I think that while physics itself has not changed, the ways that we look at it and analyze it changes with every new discovery made. It used to be that the only forces in the universe were gravity and electromagnetism, but now we have discovered both the strong and weak nuclear forces, as well as having meshed them both together with electromagnetism to become quantum mechanics. New particles are being discovered so quickly now, that for a while we even changed our thinking of science to have everything be described and analyzed with using particles instead of energy and forces.
The concept of string theory entices me, because I know that maybe if it is proven to be true in at least one of it's forms, we can unlock secrets to the universe previously dismissed as impossible or crazy. If string theory is correct, and if we can fully harness its capabilities, we may have to change the laws of physics to be more along the lines of recommendations. As described in the video, we currently think of everything as being merely up to chance. But string theory has the possibility of eliminating chance from our lives forever. We could predict things such as when or how things could simply phase through matter, or unlock inter-dimensional travel. If we had a unified theory of everything, we could travel to other planets and galaxies and learn so much more about life.
I love the concepts string theory has to offer, and I appreciate that while it is still a very abstract idea, I am able to understand at least what is being said and retain the ideas being conveyed by the video. String theory is so wildly different from the past of physics, but maybe that is what physics needed, was some change in order to keep moving forward. Yes, I do believe that the science and understanding of physics has changed, and I believe that as long as people continue to learn and study physics, it will continue to change over my lifetime and many more after mine.
I believe that physics has changed over the last 100 years in a multitude of ways. Through our studies in class this year we have learned all about how the world works mathematically with gravity and forces as though gravity was the main idea of physics. Pendulums demonstrate this idea that gravity is what pulls us closer to the center of the Earth as well as what keeps the planet spinning. At the beginning of the year we studied forces and how forces affect gravitational pull and how the connect. I think that physics was thought mainly of in conjunction with gravity whereas now we think of the string theory working together with gravity and the three forces to create everything we see today.
As Einstein studied the idea of general relativity he believed there was more than just one force at work in the universe but couldn’t figure out how they fit together. Without the completion of the string theory and making the theory, ‘safe,’ Einstein did not understand how all of the forces of the universe worked together. After Einstein's death and the rejection of the accidental discovery of the string theory physicists were very reluctant to the acceptance of the string theory because it had too many anomalies. Finally in 1984 when the string theory was proven, that is when physics really changed the most because the string theory was a whole new idea that somehow, everything we have know until now can be combined to explain all of the known and unknown things of the universe.
Another theory created about particles of matter that all combined could also describe the world we see around us. These were a whole new idea as well because like the little tiny strings of energy that had just been discovered, these particles were being newly discovered quite regularly. I think physics has changed in certain ways but I also think that these new theories are just helping to evolve and further our knowledge of previously known concepts and ideas.
Physics has changed over the past century because of the new knowledge we keep gaining and the new theories we keep creating. Maybe about 300 years ago, scientists were convinced the earth was flat and that is was the center of the universe. 200 years after we don’t believe that same thing; however, the reason for so much new knowledge is partially because people die. Einstein kept being on the verge of the string theory we have today, or rather the theory of everything. But he died and the theory was tucked away. Then more people can about and discovered new things. But what did they do when they failed? They tried again. Just kidding, they went into a depression and got drunk. With developing technology, we might be able to see down the string size, but about one hundred years ago, no such technology was invented, nor was the theory accepted. Because of all this newfound knowledge, physicists have created new theories to make sense of the new knowledge. Ultimately, they are trying to downsize it and get one master equation for everything in the universe. In the video, it talked about the different forces that make up our world: gravity, electromagnetism, strong force, and weak force. For some reason everything but gravity didn’t cause an anomaly. However, at the end of our second video, they introduced to us that if we dramatically change the size of what we’re solving for, gravity might play a role. Realistically, if strings do exist, I think they’ve been around since the beginning of time. I don’t think they just sprang up out of nowhere. The thing that has changed is our understanding of it. We are constantly gaining new knowledge for physics and therefore, it is a fundamentally ever changing world.
I think physics has changed over the past one hundred years. In the beginning they came up with good ideas that make sense, then it evolved. It’s like writing a essay. Before the 1900s they were gathering data and quotes to use to use in their writing. This part was the information they need to present to people. Then in the last 100 years physics put all their finding together and started writing their essay. Each equation was like a draft. It wasn’t right just yet, but it was a step in the right direction. Their essay still doesn’t have a final copy yet. When people began looking at the world they started with what they saw. They looked at a rock. They knew it was something they saw and it was real. Then the discovery of cells and atoms brought together proof, that there is more than what meets the eye. Once you could see atoms and cells with microscopes it was a fact. Then over time, people thought what if there was even more than that. This wound up to the string theory. Object to atoms to corks to string. Once all of the anomalies were worked out it made more sense to the scientific community, but still not right just yet. Each decade more and more is discovered and proven with the string theory. Each equation is cross referenced creating more and more proof that soon they will have the perfect equation that will explain everything in the world. This would prove if there is four, eleven, twenty six, or another number of dimensions. Right now everything is a work in progress but it has come a long way since the start of this thinking over 100 years ago. This theory has definitely changed they way physics is. They want to combine two huge ideas into one. How could this not change the ideas we have now?
