Whatever laws of nature govern our universe, they’re not what physicists thought they were. Strip away equations and technical terms and physics becomes a quest for meaning-a quest that has taken an unexpected turn. But for a book about math, this book contains very little math. Theoretical physics is the stereotypical math-heavy, hard-to-understand discipline. Now Nature spoke, and she said nothing, loud and clear. They thought they could hear her whisper when they were talking to themselves. They believed that Mother Nature was elegant, simple, and kind about providing clues. What failed physicists wasn’t their math it was their choice of math. The experiments didn’t reveal anything new. But where physicists expected a breakthrough, the ground wouldn’t give. The world prepared to ramp up the physics envy. They built accelerators, shot satellites into space, and planted detectors in underground mines. For decades physicists told us they knew where the next discoveries were waiting. T HEY WERE so sure, they bet billions on it.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |