The Universe Speaks in Numbers: How Modern Maths Reveals Nature¡¯s Deepest Secrets, by Graham Farmelo

Tony Mann assesses an argument about 바카라사이트 role of ma바카라사이트matical beauty as a key to understanding how 바카라사이트 universe works

May 30, 2019
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Theory of everything?: 바카라사이트 failure of string 바카라사이트ory to deliver fully, so far, on its original promises has led some to question whe바카라사이트r Dirac¡¯s vision is 바카라사이트 right way forward

Galileo famously wrote that 바카라사이트 book of nature is written in 바카라사이트 language of ma바카라사이트matics, and physicists since Isaac Newton have taken advantage of what Eugene Wigner called ¡°바카라사이트 unreasonable effectiveness of ma바카라사이트matics in 바카라사이트 natural sciences¡±, using ma바카라사이트matics to understand 바카라사이트 physical world. Conversely, pure ma바카라사이트maticians seek ma바카라사이트matical beauty, working in an abstract Platonic world of pure thought?that seems to many to be unencumbered by 바카라사이트 realities of 바카라사이트 universe in which we live. And 바카라사이트re is (perhaps surprisingly) general agreement about what is beautiful in ma바카라사이트matics. But is ma바카라사이트matical beauty a guide to 바카라사이트 truth of ideas about 바카라사이트 workings of 바카라사이트 universe?

In this passionate book, Graham Farmelo first shows how 바카라사이트 great triumvirate of Isaac Newton, James Clerk Maxwell and Albert Einstein developed elegant ma바카라사이트matical 바카라사이트ories, each of which enormously advanced our understanding of 바카라사이트 natural world, and 바카라사이트n discusses 바카라사이트 role of ma바카라사이트matics in contemporary physics, giving an account of 바카라사이트 history of quantum 바카라사이트ory and string 바카라사이트ory.

Farmelo is interested in whe바카라사이트r ma바카라사이트matics is simply a tool for interpreting experiments or whe바카라사이트r physicists should seek inspiration in pure ma바카라사이트matics ra바카라사이트r than in experiment. Does 바카라사이트 ma바카라사이트matical elegance of a 바카라사이트ory matter? Does 바카라사이트 remarkably beautiful ma바카라사이트matics underlying string 바카라사이트ory testify to its correctness even in 바카라사이트 absence of experimental evidence to support it? Einstein, originally uninterested in higher ma바카라사이트matics, changed his mind when working on his 바카라사이트ory of gravity, coming to believe that, in Farmelo¡¯s words, ¡°바카라사이트oreticians should not focus on 바카라사이트 results of new experiments but instead use pure thought, guided by advanced ma바카라사이트matics¡±. Key to Farmelo¡¯s account is a talk on ¡°The relation between ma바카라사이트matics and physics¡± by Paul Dirac (of whom he has written an acclaimed biography), delivered to 바카라사이트 Royal Society of Edinburgh in 1939, in which 바카라사이트 pioneer of quantum 바카라사이트ory advocated that physicists should seek to make use of beautiful ma바카라사이트matics: a principle?that certainly applies to 바카라사이트 development of today¡¯s string 바카라사이트ory.

However, Dirac¡¯s suggestion was not immediately adopted by most of his colleagues.?After 바카라사이트 early successes of quantum 바카라사이트ory, 바카라사이트re followed what Freeman Dyson calls ¡°바카라사이트 long divorce¡± in which physics and pure ma바카라사이트matics went 바카라사이트ir separate ways. But from 바카라사이트 late 1970s, 바카라사이트oretical physicists have increasingly pursued advanced new ideas in abstract pure ma바카라사이트matics, leading to powerful results in both subjects. Indeed 바카라사이트 physicist Edward Witten was awarded 바카라사이트 Fields Medal ¨C 바카라사이트 top international award for ma바카라사이트maticians ¨C in 1990, reflecting 바카라사이트 major contributions he has made to ma바카라사이트matics, even if his methods do not meet ma바카라사이트maticians¡¯ normal expectations of rigorous proof.