I think that physics has fundamentally changed over the course of the last century because as we learn we know more then we can build upon the building blocks and grow our understanding of the new physics. For example, we had two different ideas with relativity and then Quantum mechanics being the other and, when physicist started to merge the two together with string theory we had different ideas then we had in the past and from that point people could use the basic concept of string theory to build the next level of different dimensions and, the ideas that strings vibrate and create different frequencies that create all of the fundamental forces(Gravity and nuclear) and properties in the universe. If we build a strong foundation for the string theory to continue to sit on then, I believe that in the next century we could even see a different change in the way string theory is conceptualized because of the past history following the growth of physics. I think that if physics, like all sciences do, does not produce new materials and continue to advance the science sort of dies. There may not be a need to continue to use a science that meets a dead end because then there could be a better science that could further what we all ready now. I also believe that science is like a flower and that it will just keep growing until you stop watering it and giving it sun. I also believe that most science blend together and that if one science advances then , there might be a cry for change in other fields that could be furthered. This makes me feel that science needs to continue to grow or otherwise it is worthless. For example when I go to college I want to learn and If I cannot learn from a college then I will leave; that is how strongly I feel about advances in science. String theory has clearly changed the way we think about the physics and I feel strongly that it is changing physics because we know that string theorist and particle physicist. Which are two jobs that I would have never thought to exist a decade ago. If that much has changed in ten years I feel that a century has provide so much change that it almost like it not even the same science.
I think that Physics has fundamentally changed over the last 100 years. For example, 100 years ago, Einstein was trying to use unification to discover a theory of everything for all of space and the universe, but did not factor strings into his thought-process. He did discover General Relativity, which led to the discovery and understanding of 3 other forces through Quantum Mechanics - the Strong, Weak, and Electromagnetic Forces. However, this still posed the problem of trying to unite these four distinctly different forces, and the two distinctly different equations that explain our universe into one master equation that explained everything. Science was lacking something to bridge the two ideas, but lacked any way to do it. Then, starting in the 80s, a few scientists proposed the idea of strings, which are tiny particles of energy that help to make up an atom and which can give matter certain characteristics, such as mass. However, though several papers were published on the topic, they were mostly overlooked and discredited due to the ostensible anomalies in the String Theory equation and the fact that strings are so small that they could not be tested or proven as a part of an “experimental science,” as Physics is thought of to be. Finally, when two scientists proved that the String Theory equation does not contain anomalies, the direction of modern science changed radically - there had been very few “string theorists” prior to the discovery that there were, in fact, no anomalies in the equation, but after the discovery, hundreds of new scientists started to try and understand String Theory in the quest for one master equation to describe the universe. This radically changed the direction in which science was moving, and also created the idea that there might be more dimensions of space than those that meet the eye - the String Theory equations demand more dimensions than the tangible ones in which we are familiar with. 100 years ago, Einstein was discovering the idea of General Relativity, and Bohr was discovering the idea of Quantum Mechanics - there seemed no way to seemingly unite these two concepts that both were able to explain the universe, into one master equation. However, with the idea of strings and proof that their existence may indeed be a real possibility in understanding and discovering that master equation, science has dramatically changed directions into what it is now trying to research and discover, and what it defines the universe as actually being. Science is now trying to prove whether or not there are more dimensions than we are able to feel, whether or not an experiment can be devised to prove the validity of the idea of strings, and also which one of the 5 string theory equations applies to our universe. Since 100 years ago, science has taken a turn into a seemingly crazy new direction in the quest of one master equation that will hopefully explain everything, even if it seems too far fetched and incredible to logically seem true.
When the human race started asking questions about how our world works, centuries ago. They were trying to put together the basic building blocks of why our world works as it does. They looked for gravity and the essence of matters. How different forces can work on each other in a negative or positive way. In the past 100 years however, we have gotten more and more hungry for knowledge on this subject. People like Einstein have wanted to expand the basic meanings of the universe and look for details and specifics on the smallest matters in the universe. When Einstein came into this world he wanted to know more. He came up with the theory of general relativity which basically showed the science world exactly how the universe worked. That there was fundamentally a blanket that held everything in the universe up. The more dense masses would make a bigger indent on the blanket forcing smaller masses to orbit around them. After this discovery Einstein felt as if there was more to the universe then any other discovery has shown. He wanted to make an equation of the universe. Explaining everything that happens and why it happens. The theory of everything is what he had worked on until he passed away. Many scientists thought he was crazy and it wasn’t worth following up. Yet most looked away, there were some that saw Einsteins beliefs as some of their own and wanted to prove him right. Many of years later and millions of equations written the scientist found the string theory. After being rejected many times they finally proved it to be correct and changed the looks at physics forever. With this discovery which had proved to link quantum mechanics and gravity, there was a new question on the rise that had to do with the dimensions in our universe. Ever since man had ruled this world there were always only 3 dimensions. There always will be three dimensions many thought after the idea of there being more came out. If the string theory were to be true though then 6 dimensions had to be true. Most discoveries in recent years have been much more dense and harder to understand. Einstein and his followers had set out on a mission and many would not rest until they discovered these theories. We are starting to understand the world more specifically and it is exciting to me where we can take it next. The main way physics has changed in my eyes is that all the ideas that were once talked about in earlier centuries are now actually being put to the test. We want to know everything at this day and age and not only that but we want to know how everything works.
I do not think that Physics has changed at all fundamentally. I say this because tho it is getting much more complicated at its core the physics that is being done today is building off the physics that has been done all of history. Everything on the video we watched is trying to explain what we noticed in our universe so to me its not that it is changing to the fundamentals of physics but rather it is adding on to these fundamental principles and ideas.
One reason I do not think that it has changed fundamentally is because the idea of gravity. Newton was the first one to describe gravity and it made a lot of things fit together in the universe, e.g. the solar system. Gravity is one of the principles of physics and the idea behind it hasn’t changed, the only thing to change about it is how intricate it is. When Einstein came up with his theory of General relativity it actually helped make sense of and strengthen what we know about gravity. Einsteins theory just gave people a new way of understanding what gravity does and how it affects everything.
