Ed Huntress wrote:
"cavelamb" wrote in message
...
Ed Huntress wrote:
"cavelamb" wrote in message
m...
In case you might have missed it, I think this one is important...


Predicting tipping points before they occur


http://www.usatoday.com/tech/science...ng-point_N.htm

snip

That's very interesting stuff, Richard. I read the rest of the article
and I'll try to make some time for the paper -- at the library. _Nature_
wants my money g.

(Not for a while, though. I finally got down to reading _The Trouble With
Physics_ by Lee Smolin and I'm in for a slog...)

Thanks.

--
Ed Huntress

LOL! - Light weight!

String theory for we hoi polloi. g I don't expect to understand string
theory but I do expect to learn where the controversies lie, because Smolin
is probably the best there is at describing them.

--
Ed Huntress



For the rest of the crew...

Subject(s):
SCIENCE: Science - Physics

Description:
In this groundbreaking book, the renowned theoretical physicist Lee Smolin
argues that physics — the basis for all other sciences — has lost its way. For
more than two centuries, our understanding of the laws of nature expanded
rapidly. But today, despite our best efforts, we know nothing more about these
laws than we knew in the 1970s. Why is physics suddenly in trouble? And what can
we do about it?

One of the major problems, according to Smolin, is string theory: an ambitious
attempt to formulate a “theory of everything” that explains all the particles
and forces of nature and how the universe came to be. With its exotic new
particles and parallel universes, string theory has captured the public’s
imagination and seduced many physicists.

But as Smolin reveals, there’s a deep flaw in the theory: no part of it has been
tested, and no one knows how to test it. In fact, the theory appears to come in
an infinite number of versions, meaning that no experiment will ever be able to
prove it false. As a scientific theory, it fails. And because it has soaked up
the lion’s share of funding, attracted some of the best minds, and effectively
penalized young physicists for pursuing other avenues, it is dragging the rest
of physics down with it.

With clarity, passion, and authority, Smolin charts the rise and fall of string
theory and takes a fascinating look at what will replace it. A group of young
theorists has begun to develop exciting ideas that, unlike string theory, are
testable. Smolin not only tells us who and what to watch for in the coming
years, he offers novel solutions for seeking out and nurturing the best new
talent—giving us a chance, at long last, of finding the next Einstein.