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Why doesn't pure math get similarly attacked? Clearly math has generated lots of economic and scientific value, but it seems to me that there isn't much differe
by dataphyte 9y ago
Why doesn't pure math get similarly attacked? Clearly math has generated lots of economic and scientific value, but it seems to me that there isn't much difference between string theory and, say, math work on the Monster Moonshine group or whatever.
- liberte82 9y agoBecause pure math doesn't make a claim to be anything other than it is. String theory supposedly describes real things in the real universe, and as such it's a valid criticism to say it can't be tested. Maybe it's a marketing problem. If string theory would move outside of the realm of physics and into that of mathematics I don't think it would have these issues.
- dataphyte 9y agoThat's my thinking as well: just re-brand string theory as math. It's not as though string theory will be testable anytime soon, so the criteria of verification is just hurting the field.
- ajnin 9y agoPure math does not pretend to be a theory explaining the natural world. String theory does, and that's why it must be subject to the standards that describe what is, and what is not, a scientific theory.