3 ms·
Wacky Fun Physics Ideas
- stared 11mo agoMy favourite "wacky theory" is that Einstein general relativity can be derived from quantum computing, https://arxiv.org/abs/quant-ph/0501135 https://arxiv.org/abs/quant-ph/0501135. In general, I love such novel concepts (rather than slight refinements of existing). They are like seeds - the vast majority of them won't sprout, but one in a thousand (or million) will change a field. The same way as one erroneous paper on superluminal communication got refuted by the non-cloning theorem - which gave raise to quantum cryptography and quantum information in general. I recommend reading the backstory in "How the Hippies Saved Physics" (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/How_the_Hippies_Saved_Physics https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/How_the_Hippies_Saved_Physics).
- RangerScience 11mo agoI don’t know how much of this paper I can understand but I find it pretty interesting that, AFAICT, the dominant engineering paradigm of an era is also the dominant “this is what reality is” metaphor: cathedrals and architecture and the spheres; steam and clockwork and mechanical; now - computation and information!
- stared 11mo agoYes, we seek for analogies we can make. Einstein was focused on synchronising clocks - as it was a thing in Switzerland at time. Vide https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20160901-the-clock-that-changed-the-meaning-of-time https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20160901-the-clock-that-c....
- IAmBroom 11mo agoUm, that's an overstatement. He was also "focused" on making refrigerators - he owned a patent on a novel system, but was foiled by the near-simultaneous discovery of better non-toxic refrigerant liquids.
- jnurmine 11mo agoIf one were to simply assume that yes, electrons are in fact photons in a toroidal configuration... are there special "hacks" enabled by this configuration which could be tested?
- aaronax 11mo agoScott Locklin is one of my favorite reads, in occasional doses though. Kind of unhinged-seeming but always some perspective that seems fresh. He's like Casey Handmer turned up to 11, and throw in a use of the word "retarded" in pretty much every post which surely is some repellent just to make certain types of people go away. Actually I'm not sure I really get anything out of reading either of them but they provide some enjoyment and glimpse of a possible future.
- mbustamanter 11mo agoOne of the most fascinating characters out there for sure, without fail his posts make me consider a new perspective. He left HN unfortunately, he might be too brash for this site (or this place is too wimpy for him).
- IAmBroom 11mo agoOr, you know, the community might just not like people who are deliberately a-holes to others.
- IAmBroom 11mo agoHit this quote from the author in the Comments section: > This is the same psychology that causes experimental physicists to wear paper covid-cuck masks[...] The Never Read The Comments Rule still applies. "Wacky" is one word for his ideas...
- rickyhatespeas 11mo agoThe base tone of the post is written for chronically online right-wingers, the dog whistles are really obvious. "Purple hair", "retarded", "media bad", "post 1945 order".
- UncleSlacky 11mo agoThe electron-as-trapped photon model goes back a ways, to at least Roger Jennison (one of my old profs): "What is an electron?": http://gsjournal.net/Science-Journals/Journal%20Reprints-Quantum%20Theory%20/%20Particle%20Physics/Download/3309 http://gsjournal.net/Science-Journals/Journal%20Reprints-Qua... More recently, Larry Reed has developed a theory very similar to that mentioned in the article: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/364333320_Quantum_Wave_Mechanics_Ch_17_Electron_Model https://www.researchgate.net/publication/364333320_Quantum_W... https://www.researchgate.net/publication/390318893_Origin_of_Electron_Mass_and_Charge https://www.researchgate.net/publication/390318893_Origin_of...