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It’s counterintuitive because most people are more familiar with the mathematical concept of symmetry whereby a lattice has more symmetry than a random set of p
by zarzavat 4y ago
It’s counterintuitive because most people are more familiar with the mathematical concept of symmetry whereby a lattice has more symmetry than a random set of points (which almost certainly has no symmetry at all). However from the physics point of view, the random set of points is more symmetrical than the lattice because there’s no way of telling which way a random set of points is oriented.
- sigmoid10 4y agoSymmetry in physics is not just about orientations in space. This notion rather comes from the fact that large systems of discrete points are often described using continuum mechanics or field theory, which naturally has a lot more symmetries. But even a set of randomly distributed point-like particles can have symmetries. If the set was made up of identical bosons for example, it would have a wave function symmetry under particle permutations. And real particles would also exhibit a whole lot of other discrete symmetries, like CPT symmetry at the very least.