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It also has developed some interesting mathematical tools and perspectives, but as a TOE I think the growing skepticism is warranted. The worst outcome of cours

It also has developed some interesting mathematical tools and perspectives, but as a TOE I think the growing skepticism is warranted. The worst outcome of course being that M-Theory is accurate, but untestable. It would be a bitter irony for humanity if our best theory required a galactic-scale collider to test it!

kevin_thibedeau 8y ago
We just need to make contact with a hyper-dimensional sentience who can give us the low down on how everything works.
caf 8y ago
It would be a bitter irony for humanity if our best theory required a galactic-scale collider to test it! Doesn't that also mean that (in such a hypothetical situation) our best theory says that our previously best theories will give accurate predictions up until the point at which we observe something equivalent to a galactic-scale collider? If so, that doesn't sound so bad to me.
- whatshisface 8y ago
  The trouble is that strings is more of a framework for physics to fit in to (like quantum mechanics) than it is a physical theory. There isn't a specific list of string particles, just like there isn't a list of Schrodinger equation particles. You have to add in whatever particles you discover, and then the theory tells you how they move. On the bright side, if there was a single particle that didn't move like a string, string theory would be falsified. On the dim side, it's difficult for anything to not move like a string, because string theory is so powerful as a framework that you can get it to make just about anything consistent. What you really want in physics is a brittle framework that only allows you to slot in a few different behaviors. It's kind of funny because programmers want the opposite thing that physicists do. When your client asks for a behavior that you have painted yourself into a corner against ever implementing your software has been "falsified," an expensive disaster that you work very hard in advance to prevent! If you made universes for a living, strings would be an ideal framework.

kevin_thibedeau 8y ago

We just need to make contact with a hyper-dimensional sentience who can give us the low down on how everything works.

caf 8y ago

It would be a bitter irony for humanity if our best theory required a galactic-scale collider to test it! Doesn't that also mean that (in such a hypothetical situation) our best theory says that our previously best theories will give accurate predictions up until the point at which we observe something equivalent to a galactic-scale collider? If so, that doesn't sound so bad to me.

whatshisface 8y ago
The trouble is that strings is more of a framework for physics to fit in to (like quantum mechanics) than it is a physical theory. There isn't a specific list of string particles, just like there isn't a list of Schrodinger equation particles. You have to add in whatever particles you discover, and then the theory tells you how they move. On the bright side, if there was a single particle that didn't move like a string, string theory would be falsified. On the dim side, it's difficult for anything to not move like a string, because string theory is so powerful as a framework that you can get it to make just about anything consistent. What you really want in physics is a brittle framework that only allows you to slot in a few different behaviors. It's kind of funny because programmers want the opposite thing that physicists do. When your client asks for a behavior that you have painted yourself into a corner against ever implementing your software has been "falsified," an expensive disaster that you work very hard in advance to prevent! If you made universes for a living, strings would be an ideal framework.