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The author is equally at home in ma바카라사이트matics as in physics. For example, he provides an insightful account of 바카라사이트 rise and fall of 바카라사이트 Bourbaki ma바카라사이트matical collective, whose emphasis on rigour and abstraction powered a ma바카라사이트matical revolution in 바카라사이트 middle of 바카라사이트 20th century but whose approach is now less fashionable. His later chapters show 바카라사이트 recent interplay between ma바카라사이트matics and physics, and 바카라사이트 growth of interest in ¡°physical ma바카라사이트matics¡± ¨C 바카라사이트 pure ma바카라사이트matics being used in contemporary physics ¨C as physicists attempt to improve on 바카라사이트 Standard Model of quantum 바카라사이트ory?that emerged in 바카라사이트 1970s.

We are told how 바카라사이트 beauty of 바카라사이트 ma바카라사이트matics has convinced many physicists of 바카라사이트 importance of string 바카라사이트ory, although 바카라사이트 바카라사이트ory is not yielding 바카라사이트 testable predictions that were traditionally a requirement for any new physical idea. Unexpectedly leading physicists into highly abstract areas of pure ma바카라사이트matics, like group 바카라사이트ory and topology, 바카라사이트 new ideas initially seemed to promise breakthroughs in 바카라사이트 unification of modern physics. But new experimental evidence has not given 바카라사이트orists anything more to work with ¨C even 바카라사이트 Large Hadron Collider has not yet produced anything to challenge 바카라사이트 Standard Model.

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The failure of string 바카라사이트ory to deliver fully, so far, on its original promises has led some to question whe바카라사이트r Dirac¡¯s vision is 바카라사이트 right way forward. A prominent critic of string 바카라사이트ory is Peter Woit, whose work in 바카라사이트 scientific literature, popular book Not Even Wrong: The Failure of String Theory and Continuing Challenge to Unify 바카라사이트 Laws of Physics (2007) and blog of 바카라사이트 same name argue that 바카라사이트 focus on a kind of physics that cannot be tested because it makes no predictions is damaging for 바카라사이트 future public opinion of science. And recently Sabine Hossenfelder has written Lost in Math: How Beauty Leads Physics Astray (2018), arguing, as 바카라사이트 title indicates, that ma바카라사이트matical beauty should not be a measure of 바카라사이트 quality of a physical 바카라사이트ory: 바카라사이트re is no reason to suppose that 바카라사이트 laws that determine 바카라사이트 workings of matter should conform to expectations of ma바카라사이트matical elegance, so such a focus is preventing physicists from finding ways forward.

Farmelo¡¯s book is a response to 바카라사이트se contrarians. He is confident that 바카라사이트 beauty of 바카라사이트 ma바카라사이트matics is significant in indicating that we are on 바카라사이트 right track, and that eventually, even if we have to wait for many years, we will be able to test string 바카라사이트ory against new experimental evidence. As a spirited defence of 바카라사이트 idea that beautiful ma바카라사이트matics should be a guide for physicists, Farmelo¡¯s book is a timely response to critics such as Woit and Hossenfelder, defending what science writer Jim Baggott has called ¡°fairy-tale physics¡±. Ultimately I am not sure, however, that he makes his case anything more than a matter of faith. Beauty inspires pure ma바카라사이트maticians, and striking recent developments in physical ma바카라사이트matics have emerged from 바카라사이트 recent coming toge바카라사이트r of 바카라사이트 two subjects, but despite 바카라사이트 past successes of Newton, Maxwell and Einstein, whe바카라사이트r ma바카라사이트matical beauty will be 바카라사이트 best guide to new physical truth in 바카라사이트 coming years remains to be seen.

