• loaExMachina@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
      1931·
      4 months ago

      If her research had applications, it would’ve turned her pure math into applied math, which sounds less cool. But an application in string theory isn’t always considered a “serious” application. String theory was popular in the 80s, as a model to unify quantum physics and relativity, but experiments since then haven’t really confirmed supersymmetry, which is one of it’s key hypothesis. Some still think string theory can be saved and make new versions of it to account for modern discoveries, but they’re very marginal.

    • UraniumBlazer@lemm.eeEnglish
      911·
      4 months ago

      Ok, so there’s a problem in physics. General relativity and quantum mechanics both beautifully describe the universe at very large and very small scales respectively. However, they disagree with each other (general relativity breaks down when applied to quantum objects).

      Many physicists since a long time have been believing that string theory would be the theory that would unify quantum mechanics and general relativity to get the theory of everything.

      Why do so many ppl believe this? It’s because the math of string theory is very elegant. Why is it elegant? It’s because it strongly hints at unification.

      But this is the problem - there is zero experimental evidence for string theory. In fact, certain requirements for string theory to be true have not been proven to be true yet (and have started to become less and less likely as experiments have progressed). This is why, string theory is just this incredibly complicated and mathematically intense theory without any practical applications.

      The mathematician here hates her math to be practically applied. However, when she’s told that it’s being applied in string theory, she’s relieved as she knows that it won’t ever be practically applied. That’s the joke lmao

      • dohpaz42@lemmy.worldEnglish
        71·
        4 months ago

        Many physicists since a long time have been believing that string theory would be the theory that would unify quantum mechanics and general relativity to get the theory of everything.

        So string theory is the Chosen One and which one of the other two has the high ground?

        • Zagorath@aussie.zoneEnglish
          12·
          4 months ago

          Have you watched her latest video? Or more importantly, have you read the comments under it? The amount of irony in how many of them don’t understand the entire video was (as one of the few comments that actually got it said) “a 1 hour video of pure deadpan sarcasm” in a video about people not getting the point of an earlier video. It’s just a hilarious time.

      • lugal@sopuli.xyzEnglish
        7·
        4 months ago

        I agree but I think there is more to science denial than just str*ng theory