The Universe as We Understand It May Be Impossible: A new conjecture in physics [tr]

The Atlantic ^ | August 13, 2018 | Natalie Wolchover

[C19fan]

The article makes a huge mistake. There are not 10,500 different solutions to string theory, I believe the solutions are related to the number of ways to fold the extra dimensions string theory requires, but 10 to the power of 500, i.e., 10 followed by 500 zeroes.

[Red Badger]

So far, all we have is ONE that we can count............................

[GraceG]

[samtheman]

I think that mistake is a kind of a typo. 10 to the 500th is often expressed in print as 10^500 and maybe that character got transposed to a comma at some point.

The bigger issue to me is the fact that everyone recognizes that string theory is currently untestable and un-falsifiable and then they get upset when this untestable, un-falsifiable theory claims that we are living in a universe that can’t exist.

Obviously the problem is in the theory. I don’t see anything earth-shaking here. They just need a better theory... and I think most physicists have known that about string theory for a long time... even most string theorists.

[SES1066]

So, since the Universe exists - at least to me and thee, is it then a miracle or a shared delusion as we cannot exist?

What happens when you step out into impossibility? As put by A.Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes; “When you eliminate the impossible, then whatever is left, no matter how improbable, must be the truth.” Now we are nowhere yet near a singular solution here (Hobson’s Choice), but it is interesting how calculation is narrowing the possible causation(s).

As for me, I’m comfortable with my choice.

[Lonely Bull]

The article makes a huge mistake. There are not 10,500 different solutions to string theory, I believe the solutions are related to the number of ways to fold the extra dimensions string theory requires, but 10 to the power of 500, i.e., 10 followed by 500 zeroes.

Some searching online supports what you're thinking (a little note: this number is 1 followed by 500 zeroes). I see the larger number used a lot, and I also see a small set of examples that used "10,500" instead, some of which were corrected.

I wonder if some writers saw "10500" instead (bad eyes, bad text, ignorance), and other writers saw "10^500" and misread that one or thought "this caret is a typo and must actually be a comma."

[NTHockey]

And we don’t even know much about it. My theory of the Universe is a Murphy’s Law variant: God has all the answers; He makes the rules.

[I want the USA back]

“The Universe as We Understand It May Be Impossible”
That’s a ridiculous headline. Converting it to understandable English:
“Our understanding of the Universe is faulty.”
Obviously the Universe exists, and therefore is possible.
I have to laugh at the arrogance of anyone who thinks he can understand the Universe.
I have a big belly laugh for this: “string theory defines all matter and forces as vibrations of tiny strands of energy.” With no apologies to Sheldon Cooper.

[PapaBear3625]

As put by A.Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes; “When you eliminate the impossible, then whatever is left, no matter how improbable, must be the truth.”

Or, you have wrongly assumed something was "impossible".

[A Navy Vet]

I thought string theory reached a dead end on the white boards of math. I'm still waiting for proof of dark matter and dark energy.

I have no clue how theoretical physics work. However, most of it is speculated by doing math equations on a chalk board or now white board.

BTW, what are the "extra" dimensions? Can you tell me in layman terms? I still don't believe time is a dimension, but a human construct.

[Snickering Hound]

[yesthatjallen]

Just plug in 'dark matter' and everything works.

'Dark matter' is the solution to everything.

[BigEdLB]

Time is a dimension like X Y and Z. The measurement of dimensions is the human construct.

[who_would_fardels_bear]

I also have a problem with there being more than 3 or 4 dimensions. My understanding was that the four dimensions of space and time were just a mathematical convenience to locate objects in space and time in order to make predictions.

After all, instead of saying that something is at position x,y,z we can use polar coordinates involving radii and angles when that makes the math easier.

The best way I can figure is something like this: they say for example that basic particles have certain properties such as mass and spin. They say that spin really shouldn't be thought of as a particle spinning, but it is just a property that can be measured and fits into the laws of quantum mechanics.

I'm thinking that these extra dimensions are similar. They are not like length, height and width. They are just other properties that can vary and at some far future time may be able to be measured with particle accelerators the size of our solar system.

I work with databases and every field in a database is like a different dimension that entries can have: last name, first name, SSN, salary, etc. I'm thinking these extra dimensions are similar.

But that's just a guess.

[equaviator]

There’s nothing like the universe to bring you down to earth.

[treetopsandroofs]

“’Dark matter’ is the solution to everything.”

I tried to watch the show, until I discovered it was just another “’Lost’ in Space” soap opera.

Did it end in a cliffhanger, or was it just another, “I hate this food, let’s do another job” episode?

[SpinnerWebb]

is there rum in this alternate universe?

[mdmathis6]

They know that the faster you get to the speed of light they know that the passing of time slows(as best as we can measure this). They have to make adjustments (based on this phenomena) with space probes velocities(especially going away or coming towards us) lest the adjustments made cause errors in the craft’s flight path.(Not just based on distance but on their current velocities since their onboard clocks will appear to slow down relative to Earth clocks) Another great experiment was when they took two identical timing devices, synchronized them and then sent one around the world on a nonstop flight(I think it was 2-3 times) at speeds of roughly 600 to 700 miles an hour. The onboard timer lost several seconds compared to the on ground timer(the time lost was proportional to time “0” experienced by an object at the speed of light or C or SOL 1). So time appears to be a dimensional reality or at least some type of force affected by acceleration and velocity. How gravity affects time I’m not sure, but we do know that speed and acceleration do.

[katana]

Ten to the 500th power would be the number 1 followed by so many zeroes that any difference between their number and infinity is meaningless. Ten x ten x ten out to total of five hundred tens. Whoever wrote the article dropped out of math class or slept through the really interesting bits, and probably should have selected a different topic.

[huldah1776]

So...when time slows down in space, the universe is not as old as earth?

OK, I am a visual learner and first had to find out about quarks. Then I wanted to see if they had photographed a molecule. Yup. 2013. Time for me stopped in 2012 when my kid was in Afghanistan. Restarting the clock is super hard. I’m stuck in that time warp. Good thing I was on earth though, can’t imagine time going any slower.