But because we also knew that there are very very small things in the universe we had to find a way to connect them all. To me the physics in the last century has been looking into smaller things so that one day we can look at the bigger picture and put it all together. What physics now is trying to do is look at the fundamentals of it all, we have just recently found even smaller things making up matter than we originally thought so we are trying to back to the foundation. It is like building a skyscraper, you need the foundation to be sturdy to be able to make it tall, but with these new discoveries in the last century we need to find a way to build a stronger foundation on that skyscraper; we need to find a way to lift the building so that we can add more to the bottom rather than the top. This new foundation could either be the string theory or the standard model. Both of these ideas are trying to look microscopically at the things we already know and have known for quite a while.
The string theory is very interesting. I am very intrigued by it because if it is proven it would really throw physics for a loop. Physics has never been looked at in the type of way the the string theory looks at it. String theory would alter the fundamentals of physics but it would not shatter them because string theory shares the fundamental physics but in a different way. An example of this being that if string theory was proven it would add dimensions; sure this would change the way we look at physics but it would not shatter it because physics already understands that we have dimensions. I do not think physics has changed fundamentally, I just think that we know of smaller things now and we need to fit these microscopic discoveries into physics.
In the last one hundred years there has been many developments in physics. However the fundamental ideas behind physics remain the same. Physics has always been used to prove and explain the natural laws of how the world and universe work. I believe that this has been a constant in all of the new physics to come out. In the past century quantum mechanics is one major change seen in the field of physics. This new idea proves and helps to explain how the universe works when you look at very small objects such as atoms protons and neutrons. This idea however, still strives to explain how the universe works. By explaining how these works this idea has stayed with the fundamental idea of physics,to explain how the universe works. When this idea first came out in involved three forces, Strong nuclear force, Weak nuclear force, and finally electromagnetism. Quantum mechanics combined all three of these forces into one idea. However it clashed with another theory of the universe. It was einstein theory of relativity. For a very long time physicians were unable to connect the theory of relativity and quantum mechanics. They searched for a master equation that could combine all four of these forces. (Gravity, Strong, Weak, and Electromagnetic) The idea that they needed was string theory. This was discovered when a physicist was reading an old mathematics book. Inside of this book he found a series of equations that was able to combine this forces. Many years later, in 1984, String theorists were able to work out all of the knicks that stopped the theory from being published. This idea has become more widely accepted, and until recently was left unprovable. Physicist were able to create an experiment that would prove the existence of string theory. This idea of combining all four of the universal forces stays with the fundamental idea of physics, the idea of explaining the universe. String theory is the simplest way to do it. It has all four force in one behemoth of an equation. String theory however still remains as a mystery since it would be extremely hard to perform the experiment to prove the existence of strings. As a whole I think the new ideas discovered in the last century stay with the ideas of physics. The idea that through reason and logic we are able to explain how and why certain things happen in the universe. The basic laws that govern all objects regardless of their size shape or place. The theory of relativity explains huge objects such as starts, quantum mechanics explains small objects such as atoms, and string theory is able to combine these two ideas into one theory and set of equations.
Physics has changed in the past 100 years, there are so many theories that have been discovered and have been either proven or discredited by now. Throughout the century a new theory has been discovered and that is the string theory. Now throughout history different people have discovered different parts of the theory that ultimately make it, “The Theory of Everything”.They grew to discover that the universe is based on two different laws that don’t agree but the String Theory could explain it all. The String Theory are strings which are tiny bits of energy resulting in multiple dimensions. There have ended up being 5 different versions of the String Theory since it has gotten famous, but none of those 5 theories agree. And within those theories initially only six extra dimensions were demanded if string theory is correct, but one of those 5 demand 26 dimensions. The basis of the string theory was from Einstein's idea of unification: the formulation of a law that describes every idea from a master equation. Newton came up with gravity, relating heavens to earth, but had no idea how gravity actually worked though he knew the strength of it. Earth’s rotation was described by two theories, a 4d space time warp like a trampoline where heavy things make a dent (general relativity) and James Clark Maxwell’s relationship between electricity and magnification (mathematical equations that unified electricity and magnification in a single force called electromagnetism). Einstein was never able to relate gravity and electromagnetism. A group of scientists found that atoms contained neutrons and protons surrounded by electrons, and Einstein’s unification idea was turned on its head. Einstein’s colleagues had already disagreed with the idea and no one carried on the project. Everything we can see are atoms that contain negative electrical charge also known as electromagnetism, billions and billions time stronger than gravity but quantum mechanics shattered all other theories. Quantum mechanics described the world as a game of chance, uncertainty, and predicting the probability of one outcome or another is the best you can do. If it was noticeable you would think you lost your mind. Einstein would say to this, “God would not throw dice” but quantum mechanics does describe how the world works at a subatomic level as gravity does not. Though the only two theories that describe the function of the universe disagree, it is hoped that someday string theory may be able to explain all of nature using tiny vibrating strings of energy called strings. Gravity is just following curves and contours in the fabric, time warp fabric, and quantum mechanics can be understood at a very very small size, microscopic realm, a world with a structure that is far less certain, a world so turbulent it defies common sense. Not until recently has an experiment been suggested to prove the existence of the string theory. As it cannot be tested it cannot be proven wrong either, so the question is asked does that make it a theory or a philosophy? It is Oilers math equation that described the strong force within the string theory and it was an accident. In 1984 two dedicated scientists proved that the theory was free on anomalies. To put strings into perspective, if an atom was blown up to the size of the universe a string would only be the size of a tree. And only if shrunken to a microscopic size would we see how the curled dimensions of string theory are twisted and curled,and how they vibrate. Throughout the century we observe that many scientists have progressed and worked together in different ways to come together to one conclusion, that the string theory is indeed the theory of everything.
I think physics has grown a lot over the last 100 years although they still use the same forces to describe how the world works like Gravity and Electromagnetism . For a long time, no one knew how to include all the forces into one theory. It wasn’t until String Theory that the gravity force could be described. Einstein discovered that Gravity is just warps and curves in space time fabric. That changed the way everyone looked at gravity. Einstein wanted to find a way to put all the forces together and create one master theory. Black holes supported the idea since it involved gravity and quantum mechanics. After Einstein died, many physicists wanted to continue his work. The idea of combining forces died down until sting theory came along. String Theory suggested that all matter was made of tiny vibrating strings.
To put it simply, physics is basically an explanation of everything. Over the past hundred years, physics has changed significantly. Throughout history, there has been two main theories; General Relativity and Quantum Mechanics. These have both been notorious for conflicting, however once the string theory was introduced, it proposed a bridge between the gap.
String theory is still pretty new. It was discovered by accident and was deeply rejected at first. People either like this idea or they don’t. As mentioned in the movie, there are string theorists and there are physicists. General Relativity and Quantum Mechanics have been divided for so long that I strongly believe String Theory will provide a happy medium, ultimately changing the world of physics. For so long the world of Physics has been in chaos, trying to find a combination of theories. Although many people are hesitant, the String Theory brings a new and refreshing idea to the table. Therefore, I believe that even though it may still be in the developing stage, Physics will continue to change as we discover more exciting theories such as the String Theory.
Physics is a complex science that has changed a ton over the last 100 years. There are so many things that we feel like we understand, but so many gaps and errors in the math and the experimental data that I am starting to wonder if we know anything at all. The string theory seems to be on the right track, but there is need for discovering extra dimensions that we are probably really far away from actually getting anything worth taking seriously. The four forces perhaps are not meant to be understood, just like a dog cannot understand algebra. We have a basic understanding of how things that are our size or larger work, but at the subatomic level, we just have no clue. I mean who knows there are probably infinite universes that have infinite number of possibilities. I could never spend all my time and effort trying to figure out something like string theory when really it is kind of irrelevant, isn't it? Our lives will be the same whether we have unification or not, so I figure I spend my time trying to live a good life then figure out how I'm living it. I'm sure when I die all will be understood. But it is an interesting concept that really boggles the mind. Hopefully people with a lot more dedication than me can figure out a universal equation! (until we discover other things that blow up that theory).
As a whole, physics fundamental ideas have changed from the past 200 years. When I first started watching the movie, I was thinking that the ideas have not changed, but lots of details have been added instead. The farther we went into the video, the more and more I saw that details were not just added, they really did change the ideas of physics. As scientists kept adding more details, they would change their old theories and that would change something else and then something else would change as a result. String theory wasn’t even close to an idea 200 years ago, and now they are on the verge of testing out string theory. The idea of gravity alone has changed from things attracting to large objects bending space-time to draw things in. Repeatedly, things have changed in physics because of new ideas, and the more it changes now, the more the fundamentals seem to have changed. I believe a lot of the ideas of fundamental physics are still able to be used, but their applications are even\ changing and being even the ideas of a whole are being modified. If string theory is tested, then I believe all physics might need to be reviewed and there would be no doubt that the fundamentals have changed. Quantum mechanics is another way the fundamentals of physics have changed over the years. This idea changes how everything at a tiny level is viewed and how the universe can be totally unpredictable. This theory came after the theory of general relativity, which was already a new reform to fundamental physics. Quantum mechanics was a challenge to general physics, which neither of which existed 100 years ago. The only surviving ideas of fundamental physics from what we saw in the video was the idea of forces, which is a very large and important part of physics and was fundamental, but just with the incredible amount of detail added over time, it is too vague to say that the fundamentals have not changed.
I think theoretically physics has changed dramatically. The overall basics of physics have remained the same, such as gravity, electromagnetism, and the physical dimensions of the universe. However the theoretical has completely changed to the thought of more dimensions and a theory to connect everything in the universe together. The movie theorized the idea of string theory, a theory that connects all of the fundamentals of the universe, connecting even a grain of sand to the largest sun possible. This theory states that everything in the universe is made up of incredibly tiny vibrating strings. This thought changed all the theoreticals in physics. String theory proposed new dimensions, and the connection of general relativity to quantum physics, both ideas once thought impossible by physicists. But the proven fundamentals remained the same; the universe is still fundamentally made up of gravity, weak nuclear force, strong nuclear force and electromagnetism. String theory just proposes a way that all four forces connect, theoretically. I do not think that anything will fundamentally change until string theory is proven to be fact, which will change and connect everything we already know, and don’t know about physics.
In my opinion, over the past 100 years, Physics has not fundamentally changed as a discipline. According to the video, physics was, before the past 100 years, breaking down greater concepts into simpler and simpler laws and patterns. It remains this today. Although the patterns physicists are trying to describe have changed the discipline has not.
For example, although string theory has made some seemingly crazy suggestions (11 dimensions) and proposes some seemingly untestable theories, it remains an effort to explain the observations and patterns we see in our everyday world. Newtonian physics was an attempt to explain larger observable things like an apple falling from a tree, but so is string theory and modern physics. They are using different ways to explain and simplify this pattern but in the end the physics is an effort to simplify and explain the world around us.
physics has really changed over the past 100 years. In the past, the focus was mainly to discover the forces that occured in our universe and be able to observe and test them. Now that we have found ways to describe each individual force, the focus of physics is to find a way to unite the two. String theory attempts to answer this question, but many are still skeptical because until recently, there have been no experiments designed to test string theory. many relate it to the philosophy of physics, in that it sounds nice, but can never really be proven or disproven. however, experiments are being designed by string theorists in order to combat this claim.
I think that while physics itself has not changed, the ways that we look at it and analyze it changes with every new discovery made. It used to be that the only forces in the universe were gravity and electromagnetism, but now we have discovered both the strong and weak nuclear forces, as well as having meshed them both together with electromagnetism to become quantum mechanics. New particles are being discovered so quickly now, that for a while we even changed our thinking of science to have everything be described and analyzed with using particles instead of energy and forces.
ReplyDeleteThe concept of string theory entices me, because I know that maybe if it is proven to be true in at least one of it's forms, we can unlock secrets to the universe previously dismissed as impossible or crazy. If string theory is correct, and if we can fully harness its capabilities, we may have to change the laws of physics to be more along the lines of recommendations. As described in the video, we currently think of everything as being merely up to chance. But string theory has the possibility of eliminating chance from our lives forever. We could predict things such as when or how things could simply phase through matter, or unlock inter-dimensional travel. If we had a unified theory of everything, we could travel to other planets and galaxies and learn so much more about life.
I love the concepts string theory has to offer, and I appreciate that while it is still a very abstract idea, I am able to understand at least what is being said and retain the ideas being conveyed by the video. String theory is so wildly different from the past of physics, but maybe that is what physics needed, was some change in order to keep moving forward. Yes, I do believe that the science and understanding of physics has changed, and I believe that as long as people continue to learn and study physics, it will continue to change over my lifetime and many more after mine.
I believe that physics has changed over the last 100 years in a multitude of ways. Through our studies in class this year we have learned all about how the world works mathematically with gravity and forces as though gravity was the main idea of physics. Pendulums demonstrate this idea that gravity is what pulls us closer to the center of the Earth as well as what keeps the planet spinning. At the beginning of the year we studied forces and how forces affect gravitational pull and how the connect. I think that physics was thought mainly of in conjunction with gravity whereas now we think of the string theory working together with gravity and the three forces to create everything we see today.
ReplyDeleteAs Einstein studied the idea of general relativity he believed there was more than just one force at work in the universe but couldn’t figure out how they fit together. Without the completion of the string theory and making the theory, ‘safe,’ Einstein did not understand how all of the forces of the universe worked together. After Einstein's death and the rejection of the accidental discovery of the string theory physicists were very reluctant to the acceptance of the string theory because it had too many anomalies. Finally in 1984 when the string theory was proven, that is when physics really changed the most because the string theory was a whole new idea that somehow, everything we have know until now can be combined to explain all of the known and unknown things of the universe.
Another theory created about particles of matter that all combined could also describe the world we see around us. These were a whole new idea as well because like the little tiny strings of energy that had just been discovered, these particles were being newly discovered quite regularly. I think physics has changed in certain ways but I also think that these new theories are just helping to evolve and further our knowledge of previously known concepts and ideas.
Physics has changed over the past century because of the new knowledge we keep gaining and the new theories we keep creating. Maybe about 300 years ago, scientists were convinced the earth was flat and that is was the center of the universe. 200 years after we don’t believe that same thing; however, the reason for so much new knowledge is partially because people die. Einstein kept being on the verge of the string theory we have today, or rather the theory of everything. But he died and the theory was tucked away. Then more people can about and discovered new things. But what did they do when they failed? They tried again. Just kidding, they went into a depression and got drunk. With developing technology, we might be able to see down the string size, but about one hundred years ago, no such technology was invented, nor was the theory accepted. Because of all this newfound knowledge, physicists have created new theories to make sense of the new knowledge. Ultimately, they are trying to downsize it and get one master equation for everything in the universe.
ReplyDeleteIn the video, it talked about the different forces that make up our world: gravity, electromagnetism, strong force, and weak force. For some reason everything but gravity didn’t cause an anomaly. However, at the end of our second video, they introduced to us that if we dramatically change the size of what we’re solving for, gravity might play a role. Realistically, if strings do exist, I think they’ve been around since the beginning of time. I don’t think they just sprang up out of nowhere. The thing that has changed is our understanding of it. We are constantly gaining new knowledge for physics and therefore, it is a fundamentally ever changing world.
I think physics has changed over the past one hundred years. In the beginning they came up with good ideas that make sense, then it evolved. It’s like writing a essay. Before the 1900s they were gathering data and quotes to use to use in their writing. This part was the information they need to present to people. Then in the last 100 years physics put all their finding together and started writing their essay. Each equation was like a draft. It wasn’t right just yet, but it was a step in the right direction. Their essay still doesn’t have a final copy yet.
ReplyDeleteWhen people began looking at the world they started with what they saw. They looked at a rock. They knew it was something they saw and it was real. Then the discovery of cells and atoms brought together proof, that there is more than what meets the eye. Once you could see atoms and cells with microscopes it was a fact. Then over time, people thought what if there was even more than that. This wound up to the string theory. Object to atoms to corks to string. Once all of the anomalies were worked out it made more sense to the scientific community, but still not right just yet.
Each decade more and more is discovered and proven with the string theory. Each equation is cross referenced creating more and more proof that soon they will have the perfect equation that will explain everything in the world. This would prove if there is four, eleven, twenty six, or another number of dimensions. Right now everything is a work in progress but it has come a long way since the start of this thinking over 100 years ago. This theory has definitely changed they way physics is. They want to combine two huge ideas into one. How could this not change the ideas we have now?
I think that physics has fundamentally changed over the course of the last century because as we learn we know more then we can build upon the building blocks and grow our understanding of the new physics. For example, we had two different ideas with relativity and then Quantum mechanics being the other and, when physicist started to merge the two together with string theory we had different ideas then we had in the past and from that point people could use the basic concept of string theory to build the next level of different dimensions and, the ideas that strings vibrate and create different frequencies that create all of the fundamental forces(Gravity and nuclear) and properties in the universe.
ReplyDeleteIf we build a strong foundation for the string theory to continue to sit on then, I believe that in the next century we could even see a different change in the way string theory is conceptualized because of the past history following the growth of physics. I think that if physics, like all sciences do, does not produce new materials and continue to advance the science sort of dies. There may not be a need to continue to use a science that meets a dead end because then there could be a better science that could further what we all ready now. I also believe that science is like a flower and that it will just keep growing until you stop watering it and giving it sun. I also believe that most science blend together and that if one science advances then , there might be a cry for change in other fields that could be furthered. This makes me feel that science needs to continue to grow or otherwise it is worthless. For example when I go to college I want to learn and If I cannot learn from a college then I will leave; that is how strongly I feel about advances in science.
String theory has clearly changed the way we think about the physics and I feel strongly that it is changing physics because we know that string theorist and particle physicist. Which are two jobs that I would have never thought to exist a decade ago. If that much has changed in ten years I feel that a century has provide so much change that it almost like it not even the same science.
I think that Physics has fundamentally changed over the last 100 years. For example, 100 years ago, Einstein was trying to use unification to discover a theory of everything for all of space and the universe, but did not factor strings into his thought-process. He did discover General Relativity, which led to the discovery and understanding of 3 other forces through Quantum Mechanics - the Strong, Weak, and Electromagnetic Forces. However, this still posed the problem of trying to unite these four distinctly different forces, and the two distinctly different equations that explain our universe into one master equation that explained everything. Science was lacking something to bridge the two ideas, but lacked any way to do it. Then, starting in the 80s, a few scientists proposed the idea of strings, which are tiny particles of energy that help to make up an atom and which can give matter certain characteristics, such as mass. However, though several papers were published on the topic, they were mostly overlooked and discredited due to the ostensible anomalies in the String Theory equation and the fact that strings are so small that they could not be tested or proven as a part of an “experimental science,” as Physics is thought of to be. Finally, when two scientists proved that the String Theory equation does not contain anomalies, the direction of modern science changed radically - there had been very few “string theorists” prior to the discovery that there were, in fact, no anomalies in the equation, but after the discovery, hundreds of new scientists started to try and understand String Theory in the quest for one master equation to describe the universe. This radically changed the direction in which science was moving, and also created the idea that there might be more dimensions of space than those that meet the eye - the String Theory equations demand more dimensions than the tangible ones in which we are familiar with. 100 years ago, Einstein was discovering the idea of General Relativity, and Bohr was discovering the idea of Quantum Mechanics - there seemed no way to seemingly unite these two concepts that both were able to explain the universe, into one master equation. However, with the idea of strings and proof that their existence may indeed be a real possibility in understanding and discovering that master equation, science has dramatically changed directions into what it is now trying to research and discover, and what it defines the universe as actually being. Science is now trying to prove whether or not there are more dimensions than we are able to feel, whether or not an experiment can be devised to prove the validity of the idea of strings, and also which one of the 5 string theory equations applies to our universe. Since 100 years ago, science has taken a turn into a seemingly crazy new direction in the quest of one master equation that will hopefully explain everything, even if it seems too far fetched and incredible to logically seem true.
ReplyDeleteWhen the human race started asking questions about how our world works, centuries ago. They were trying to put together the basic building blocks of why our world works as it does. They looked for gravity and the essence of matters. How different forces can work on each other in a negative or positive way. In the past 100 years however, we have gotten more and more hungry for knowledge on this subject. People like Einstein have wanted to expand the basic meanings of the universe and look for details and specifics on the smallest matters in the universe.
ReplyDeleteWhen Einstein came into this world he wanted to know more. He came up with the theory of general relativity which basically showed the science world exactly how the universe worked. That there was fundamentally a blanket that held everything in the universe up. The more dense masses would make a bigger indent on the blanket forcing smaller masses to orbit around them. After this discovery Einstein felt as if there was more to the universe then any other discovery has shown. He wanted to make an equation of the universe. Explaining everything that happens and why it happens. The theory of everything is what he had worked on until he passed away. Many scientists thought he was crazy and it wasn’t worth following up. Yet most looked away, there were some that saw Einsteins beliefs as some of their own and wanted to prove him right. Many of years later and millions of equations written the scientist found the string theory. After being rejected many times they finally proved it to be correct and changed the looks at physics forever.
With this discovery which had proved to link quantum mechanics and gravity, there was a new question on the rise that had to do with the dimensions in our universe. Ever since man had ruled this world there were always only 3 dimensions. There always will be three dimensions many thought after the idea of there being more came out. If the string theory were to be true though then 6 dimensions had to be true.
Most discoveries in recent years have been much more dense and harder to understand. Einstein and his followers had set out on a mission and many would not rest until they discovered these theories. We are starting to understand the world more specifically and it is exciting to me where we can take it next. The main way physics has changed in my eyes is that all the ideas that were once talked about in earlier centuries are now actually being put to the test. We want to know everything at this day and age and not only that but we want to know how everything works.
I do not think that Physics has changed at all fundamentally. I say this because tho it is getting much more complicated at its core the physics that is being done today is building off the physics that has been done all of history. Everything on the video we watched is trying to explain what we noticed in our universe so to me its not that it is changing to the fundamentals of physics but rather it is adding on to these fundamental principles and ideas.
ReplyDeleteOne reason I do not think that it has changed fundamentally is because the idea of gravity. Newton was the first one to describe gravity and it made a lot of things fit together in the universe, e.g. the solar system. Gravity is one of the principles of physics and the idea behind it hasn’t changed, the only thing to change about it is how intricate it is. When Einstein came up with his theory of General relativity it actually helped make sense of and strengthen what we know about gravity. Einsteins theory just gave people a new way of understanding what gravity does and how it affects everything.