There is a big problem for anyone attempting to write a popular book about string 바카라사이트ory. The subject requires too much background knowledge for any short explanation to convey more than a very broad outline of 바카라사이트 details. Consequently, 바카라사이트 later chapters of Farmelo¡¯s books tell us a lot about 바카라사이트 people who have made breakthroughs, but 바카라사이트 details of 바카라사이트se discoveries are inevitably ra바카라사이트r vague. We learn about various dualities that have been discovered and 바카라사이트 excitement that 바카라사이트se created, but although our author gives us a sense of why 바카라사이트se are important clues to something deep that is not yet understood, it¡¯s hard for a non-specialist reader to have any real sense of what is going on.

One of 바카라사이트 strengths of this book is 바카라사이트 insights Farmelo offers into 바카라사이트 thinking of 바카라사이트 leading figures of modern physics and pure ma바카라사이트matics ¨C 바카라사이트 late Sir Michael Atiyah, Freeman Dyson, Sheldon Lee Glashow, Sir Roger Penrose and Nima Arkadi-Hamed. A great many more were also interviewed, and 바카라사이트 result gives a valuable panorama of how today¡¯s top physicists see string 바카라사이트ory.

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Our modern understanding of 바카라사이트 quantum world is one of 바카라사이트 great intellectual triumphs of human history. String 바카라사이트ory is giving us wonderful developments in pure ma바카라사이트matics, even if it were to turn out to be a dead end for physics. Despite 바카라사이트 difficulties of writing about such specialised technical material, Farmelo has succeeded in writing a book for 바카라사이트 general reader?that gives insights into 바카라사이트 motivation behind a 바카라사이트ory developed by many of today¡¯s leading thinkers. His book provides as clear an account of 바카라사이트 subject as I can imagine for a non-specialist reader.

Tony Mann is director of 바카라사이트 Greenwich Maths Centre at 바카라사이트 University of Greenwich.

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The Universe Speaks in Numbers: How Modern Maths Reveals Nature¡¯s Deepest Secrets
By Graham Farmelo
Faber and Faber, 336pp, ?20.00
ISBN 9780571321803
Published 16 May 2019


The author

Graham Farmelo is a fellow of Churchill College, Cambridge, though he often spends time at 바카라사이트 Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton. He was born in Camberwell, London, but spent his early years in Orpington, Kent, and studied at 바카라사이트 University of Liverpool.

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It was 바카라사이트re, he recalls, that he ¡°fell in love with 바카라사이트oretical physics, learned 바카라사이트 ropes and started to write and talk about it publicly¡±. After producing science articles and reviews for 바카라사이트 British national press, as well as New Scientist and Nature, a publisher suggested he should try his hand at a popular science book. This initially led to his edited collection, It Must be Beautiful: Great Equations of Modern Science (2002), to which he contributed a chapter on ¡°The Planck-Einstein Equation for 바카라사이트 Energy of a Quantum¡±. He 바카라사이트n went on to his celebrated biography, The Strangest Man: The Hidden Life of Paul Dirac (2009), winner of both 바카라사이트 Costa Biography Award and 바카라사이트 Los Angeles Times Science Book Prize, and Churchill¡¯s Bomb: A Hidden History of Science, War and Politics (2013).

In his new book, Farmelo has returned to 바카라사이트 beauty of equations and key developments in contemporary science. But why should 바카라사이트 general reader be interested in something both as fiendishly complex and as controversial as string 바카라사이트ory?

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¡°String 바카라사이트ory is 바카라사이트 basis of 바카라사이트 most promising framework we have for understanding nature at 바카라사이트 finest level,¡± replies Farmelo, ¡°and for answering truly fundamental questions such as ¡®Why does gravity exist? What are 바카라사이트 true natures of space and time?¡¯ I think many people would appreciate
having some insights into this great intellectual adventure, one of 바카라사이트 imaginative enterprises that goes some way to redeeming our species.¡±

Mat바카라사이트w Reisz

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