, Ted, 314–15
Janis, Irving, 286
Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), 213–14
Kachru, Shamit, 156
Kallosh, Renata, 156, 273
Kaluza-Klein theory
description, 46–47, 46, 134, 181
Einstein and, 47, 48
failure of, 47–49, 50, 117, 123, 197
space dimensions, 46–47, 48
Kaluza, Theodor, 46–47, 46
Kastler, Daniel, 246–47
Kauffman, Stuart, 294, 329, 342–43
Keck telescope, Hawaii, 216–17
Kelvin, Lord (William Thomson), 13, 35
Kepler, Johannes
astrology, 292
elliptical orbits, 30, 218
laws of, 29–30
solar system theory, 27–29, 28, 196
Tycho Br
ahe and, 27, 29
unification of planets’ motions and, 27–30
Klein, Oskar, 47. See also Kaluza-Klein theory
knot theory and aether, 35
Kostant, Bertram, 96
Kowalski-Glikman, Jerzy, 233–34
Kuhn, Thomas
experimental anomalies, 154
on scientific methods, 296–97, 310, 311
on scientific revolutions, 115
Kuzmin, Vadim, 220–21
Lakatos, Imre, 154, 297
Land, Kate, 208
landscape (string) theory
absurdity of, 158–60
acceptance of, 149, 158, 273–74, 283–84, 364 n5 (ch. 12)
debate on, 169
See also Anthropic principle
Large Electron-Positron accelerator (LEP II), 77
Large Hadron Collider. See LHC
Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory (LIGO), 172
lattice gauge theory, 189
Laughlin, Robert
cosmological constant problem, 153
quantum gravity approach, 247
as seer/craftsperson, 315, 316
Lavoisier, Antoine, viii
“left-handed” term, 50
LEP II (Large Electron-Positron accelerator), 77
leptons, 12
Lerche, Wolfgang, 273–74
LHC (Large Hadron Collider)
future uses for, 69–70, 71, 76, 173, 175, 254
supersymmetry and, 69–70, 76–77, 78, 79
Life of the Cosmos, The (Smolin), 127, 167
light
matter and, 14–15
and sound unification, 19–20
wavelength of, 39
as wave/particle, ix, 6
LIGO (Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory), 172
Likhtman, Evgeny, 68
Linde, Andrei, 156, 162, 170
Livine, Etera, DSR, 235
Lloyd, Seth, 318
logical positivism, 295–96
Loll, Renate, 242–43, 242
loop quantum gravity
black holes and, 250–51
quantum geometry in, 249, 250
quantum gravity theory, 229
quantum spacetime in, 249
recent work in, 249–54
unification and, 252–54
Lorentz, Hendrik, 47
Mach, Ernst, 53
Macready, William, 298
Maeda, Kengo, 159
magnetic field
Faraday’s studies of, 31–32
See also electromagnetic field
Magueijo, Joño
DSR, 231, 232–35, 236
microwave background, 208
as seer, 315
VSL cosmology/relativity, 230, 231, 232–33, 315
Majid, Shahn, 231–32
Maldacena, Juan
on branes and black holes, 140
holographic principle, 318
string theory-gauge theory, 141–45, 180, 189, 194–95, 282
Mandelstam, Stanley, and string theory finiteness, 117, 187, 278–79, 280, 281, 367 n14, 15
Mannheim, Philip, 212
Margulis, Lynn, 167, 294, 342–43
Markopoulou, Fotini
MOND, 215
as seer, 313
unification-loop quantum gravity, 252–54
universe as quantum computer, 317–18
Marshack, Alexander, 297–98
Marshakov, Andrei, 367 n14
mass
astronomers’ comparison measuring of, 14–15
description, 105
differences/hierarchy of particles, 70
“protected” masses, 72
speed and, 14
See also Planck mass
massless particles, 105
mathematics
and beauty, 30, 45
importance of proofs, 188
mathematically consistent theory, 112n
matrix theory, 147
matter
effects on geometry of space, 41
fields and, 38
importance of, 38
light and, 14–15
unification of heat and, 19
maximally super theory
definition/description, 134
gauge theory-supersymmetry, 142–44
string theory relationship, 144
Yang-Mills theories and, 134
Maxwell, James Clerk
aether, 34, 53
Faraday’s work and, 31–32, 32
fields and, 110
gauge forces and, 58
as mechanist, 33
unification of electricity and magnetism, ix, 11, 31, 32–36, 46, 55, 196, 247
membranes. See branes mesons, 56
metaphysics, 295–96
Milgrom, Mordehai, 210
Milgrom’s law, 210–11, 213
Milgrom’s theory (MOND—modified Newtonian dynamics)
general relativity and, 212
as mystery/puzzle, 213, 215
Newton’s law of gravity vs., 211
nonstring theories and, 214–15
string theory and, 214
minimally supersymmetric standard model (MSSM), 75–76, 78
Minkowski, Hermann, 36
moduli stabilization problem, 154–60
Moffat, John, 212, 229–30
MOND. See Milgrom’s theory
monopoles, 134
Moore’s law, 16
motion, laws of gravity and, viii, 14, 31, 39. See also accelerating motion; uniform motion
Motl, Lubos, xvi
MSSM (minimally supersymmetric standard model), 75–76, 78
M-theory
exaggerations of, 276–77
as “fundamental” theory, 181, 182, 183, 196–97, 198
multiverse theory. See Eternal inflation
Myers, Robert, 171, 280
Nambu, Yoichiro, 103–4
NASA
Challenger disaster, 286
spacecraft trajectory discrepancies, 213–14
National Academy of Sciences, 344, 354
National Institutes of Health funding, 344
National Science Foundation, 354, 370 n14
nature
“hiding in plain sight,” 203–4
as hierarchical, 70–71
infinities and, 5
unity of, 4–5
negative dark energy, 142, 143, 145
Neumann, John von, 323
neutrinos
discovery of, x
invention/finding of, 26
as left-handed, 50
mass and, xii, 66
masses of, and scale R, 217
neutron
discovery of, x
quarks and, 56, 103
neutron star, 224
Neveu, Andrei, 106
Newton, Isaac
alchemy, 292
background-dependent theories, 44
Copernican revolution of physics, 3
laws of gravity, motion, viii, 14, 31, 39, 211
as seer/craftsperson, 309
Newtonian physics
acceptance of, 24
breaking with, 4, 196
gravity between close objects, 217–18
infinite solutions with, 126
Kepler and, 30, 31
mathematics and, 196
modifying theory of gravity, 39
spacecraft trajectory discrepancies and, 213–14
unification proposals and, 31
Newton’s first law of motion, 21, 22, 24
New York Times, 338
Nicolai, Hermann, 147
Nielsen, Holger
loop quantum gravity, 249
random dynamics, 315–16
as seer, 315–16
string theory beginnings and, 103–4, 110, 315
Nobel Prizes, 261–62, 316
no-free-lunch theorem, 298
noncommutative geometry, 246–47, 275
Nordstrom, Gunnar, 39, 43, 44, 46, 47