But because we also knew that there are very very small things in the universe we had to find a way to connect them all. To me the physics in the last century has been looking into smaller things so that one day we can look at the bigger picture and put it all together. What physics now is trying to do is look at the fundamentals of it all, we have just recently found even smaller things making up matter than we originally thought so we are trying to back to the foundation. It is like building a skyscraper, you need the foundation to be sturdy to be able to make it tall, but with these new discoveries in the last century we need to find a way to build a stronger foundation on that skyscraper; we need to find a way to lift the building so that we can add more to the bottom rather than the top. This new foundation could either be the string theory or the standard model. Both of these ideas are trying to look microscopically at the things we already know and have known for quite a while.
The string theory is very interesting. I am very intrigued by it because if it is proven it would really throw physics for a loop. Physics has never been looked at in the type of way the the string theory looks at it. String theory would alter the fundamentals of physics but it would not shatter them because string theory shares the fundamental physics but in a different way. An example of this being that if string theory was proven it would add dimensions; sure this would change the way we look at physics but it would not shatter it because physics already understands that we have dimensions. I do not think physics has changed fundamentally, I just think that we know of smaller things now and we need to fit these microscopic discoveries into physics.
In the last one hundred years there has been many developments in physics. However the fundamental ideas behind physics remain the same. Physics has always been used to prove and explain the natural laws of how the world and universe work. I believe that this has been a constant in all of the new physics to come out.
ReplyDeleteIn the past century quantum mechanics is one major change seen in the field of physics. This new idea proves and helps to explain how the universe works when you look at very small objects such as atoms protons and neutrons. This idea however, still strives to explain how the universe works. By explaining how these works this idea has stayed with the fundamental idea of physics,to explain how the universe works. When this idea first came out in involved three forces, Strong nuclear force, Weak nuclear force, and finally electromagnetism. Quantum mechanics combined all three of these forces into one idea. However it clashed with another theory of the universe. It was einstein theory of relativity.
For a very long time physicians were unable to connect the theory of relativity and quantum mechanics. They searched for a master equation that could combine all four of these forces. (Gravity, Strong, Weak, and Electromagnetic) The idea that they needed was string theory. This was discovered when a physicist was reading an old mathematics book. Inside of this book he found a series of equations that was able to combine this forces. Many years later, in 1984, String theorists were able to work out all of the knicks that stopped the theory from being published. This idea has become more widely accepted, and until recently was left unprovable. Physicist were able to create an experiment that would prove the existence of string theory. This idea of combining all four of the universal forces stays with the fundamental idea of physics, the idea of explaining the universe. String theory is the simplest way to do it. It has all four force in one behemoth of an equation. String theory however still remains as a mystery since it would be extremely hard to perform the experiment to prove the existence of strings.
As a whole I think the new ideas discovered in the last century stay with the ideas of physics. The idea that through reason and logic we are able to explain how and why certain things happen in the universe. The basic laws that govern all objects regardless of their size shape or place. The theory of relativity explains huge objects such as starts, quantum mechanics explains small objects such as atoms, and string theory is able to combine these two ideas into one theory and set of equations.
Physics has changed in the past 100 years, there are so many theories that have been discovered and have been either proven or discredited by now. Throughout the century a new theory has been discovered and that is the string theory. Now throughout history different people have discovered different parts of the theory that ultimately make it, “The Theory of Everything”.They grew to discover that the universe is based on two different laws that don’t agree but the String Theory could explain it all. The String Theory are strings which are tiny bits of energy resulting in multiple dimensions. There have ended up being 5 different versions of the String Theory since it has gotten famous, but none of those 5 theories agree. And within those theories initially only six extra dimensions were demanded if string theory is correct, but one of those 5 demand 26 dimensions. The basis of the string theory was from Einstein's idea of unification: the formulation of a law that describes every idea from a master equation. Newton came up with gravity, relating heavens to earth, but had no idea how gravity actually worked though he knew the strength of it. Earth’s rotation was described by two theories, a 4d space time warp like a trampoline where heavy things make a dent (general relativity) and James Clark Maxwell’s relationship between electricity and magnification (mathematical equations that unified electricity and magnification in a single force called electromagnetism). Einstein was never able to relate gravity and electromagnetism. A group of scientists found that atoms contained neutrons and protons surrounded by electrons, and Einstein’s unification idea was turned on its head. Einstein’s colleagues had already disagreed with the idea and no one carried on the project. Everything we can see are atoms that contain negative electrical charge also known as electromagnetism, billions and billions time stronger than gravity but quantum mechanics shattered all other theories. Quantum mechanics described the world as a game of chance, uncertainty, and predicting the probability of one outcome or another is the best you can do. If it was noticeable you would think you lost your mind. Einstein would say to this, “God would not throw dice” but quantum mechanics does describe how the world works at a subatomic level as gravity does not. Though the only two theories that describe the function of the universe disagree, it is hoped that someday string theory may be able to explain all of nature using tiny vibrating strings of energy called strings. Gravity is just following curves and contours in the fabric, time warp fabric, and quantum mechanics can be understood at a very very small size, microscopic realm, a world with a structure that is far less certain, a world so turbulent it defies common sense. Not until recently has an experiment been suggested to prove the existence of the string theory. As it cannot be tested it cannot be proven wrong either, so the question is asked does that make it a theory or a philosophy? It is Oilers math equation that described the strong force within the string theory and it was an accident. In 1984 two dedicated scientists proved that the theory was free on anomalies. To put strings into perspective, if an atom was blown up to the size of the universe a string would only be the size of a tree. And only if shrunken to a microscopic size would we see how the curled dimensions of string theory are twisted and curled,and how they vibrate. Throughout the century we observe that many scientists have progressed and worked together in different ways to come together to one conclusion, that the string theory is indeed the theory of everything.
ReplyDeleteI think physics has grown a lot over the last 100 years although they still use the same forces to describe how the world works like Gravity and Electromagnetism . For a long time, no one knew how to include all the forces into one theory. It wasn’t until String Theory that the gravity force could be described.
ReplyDeleteEinstein discovered that Gravity is just warps and curves in space time fabric. That changed the way everyone looked at gravity. Einstein wanted to find a way to put all the forces together and create one master theory. Black holes supported the idea since it involved gravity and quantum mechanics. After Einstein died, many physicists wanted to continue his work. The idea of combining forces died down until sting theory came along. String Theory suggested that all matter was made of tiny vibrating strings.
To put it simply, physics is basically an explanation of everything. Over the past hundred years, physics has changed significantly. Throughout history, there has been two main theories; General Relativity and Quantum Mechanics. These have both been notorious for conflicting, however once the string theory was introduced, it proposed a bridge between the gap.
ReplyDeleteString theory is still pretty new. It was discovered by accident and was deeply rejected at first. People either like this idea or they don’t. As mentioned in the movie, there are string theorists and there are physicists. General Relativity and Quantum Mechanics have been divided for so long that I strongly believe String Theory will provide a happy medium, ultimately changing the world of physics. For so long the world of Physics has been in chaos, trying to find a combination of theories. Although many people are hesitant, the String Theory brings a new and refreshing idea to the table. Therefore, I believe that even though it may still be in the developing stage, Physics will continue to change as we discover more exciting theories such as the String Theory.
Physics is a complex science that has changed a ton over the last 100 years. There are so many things that we feel like we understand, but so many gaps and errors in the math and the experimental data that I am starting to wonder if we know anything at all. The string theory seems to be on the right track, but there is need for discovering extra dimensions that we are probably really far away from actually getting anything worth taking seriously. The four forces perhaps are not meant to be understood, just like a dog cannot understand algebra. We have a basic understanding of how things that are our size or larger work, but at the subatomic level, we just have no clue. I mean who knows there are probably infinite universes that have infinite number of possibilities. I could never spend all my time and effort trying to figure out something like string theory when really it is kind of irrelevant, isn't it? Our lives will be the same whether we have unification or not, so I figure I spend my time trying to live a good life then figure out how I'm living it. I'm sure when I die all will be understood. But it is an interesting concept that really boggles the mind. Hopefully people with a lot more dedication than me can figure out a universal equation! (until we discover other things that blow up that theory).
ReplyDeleteAs a whole, physics fundamental ideas have changed from the past 200 years. When I first started watching the movie, I was thinking that the ideas have not changed, but lots of details have been added instead. The farther we went into the video, the more and more I saw that details were not just added, they really did change the ideas of physics. As scientists kept adding more details, they would change their old theories and that would change something else and then something else would change as a result. String theory wasn’t even close to an idea 200 years ago, and now they are on the verge of testing out string theory. The idea of gravity alone has changed from things attracting to large objects bending space-time to draw things in. Repeatedly, things have changed in physics because of new ideas, and the more it changes now, the more the fundamentals seem to have changed. I believe a lot of the ideas of fundamental physics are still able to be used, but their applications are even\ changing and being even the ideas of a whole are being modified. If string theory is tested, then I believe all physics might need to be reviewed and there would be no doubt that the fundamentals have changed.
ReplyDeleteQuantum mechanics is another way the fundamentals of physics have changed over the years. This idea changes how everything at a tiny level is viewed and how the universe can be totally unpredictable. This theory came after the theory of general relativity, which was already a new reform to fundamental physics. Quantum mechanics was a challenge to general physics, which neither of which existed 100 years ago. The only surviving ideas of fundamental physics from what we saw in the video was the idea of forces, which is a very large and important part of physics and was fundamental, but just with the incredible amount of detail added over time, it is too vague to say that the fundamentals have not changed.
I think theoretically physics has changed dramatically. The overall basics of physics have remained the same, such as gravity, electromagnetism, and the physical dimensions of the universe. However the theoretical has completely changed to the thought of more dimensions and a theory to connect everything in the universe together.
ReplyDeleteThe movie theorized the idea of string theory, a theory that connects all of the fundamentals of the universe, connecting even a grain of sand to the largest sun possible. This theory states that everything in the universe is made up of incredibly tiny vibrating strings. This thought changed all the theoreticals in physics.
String theory proposed new dimensions, and the connection of general relativity to quantum physics, both ideas once thought impossible by physicists. But the proven fundamentals remained the same; the universe is still fundamentally made up of gravity, weak nuclear force, strong nuclear force and electromagnetism. String theory just proposes a way that all four forces connect, theoretically.
I do not think that anything will fundamentally change until string theory is proven to be fact, which will change and connect everything we already know, and don’t know about physics.
In my opinion, over the past 100 years, Physics has not fundamentally changed as a discipline. According to the video, physics was, before the past 100 years, breaking down greater concepts into simpler and simpler laws and patterns. It remains this today. Although the patterns physicists are trying to describe have changed the discipline has not.
ReplyDeleteFor example, although string theory has made some seemingly crazy suggestions (11 dimensions) and proposes some seemingly untestable theories, it remains an effort to explain the observations and patterns we see in our everyday world. Newtonian physics was an attempt to explain larger observable things like an apple falling from a tree, but so is string theory and modern physics. They are using different ways to explain and simplify this pattern but in the end the physics is an effort to simplify and explain the world around us.
physics has really changed over the past 100 years. In the past, the focus was mainly to discover the forces that occured in our universe and be able to observe and test them. Now that we have found ways to describe each individual force, the focus of physics is to find a way to unite the two. String theory attempts to answer this question, but many are still skeptical because until recently, there have been no experiments designed to test string theory. many relate it to the philosophy of physics, in that it sounds nice, but can never really be proven or disproven. however, experiments are being designed by string theorists in order to combat this claim.
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