06-08-2010, 06:30 AM | #106 |
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Aaaarg, so many wonderful contributions, to many things to say. Must go back to work. Just ignore that wonderful stuff until I get home.
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06-08-2010, 06:43 AM | #107 | |
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One of the biggest questions currently in Physics is the reconciliation of Quantum theory and General Relativity. String Theory is one attempt to address this, but from what I see String Theory is more Religion than Science. |
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06-08-2010, 06:48 AM | #108 | |
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Surely that's because the theory is still within the 'testing' phase. |
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06-08-2010, 07:31 AM | #109 | |
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Part of the issue is that String theory IS based on some unproveable/unmeasurable assumptions and may never reach the state of being "science." .... according to some....string threory IMO truly is on that ragged edge of what is science and what is religion. |
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06-08-2010, 07:51 AM | #110 |
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reality and mythology ....
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06-08-2010, 07:58 AM | #111 |
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I think we are saying the same thing. What I mean by "not arbitrary", in the context of this discussion, is that there is no particular reason for the basic constants of the universe to be the way they are. But they are reliable, in the sense that they don't change arbitrarily.
Last edited by FlorenceArt; 06-08-2010 at 08:02 AM. |
06-08-2010, 07:59 AM | #112 |
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mmmm
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06-08-2010, 08:01 AM | #113 |
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That didn't make much sense, did it? I think I need to edit that sentence...
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06-08-2010, 08:05 AM | #114 | ||
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Staying in the "order". Until the early 60's there were 2 scientific schools of thought, that sustained the theory of ether, in the description of electromagnetic waves. That theory, that originated by a good application of mathematics to a faulty physical thinking, at the beginning was very satisfactory, than, to take into account new experimental manifestations, required properties of the ether that were more and more complex ("cervellotic"). They made countless experiments. Of course for each experiment they received important sums of money and imperishable fame and honors. Down goes ether. False. From about 75 years it was on "trust". This is not a minor point. It is around this that Albert Einstein built his discoveries. A similar fate for the terrocentric interpretation of the motion of the celestial bodies. Than it arrives the lens ... And it will continue like this, on and on. On trust, false, enter an other one on trust, false, ... Last edited by beppe; 06-08-2010 at 08:06 AM. Reason: grammar |
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06-08-2010, 08:07 AM | #115 | |
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They are fixed, but not arbitrary in that the fundamental constants are related to one another and they don't change over time (as far as we can tell ) |
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06-08-2010, 08:28 AM | #116 |
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oh! you just had to add that caveat .....
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06-08-2010, 08:39 AM | #117 | |
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But, you could give us some simple assertion (and simply worded) that we could try to confute and hence learn something. |
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06-08-2010, 08:43 AM | #118 | |
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http://scienceblogs.com/startswithab..._darwin_vs.php It turned out that it was physics that was wrong. |
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06-08-2010, 09:07 AM | #119 | ||
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Sadly I think the exact opposite is true and I guess that's why they are called scientific theories rather than scientific truths .
Wikipedia has a good entry on scientific method which explains how scientists go from observation to hypothesis to theory but I think Einstein put it best by saying: Quote:
PS2 I just noted my "user description" suddenly went to zealot while posting this - it amused me anyway. Last edited by mike_bike_kite; 06-08-2010 at 09:13 AM. |
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06-08-2010, 11:00 AM | #120 | |
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For NASA, Newtonian physics was good enough - even though it was known to be untrue. |
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