tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22973357.post4323147841335174921..comments2023-09-27T07:44:19.769-04:00Comments on Sabine Hossenfelder: Backreaction: The end of science is near, again.Sabine Hossenfelderhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06151209308084588985noreply@blogger.comBlogger24125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22973357.post-3765779942450858252013-02-28T14:55:14.773-05:002013-02-28T14:55:14.773-05:00I will simply say, I don't think scientific ge...I will simply say, I don't think scientific genius has come to an end. I sure hope not.Neil Bateshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04564859009749481136noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22973357.post-49085275408323887952013-02-28T03:35:16.501-05:002013-02-28T03:35:16.501-05:00This week's issue of Nature has letters commen...This week's issue of Nature has letters commenting on the essay. This one is very to the point:<br /><br />http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v494/n7438/full/494430b.html<br /><br />Sabine Hossenfelderhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06151209308084588985noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22973357.post-49783369823997923892013-02-17T07:41:25.122-05:002013-02-17T07:41:25.122-05:00Hi Phil,
You're raising a much deeper issue, ...Hi Phil,<br /><br />You're raising a much deeper issue, that being whether there are indeed final foundations. That is of course part of the question. Barrow in his book makes a very good point though which is that on top of the question what nature fundamentally "is" (in lack of a better word), there is the question how much we can possibly achieve with the constraints and initial Sabine Hossenfelderhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06151209308084588985noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22973357.post-74194065476997544892013-02-17T07:36:05.659-05:002013-02-17T07:36:05.659-05:00Peter Cuttell:
Yes, there is a similar quote by ...Peter Cuttell: <br /><br />Yes, there is a similar quote by Morley I think, who said something to the extend that there's just this tiny problem left with Planck's radiation law... That's exactly the point I was trying to make: you don't know how big or small the fish at the "loose end" is until you've seen it. Best,<br /><br />B.Sabine Hossenfelderhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06151209308084588985noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22973357.post-16703371770286274522013-02-17T07:33:12.121-05:002013-02-17T07:33:12.121-05:00Phillip: Sorry about that, it all works fine for m...Phillip: Sorry about that, it all works fine for me. What browser are you using? Best,<br />B.Sabine Hossenfelderhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06151209308084588985noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22973357.post-25857425711053144492013-02-15T04:19:50.784-05:002013-02-15T04:19:50.784-05:00The problem with the long load time is back. This...The problem with the long load time is back. This occurs from time to time. Normally, the page loads in about a second. Today, 5 minutes. As always, Blogger blogs are affected.<br /><br />Phillip Helbighttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12067585245603436809noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22973357.post-77924512827697775902013-02-13T18:55:18.137-05:002013-02-13T18:55:18.137-05:00This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15143498687534053230noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22973357.post-30426995509673392282013-02-13T18:46:30.624-05:002013-02-13T18:46:30.624-05:00The name John Horgan popped into my mind as I was ...The name John Horgan popped into my mind as I was reading.<br /><br />http://backreaction.blogspot.com/2006/10/end-of-physics.html<br />http://backreaction.blogspot.com/2009/02/do-we-need-science-journalists.html<br />http://backreaction.blogspot.com/2010/12/evidence-of-eternal-inflation-in-cmb.html<br />http://backreaction.blogspot.com/2008/07/ps-to-end-of-theory.html<br /><br />Best,PlatoHagelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00849253658526056393noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22973357.post-45855995542414203082013-02-13T15:11:35.563-05:002013-02-13T15:11:35.563-05:00... imagine that our improved knowledge ... would ...... imagine that our improved knowledge ... would allow us to create synthetic nuclei (molecei) that would not have been produced by any natural processes anywhere in the universe ...<br /><br />Please do not make ice-nine:<br />http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ice-nineuair01https://www.blogger.com/profile/14538242264866015155noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22973357.post-52515343875269348902013-02-13T13:02:43.600-05:002013-02-13T13:02:43.600-05:00@Cyberax, "discovering the dark matter compos...@Cyberax, "<i>discovering the dark matter composition... won't be on the scale of Newton's laws or electromagnetism.</i>" Vacuum is mirror-symmetric toward massless boson photons. Fermionic matter has parity violations, symmetry breakings; Chern-Simons corrections to Einstein-Hilbert action. Vacuum is trace chiral anisotropic toward matter. Noetherian connection between Uncle Alhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05056804084187606211noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22973357.post-55969946472902076442013-02-13T10:08:30.938-05:002013-02-13T10:08:30.938-05:00A famously misguided pronouncement from the turn o...A famously misguided pronouncement from the turn of the 20th century comes to mind:<br />"There is nothing new to be discovered in physics now. All that remains is more and more precise measurement"<br /><br />Whether it was Kelvin who said it or not, it shows how arrogant some scientists were before Quantum Mechanics came along and knocked everything up into the air. I expect there RChttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06671228313410968934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22973357.post-22431331242413049032013-02-13T07:41:19.347-05:002013-02-13T07:41:19.347-05:00Hi Bee,
I find myself in agreement with all of yo...Hi Bee,<br /><br />I find myself in agreement with all of your points as to why science shouldn’t be considered anywhere near to being a fait accompli. Moreover as you know, with respect to Quantum Gravity and its foundations, I strongly suspect that the foundations of the foundations are still not much more than a mirage. For the life of me I can’t imagine how Prof. Simonton thinks as he does, Phil Warnellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15671311338712852659noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22973357.post-80297478780831069462013-02-13T07:38:32.740-05:002013-02-13T07:38:32.740-05:00This comment has been removed by the author.Phil Warnellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15671311338712852659noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22973357.post-28521219314001361912013-02-13T03:46:34.204-05:002013-02-13T03:46:34.204-05:00"John Barrow in his book “Impossibility” disc...<i>"John Barrow in his book “Impossibility” discussed the three different scenarios of scientific progress: progress ending, asymptotically stagnating, or forever expanding. I found it considerably more insightful than Simonton’s vague comment."</i><br /><br />I am currently reading Barrow's <i>The Book of Universes</i>. I have read most of Barrow's popular books (and a few of Phillip Helbighttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12067585245603436809noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22973357.post-12825740570487154122013-02-13T00:46:51.192-05:002013-02-13T00:46:51.192-05:00"In terms of mass/energy, we are literally in..."In terms of mass/energy, we are literally in the dark regarding 99% of the cosmos."<br /><br />And so? It's also incredibly diffuse. There's probably no way to use it for anything practical without galactic-scale engineering.<br /><br />So yes, discovering the dark matter composition would be a nice exercise, for the sake of knowledge. But it won't be on the scale of NewtonCyberaxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03129241076743498073noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22973357.post-47448954952692585362013-02-12T21:34:26.566-05:002013-02-12T21:34:26.566-05:00If we have not discovered what the dark matter obj...<br />If we have not discovered what the dark matter objects are, and if we have not discovered the cause of "dark energy" acceleration, how could anyone think that no big discoveries remain to be made?!<br /><br />In terms of mass/energy, we are literally in the dark regarding 99% of the cosmos.<br /><br />When someone says that big discoveries are just about over, you can bet the farmRobert L. Oldershawhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15396555790655312393noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22973357.post-2464191077369940732013-02-12T15:53:17.922-05:002013-02-12T15:53:17.922-05:00Well, I know of no logical reason why science shou...Well, I know of no logical reason why science should go on forever...it's only been 500 years; do we really expect, say, 5M more? Personally, I don't believe it's too close to over yet, because pretty major things are still happening every decade, but the time will probably come. The universe doesn't seem to be made with us in mind, and that probably includes not being made to Will Nelsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00289187877856552901noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22973357.post-32568126872646844222013-02-12T15:17:30.664-05:002013-02-12T15:17:30.664-05:00The next border is complexity, and collective beha...The next border is complexity, and collective behaviors.<br /><br />Not a surprise that in physics the border is BEC, superconduction and... forget it... let's say something that you cannot understand without collective QM.<br /><br />simplest part of that border is multibody computation, virtual particles like SPP, ... hight temp BEC...<br /><br />Complexity of sand, sociophysic, "Alain_Cohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08352476615242858677noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22973357.post-59716107068703076922013-02-12T13:43:59.841-05:002013-02-12T13:43:59.841-05:00Simonton disparages the "AHA!" of discov...Simonton disparages the "AHA!" of discovery. This is a politically secure niche,<br /><br />http://www.aps.org/publications/apsnews/201302/backpage.cfm <br /><i>Admissions Criteria and Diversity in Graduate School</i><br /><br />The congenitally inconsequential must be Laval nozzle-thrust into physics graduate studies. Admission by disqualification makes physics strong. <a href="httpUncle Alhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05056804084187606211noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22973357.post-22314338085345565722013-02-12T11:29:35.536-05:002013-02-12T11:29:35.536-05:00/* wait, according to his website he isn't jus.../* wait, according to his website he isn't just professor, he is Distinguished Professor */<br /><br />Your dismissive stance is somewhat suspicious, because before few years your teacher Lee Smolin got to the nearly the same conclusion in <a href="http://koti.welho.com/rbrand/filosofia/tieteenfilosofia/L.%20Smolin%20-%20Why%20no%20%27New%20Einstein%27.pdf" rel="nofollow">his essay</a>... <Zephirhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06010623752049244967noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22973357.post-54743163304355649312013-02-12T10:57:55.268-05:002013-02-12T10:57:55.268-05:00I have a somewhat similar opinion - there is a lot...I have a somewhat similar opinion - there is a lot to be discovered in physics, but most of the new stuff is useless for us.<br /><br />Think about it - the last major useful discovery from the fundamental physics was nuclear fission (and fusion). And they are trivial from the modern theoretical physics point of view. Everything after that has been useless so far and probably will stay this way Cyberaxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03129241076743498073noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22973357.post-51147052238021222222013-02-12T10:16:27.826-05:002013-02-12T10:16:27.826-05:00Or maybe they thought publishing his thesis in an ...Or maybe they thought publishing his thesis in an actual science magazine might provide some missing feedback ;o)Sabine Hossenfelderhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06151209308084588985noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22973357.post-55516077227261634692013-02-12T09:19:22.145-05:002013-02-12T09:19:22.145-05:00As distinguishe Professor of philosophy is not qua...As distinguishe Professor of philosophy is not qualified to talk about the future of fundamental physics or fundamental science generally. He is at most an expert in fundamental philosophy ...<br /><br />Nature should not have featured him as an expert talking about such topics. But I noted quite some time ago that in such popular magazines (in the Scientific Amarican it is the same), the Nemohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15937686207028627202noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22973357.post-15814192053321484592013-02-12T08:30:05.657-05:002013-02-12T08:30:05.657-05:00Like for the end of the world, the claim for the e...Like for the end of the world, the claim for the end of science was made many times before (http://amasci.com/weird/end.html) and was proven wrong. This is probably no different since there is still many known problems and unknowns in all the realms of science.Paul Boulangerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12107987299117286240noreply@blogger.com