Has Physics Gone Off the Rails?

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Why some scientists say physics has gone off the rails
Has the love of "elegant" equations overtaken the desire to describe the re=
al world?by=C2=A0Dan Falk=C2=A0/=C2=A0Jun.02.2018 / 3:13 AM ETIn the last f=
ew decades of the 20th Century, physicists worked out a more-or-less comple=
te model of all the known particles and forces in our universe.cokada / Get=
ty Images/iStockphotoThe 20th century was a remarkably productive one for p=
hysics. First, Albert Einstein's=C2=A0theory of general relativity=C2=A0hel=
ped us view gravity not as a force but as a distortion of space. Then Max P=
lanck, Erwin Schr=C3=B6dinger and Werner Heisenberg gave us=C2=A0quantum me=
chanics=C2=A0=E2=80=94 and a fresh understanding of the subatomic world.In =
the middle of the century, two new forces were discovered deep within the a=
tom (the strong and weak nuclear forces). Finally, in the century's last de=
cades, we got the Standard Model of particle physics =E2=80=94 an accountin=
g of all the particles and forces known to exist in our universe.But the ne=
w century brought a rough patch. Yes, there have been some remarkable findi=
ngs, including the 2012=C2=A0discovery of the Higgs Boson=C2=A0and the=C2=
=A0discovery of gravitational waves=C2=A0four years later. But those triump=
hs were based on theories developed decades earlier =E2=80=94 a full centur=
y earlier in the case of gravitational waves. And new ideas like string the=
ory (which holds that matter is made up of tiny vibrating loops of energy) =
remain unverified.Physicist Kip Thorne speaks about the discovery of gravit=
ational waves during a news conference at the National Press Club in Washin=
gton, D.C. on Feb. 11, 2016.Saul Loeb / AFP-Getty Images file"All of the th=
eoretical work that's been done since the 1970s has not produced a single s=
uccessful prediction," says Neil Turok, director of the Perimeter Institute=
 for Theoretical Physics in Waterloo, Canada. "That's a very shocking state=
 of affairs."This doesn't mean physicists aren't busy; the journals are pub=
lishing more research than ever. But Turok says all that research isn't doi=
ng much to advance our understanding of the universe =E2=80=94 at least not=
 the way physicists did in the last century.
LOTS OF ACTIVITY, LITTLE PROGRESS
Physicists today "write a lot of papers, build a lot of [theoretical] model=
s, hold a lot of conferences, cite each other =E2=80=94 you have all the tr=
appings of science," he says. "But for me, physics is all about making succ=
essful predictions. And that's been lacking."
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The most celebrated ongoing experiments have failed to produce some long-an=
ticipated discoveries.Take the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), the enormous pa=
rticle accelerator built underground near Geneva, Switzerland. After it con=
firmed the existence of the=C2=A0Higgs Boson, physicists hoped research at =
the LHC would quickly yield evidence of supersymmetry, a sort of supplement=
 to the Standard Model that predicts an array of new, heavier particles tha=
t correspond to the known ones =E2=80=94 but no luck yet.Ditto for the sear=
ch for=C2=A0dark matter=C2=A0particles being conducted at facilities includ=
ing the Sanford Underground Research Facility in South Dakota and the Gran =
Sasso lab in central Italy. No dark matter particles have yet been found.An=
d if string theory so far has resisted experimental verification, the so-ca=
lled=C2=A0multiverse=C2=A0=E2=80=94 the idea that our universe is but one o=
f many and perhaps an infinite number of universes =E2=80=94 seems to some =
scientists more like science fiction than a description of reality."What do=
es it mean for something to exist if you can't observe it?" asks Sabine Hos=
senfelder, a physicist at the Frankfurt Institute for Advanced Studies in G=
ermany. "I think that's a discussion that belongs safely in the realm of ph=
ilosophy," she adds. "People can believe in the multiverse all they want =
=E2=80=94 but it's not science."
SEDUCED BY MATH?
In a new book entitled "Lost in Math: How Beauty Leads Physics Astray," Hos=
senfelder argues that many physicists working today have been led astray by=
 mathematics =E2=80=94 seduced by equations that might be "beautiful" or "e=
legant" but which lack obvious connection to the real world."I can't believ=
e what this once-venerable profession has become," she writes. "Theoretical=
 physicists used to explain what was observed. Now they try to explain why =
they can't explain what was not observed. And they're not even good at that=
."Galileo was the first scientist to detail the link between mathematics an=
d the physical world, and indeed all of today's successful physical theorie=
s are expressed mathematically. But there are also examples of great thinke=
rs being led astray by math.Diagram of the planetary spheres from Johannes =
Kepler's Mysterium Cosmographicum, 1596.De Agostini Picture Library / Getty=
 ImagesIn the 17th century, for example, German astronomer Johannes Kepler =
developed an elaborate theory that described the orbits of the planets in t=
erms of the five "Platonic solids" of Euclidian geometry. His hypothesis wa=
s certainly elegant, but it was also wrong.
IN SEARCH OF SIMPLICITY
Physicists have often sought mathematical elegance in their theories; at th=
e same time, they've been drawn by the closely related idea of simplicity (=
or economy, as it's sometimes called). Some justify this attraction to aest=
hetics with references to "Occam's razor," a dictum that holds that when ch=
oosing between competing theories the simpler one is usually correct."We ho=
pe the laws that we find will be beautiful," says Frank Wilczek, an MIT phy=
sicist who won the Nobel Prize for his work on the strong nuclear force in =
2004. "We hope that they'll exhibit symmetry, and that they will explain a =
lot of things in terms of a few hypotheses =E2=80=94 so that you get more o=
ut than you put in."But Wilczek cautions that there is no guarantee these p=
rinciples pay off. Although they have a good track record, he says, "They d=
on't have to work."Wilczek agrees that physics in recent years has seemed l=
ackluster, but he says that's partly because we were "so spectacularly succ=
essful earlier on, in the '70s and '80s =E2=80=94 which led to such good mo=
dels of the world that it's been very, very difficult to improve on them."A=
s for supersymmetry and the dark matter particle, he says it's too soon to =
bury either idea. "Sometimes," he says, "you have to be patient."Turok, too=
, remains optimistic that a new era of physics may be just around the corne=
r =E2=80=94 one that might produce bold new ideas on the scale of quantum t=
heory and relativity. "What we need is for probably some young person to co=
me forward and say, 'Aha, this is the way it all fits together.'"
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<html><head></head><body><div style=3D"color:#000; background-color:#fff; f=
ont-family:Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, Lucida Grande, sans-serif;font=
-size:13px"><section style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; position: relative; o=
verflow: hidden; font-family: PublicoText, TimesNewRoman, &quot;Times New R=
oman&quot;, Times, Baskerville, Georgia, serif; font-size: medium;" id=3D"y=
ui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8703"><header style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; ma=
rgin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; padding: 5rem 0px 6.625rem; position: =
relative; width: 77.5rem;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8704"><div styl=
e=3D"box-sizing: border-box; width: calc(83.3333% - 73.3333px); float: left=
; margin-left: calc((16.6667% 0 46.6667px) + 80px); position: relative; z-i=
ndex: 2;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8705"><h1 style=3D"box-sizing: b=
order-box; font-size: 3.75rem; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 2.125rem; fo=
nt-weight: 400; color: rgb(255, 255, 255); font-family: FoundersGroteskCond=
-SmBd, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 3.75rem;" id=3D"yui_3_16_=
0_1_1528154211156_8706">Why some scientists say physics has gone off the ra=
ils</h1><div style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(255, 255, 255); fo=
nt-family: PublicoHeadline, Georgia, TimesNewRoman, &quot;Times New Roman&q=
uot;, Times, Baskerville, serif; font-size: 1.5rem; line-height: 1.5; margi=
n-bottom: 1.5rem;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8707">Has the love of "=
elegant" equations overtaken the desire to describe the real world?</div><d=
iv style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; font-family: FoundersGroteskMono, Menlo=
, Monaco, monospace; font-size: 0.75rem; letter-spacing: -0.04em; line-heig=
ht: 1.5; word-spacing: -0.1em;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8708"><spa=
n style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; position: relative; z-index: 1; color: r=
gb(255, 255, 255);" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8709">by&nbsp;Dan Falk=
&nbsp;/&nbsp;</span><span style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; position: relati=
ve; z-index: 1; color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_152815421115=
6_8710"><span style=3D"box-sizing: border-box;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_15281542=
11156_8711"><time datetime=3D"Sat Jun 02 2018 10:13:17 GMT+0000 (UTC)" styl=
e=3D"box-sizing: border-box; position: relative; z-index: 1;" id=3D"yui_3_1=
6_0_1_1528154211156_8712">Jun.02.2018 / 3:13 AM ET</time></span></span></di=
v></div></header><div style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; position: relative; =
margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; width: 77.5rem;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_=
1528154211156_8713"><div style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; width: calc(83.33=
33% - 73.3333px); float: left; margin-left: calc((16.6667% 0 46.6667px) + 8=
0px);" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8714"><figure style=3D"box-sizing: =
border-box; margin: 0 0px 0px; width: 959.984px;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_152815=
4211156_8715"><picture style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 0px;" id=
=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8716"><source srcset=3D"https://media4.s-nbc=
news.com/j/newscms/2018_22/2451826/180601-atomi-mn-1540_f415a90a9f0fcbddc7d=
fa4cc7b5a36c3.focal-1000x500.jpg" media=3D"(min-width: 758px)" style=3D"box=
-sizing: border-box;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8717"><img src=3D"ht=
tps://media4.s-nbcnews.com/j/newscms/2018_22/2451826/180601-atomi-mn-1540_f=
415a90a9f0fcbddc7dfa4cc7b5a36c3.focal-760x380.jpg" alt=3D"Energy atom" styl=
e=3D"box-sizing: border-box; border-width: 0px; border-style: initial; widt=
h: 959.984px;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8718" data-id=3D"88bc2fac-4=
152-4383-4adc-823db6abc2c3"></picture></figure></div><figcaption style=3D"b=
ox-sizing: border-box; position: relative; font-family: PublicoText, Georgi=
a, TimesNewRoman, &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, Times, Baskerville, serif; f=
ont-size: 0.875rem; line-height: 1.5; margin-top: 1rem; width: calc(83.3333=
% - 73.3333px); float: left; margin-left: calc((16.6667% 0 46.6667px) + 80p=
x);" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8719"><span style=3D"box-sizing: bord=
er-box; margin-right: 0.75rem;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8720">In t=
he last few decades of the 20th Century, physicists worked out a more-or-le=
ss complete model of all the known particles and forces in our universe.</s=
pan><span style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; display: inline-block; font-fami=
ly: FoundersGroteskMono, Menlo, Monaco, monospace; font-size: 0.75rem; colo=
r: rgb(85, 85, 85); letter-spacing: -0.04em; word-spacing: -0.1em;" id=3D"y=
ui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8721">cokada / Getty Images/iStockphoto</span></f=
igcaption></div></section><div style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; font-family=
: PublicoText, TimesNewRoman, &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, Times, Baskervil=
le, Georgia, serif; font-size: medium;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_87=
22"><article style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; margin-left: auto; margin-rig=
ht: auto; width: 77.5rem;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8723"><div styl=
e=3D"box-sizing: border-box; display: flex; width: 1240px;" id=3D"yui_3_16_=
0_1_1528154211156_8724"><div style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; width: calc(5=
0% - 60px); float: left; margin-left: calc((16.6667% 0 46.6667px) + 80px); =
word-wrap: break-word; position: relative;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_152815421115=
6_8725"></div></div><div style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; display: flex; wi=
dth: 1240px;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8726"><div style=3D"box-sizi=
ng: border-box; width: calc(50% - 60px); float: left; margin-left: calc((16=
.6667% 0 46.6667px) + 80px); word-wrap: break-word; position: relative;" id=
=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8727"><div style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; =
color: rgb(85, 85, 85); margin-bottom: 1.875rem; font-size: 1.125rem; line-=
height: 2.1875rem;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8728">The 20th century=
 was a remarkably productive one for physics. First, Albert Einstein's&nbsp=
;<a href=3D"https://www.nbcnews.com/mach/science/what-relativity-einstein-s=
-mind-bending-theory-explained-ncna865496" style=3D"box-sizing: border-box;=
 text-decoration-line: none; color: rgb(92, 0, 216);" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_15=
28154211156_8729">theory of general relativity</a>&nbsp;helped us view grav=
ity not as a force but as a distortion of space. Then Max Planck, Erwin Sch=
r=C3=B6dinger and Werner Heisenberg gave us&nbsp;<a href=3D"https://www.nbc=
news.com/mach/science/universe-conscious-ncna772956" style=3D"box-sizing: b=
order-box; text-decoration-line: none; color: rgb(92, 0, 216);" id=3D"yui_3=
_16_0_1_1528154211156_8730">quantum mechanics</a>&nbsp;=E2=80=94 and a fres=
h understanding of the subatomic world.</div><div style=3D"box-sizing: bord=
er-box; color: rgb(85, 85, 85); margin-bottom: 1.875rem; font-size: 1.125re=
m; line-height: 2.1875rem;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8731">In the m=
iddle of the century, two new forces were discovered deep within the atom (=
the strong and weak nuclear forces). Finally, in the century's last decades=
, we got the Standard Model of particle physics =E2=80=94 an accounting of =
all the particles and forces known to exist in our universe.</div><div styl=
e=3D"box-sizing: border-box; margin-bottom: 3rem;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_15281=
54211156_8732"><div data-enigma=3D"true" data-slot=3D"boxinline" data-sizes=
=3D"[[[1000,1],[]],[[758,1],[[300,250],[700,50],[5,5],[728,90],[360,360]]],=
[[0,0],[[300,250],[700,50],[5,5],[360,360]]]]" data-render-on-view=3D"true"=
 data-targeting=3D"{&quot;noads&quot;:&quot;&quot;}" style=3D"box-sizing: b=
order-box;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8733"><div style=3D"box-sizing=
: border-box;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8734"></div></div></div><di=
v style=3D"box-sizing: border-box;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8735">=
</div><div style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(85, 85, 85); margin-=
bottom: 1.875rem; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 2.1875rem;" id=3D"yui_3=
_16_0_1_1528154211156_8736">But the new century brought a rough patch. Yes,=
 there have been some remarkable findings, including the 2012&nbsp;<a href=
=3D"https://www.nbcnews.com/video/scientists-say-god-particle-discovered-44=
456515700" style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; text-decoration-line: none; col=
or: rgb(92, 0, 216);" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8737">discovery of t=
he Higgs Boson</a>&nbsp;and the&nbsp;<a href=3D"https://www.nbcnews.com/mac=
h/science/gravitational-waves-ripples-space-time-detected-first-time-n51656=
6" style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; text-decoration-line: none; color: rgb(=
92, 0, 216);" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8738">discovery of gravitati=
onal waves</a>&nbsp;four years later. But those triumphs were based on theo=
ries developed decades earlier =E2=80=94 a full century earlier in the case=
 of gravitational waves. And new ideas like string theory (which holds that=
 matter is made up of tiny vibrating loops of energy) remain unverified.</d=
iv><figure style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; margin: 1.25rem 0 2.5rem; width=
: calc(100% + 80px);" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8739"><picture style=
=3D"box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 0px; display: block; width: calc(100=
% - 80px); margin-left: 40px; float: left;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_152815421115=
6_8740"><source srcset=3D"https://media4.s-nbcnews.com/j/newscms/2018_22/18=
51241/170101-gravitational-waves-mn-1640_fad5f299b283743fc65d06f0ed23df0b.f=
it-560w.jpg" media=3D"(min-width: 1000px)" style=3D"box-sizing: border-box;=
" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8741"><img src=3D"https://media4.s-nbcne=
ws.com/j/newscms/2018_22/1851241/170101-gravitational-waves-mn-1640_fad5f29=
9b283743fc65d06f0ed23df0b.fit-760w.jpg" alt=3D"US-SCIENCE-GRAVITY-ASTRONOMY=
-PHYSICS-EINSTEIN" style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; border-width: 0px; bord=
er-style: initial; width: 560px;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8742" da=
ta-id=3D"b4682c97-e4f8-546b-906a-699431b6c51e"></picture><figcaption style=
=3D"box-sizing: border-box; position: relative; width: calc(100% - 80px); f=
loat: left; margin-left: 40px; font-family: PublicoText, Georgia, TimesNewR=
oman, &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, Times, Baskerville, serif; font-size: 0.=
875rem; line-height: 1.5; margin-top: 1rem;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_15281542111=
56_8743"><span style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; margin-right: 0.75rem;" id=
=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8744">Physicist Kip Thorne speaks about the =
discovery of gravitational waves during a news conference at the National P=
ress Club in Washington, D.C. on Feb. 11, 2016.</span><span style=3D"box-si=
zing: border-box; display: inline-block; font-family: FoundersGroteskMono, =
Menlo, Monaco, monospace; font-size: 0.75rem; color: rgb(85, 85, 85); lette=
r-spacing: -0.04em; word-spacing: -0.1em;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156=
_8745">Saul Loeb / AFP-Getty Images file</span></figcaption></figure><div s=
tyle=3D"box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(85, 85, 85); margin-bottom: 1.87=
5rem; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 2.1875rem;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528=
154211156_8746">"All of the theoretical work that's been done since the 197=
0s has not produced a single successful prediction," says Neil Turok, direc=
tor of the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics in Waterloo, Canada.=
 "That's a very shocking state of affairs."</div><div style=3D"box-sizing: =
border-box; color: rgb(85, 85, 85); margin-bottom: 1.875rem; font-size: 1.1=
25rem; line-height: 2.1875rem;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8747">This=
 doesn't mean physicists aren't busy; the journals are publishing more rese=
arch than ever. But Turok says all that research isn't doing much to advanc=
e our understanding of the universe =E2=80=94 at least not the way physicis=
ts did in the last century.</div><h3 style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; font-=
size: 2rem; clear: both; font-family: FoundersGroteskCond-SmBd, Helvetica, =
Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 2.1875rem; font-weight: 400; text-transform=
: uppercase;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8748">LOTS OF ACTIVITY, LITT=
LE PROGRESS</h3><div style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(85, 85, 85=
); margin-bottom: 1.875rem; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 2.1875rem;" i=
d=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8749">Physicists today "write a lot of pape=
rs, build a lot of [theoretical] models, hold a lot of conferences, cite ea=
ch other =E2=80=94 you have all the trappings of science," he says. "But fo=
r me, physics is all about making successful predictions. And that's been l=
acking."</div><section style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; margin: 3rem 0 1.56=
25rem; width: calc(100% + 80px);" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8750"><d=
iv style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; position: relative; width: calc(66.6667=
% - 66.6667px); float: left; margin: 0.625rem 40px 0.625rem calc((-16.6667%=
 0 33.3333px) + 80px); min-height: 18rem;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156=
_8751"><div style=3D"box-sizing: border-box;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211=
156_8752"><div style=3D"box-sizing: border-box;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154=
211156_8753"></div><div style=3D"box-sizing: border-box;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_=
1_1528154211156_8754"></div></div><div style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; z-i=
ndex: 0; ; top: 0px; left: 0px; width: 360px; min-height: 12.875rem; backgr=
ound-color: rgb(92, 0, 216);" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8755"></div>=
<div style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; align-items: center;" id=3D"yui_3_16_=
0_1_1528154211156_8756"><h4 style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.5=
rem; margin: 1.25rem 2.5rem; font-family: FoundersGroteskCond-SmBd, Helveti=
ca, Arial, sans-serif; font-weight: 400; line-height: 1.25rem; text-transfo=
rm: capitalize; display: inline-block; position: relative; z-index: 1; colo=
r: rgb(255, 255, 255);" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8757">Recommended<=
/h4></div><div style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; position: relative; z-index=
: 1; padding: 1.25rem 1.25rem 0px; margin-left: 40px; background-color: rgb=
(242, 242, 242);" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8758"><div style=3D"box-=
sizing: border-box; position: relative; margin: 0px; padding: 1.25rem 0px; =
border-top: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204);" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156=
_8759"><a href=3D"https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/trump-cancels-eagles=
-super-bowl-ceremony-citing-anthem-dispute-n880011?icid=3Drecommended" to=
=3D"https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/trump-cancels-eagles-super-bowl-ce=
remony-citing-anthem-dispute-n880011?icid=3Drecommended" style=3D"box-sizin=
g: border-box; text-decoration-line: none; color: inherit; display: block; =
overflow: auto;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8760"><div style=3D"box-s=
izing: border-box; position: relative; float: left; width: 6.3125rem; margi=
n-right: 1.25rem;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8761"><picture style=3D=
"box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 0px; display: block; overflow: auto;" i=
d=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8762"><source srcset=3D"https://media1.s-nb=
cnews.com/j/newscms/2018_05/2316596/180204-phildelphia-eagles-mn-0930_5d0b4=
9d936a3b2b9507f901df07162ee.101;101;7;70;5.jpg" media=3D"(min-width: 758px)=
" style=3D"box-sizing: border-box;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8763">=
<img src=3D"https://media1.s-nbcnews.com/j/newscms/2018_05/2316596/180204-p=
hildelphia-eagles-mn-0930_5d0b49d936a3b2b9507f901df07162ee.80;80;7;70;5.jpg=
" alt=3D"" style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; border-width: 0px; border-style=
: initial; width: 101px;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8764" data-id=3D=
"ab0d4cfe-988c-20fe-f3dd-f861f0e8f2d7"></picture></div><h3 style=3D"box-siz=
ing: border-box; font-size: 1rem; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; font=
-family: FoundersGroteskCond-SmBd, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-weigh=
t: 400; line-height: 1.25rem;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8765">Trump=
 cancels Eagles' Super Bowl ceremony, citing anthem dispute</h3></a></div><=
div style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; position: relative; margin: 0px; paddi=
ng: 1.25rem 0px; border-top: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204);" id=3D"yui_3_16_=
0_1_1528154211156_8766"><a href=3D"https://www.nbcnews.com/feature/nbc-out/=
dangerous-or-balanced-bakery-ruling-elicits-mixed-reaction-lgbtq-groups-n87=
9901?icid=3Drecommended" to=3D"https://www.nbcnews.com/feature/nbc-out/dang=
erous-or-balanced-bakery-ruling-elicits-mixed-reaction-lgbtq-groups-n879901=
?icid=3Drecommended" style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; text-decoration-line:=
 none; color: inherit; display: block; overflow: auto;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_=
1528154211156_8767"><div style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; position: relativ=
e; float: left; width: 6.3125rem; margin-right: 1.25rem;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_=
1_1528154211156_8768"><picture style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; font-size: =
0px; display: block; overflow: auto;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8769=
"><source srcset=3D"https://media3.s-nbcnews.com/j/newscms/2018_23/2453821/=
180604-supreme-court-reaction-baker-ruling-se-1150a_6b94e670849fafdf9178f6a=
8ddd9de78.101;101;7;70;5.jpg" media=3D"(min-width: 758px)" style=3D"box-siz=
ing: border-box;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8770"><img src=3D"https:=
//media3.s-nbcnews.com/j/newscms/2018_23/2453821/180604-supreme-court-react=
ion-baker-ruling-se-1150a_6b94e670849fafdf9178f6a8ddd9de78.80;80;7;70;5.jpg=
" alt=3D"" style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; border-width: 0px; border-style=
: initial; width: 101px;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8771" data-id=3D=
"9615a726-cd67-18b8-3acd-bde50c0ebcd8"></picture></div><h3 style=3D"box-siz=
ing: border-box; font-size: 1rem; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; font=
-family: FoundersGroteskCond-SmBd, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-weigh=
t: 400; line-height: 1.25rem;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8772">'Dang=
erous' or balanced? Bakery ruling elicits mixed reaction from LGBTQ groups<=
/h3></a></div></div></div></section><div style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; m=
argin-bottom: 3rem;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8773"><div data-enigm=
a=3D"true" data-slot=3D"boxinline" data-sizes=3D"[[[1000,1],[]],[[758,1],[[=
300,250],[700,50],[5,5],[728,90],[360,360]]],[[0,0],[[300,250],[700,50],[5,=
5],[360,360]]]]" data-render-on-view=3D"true" data-targeting=3D"{&quot;noad=
s&quot;:&quot;&quot;}" style=3D"box-sizing: border-box;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1=
_1528154211156_8774"><div style=3D"box-sizing: border-box;" id=3D"yui_3_16_=
0_1_1528154211156_8775"></div></div></div><div style=3D"box-sizing: border-=
box; color: rgb(85, 85, 85); margin-bottom: 1.875rem; font-size: 1.125rem; =
line-height: 2.1875rem;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8776">The most ce=
lebrated ongoing experiments have failed to produce some long-anticipated d=
iscoveries.</div><div style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(85, 85, 8=
5); margin-bottom: 1.875rem; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 2.1875rem;" =
id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8777">Take the Large Hadron Collider (LHC)=
, the enormous particle accelerator built underground near Geneva, Switzerl=
and. After it confirmed the existence of the&nbsp;<a href=3D"https://www.nb=
cnews.com/science/science-news/higgs-boson-made-simple-f861314" style=3D"bo=
x-sizing: border-box; text-decoration-line: none; color: rgb(92, 0, 216);" =
id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8778">Higgs Boson</a>, physicists hoped re=
search at the LHC would quickly yield evidence of supersymmetry, a sort of =
supplement to the Standard Model that predicts an array of new, heavier par=
ticles that correspond to the known ones =E2=80=94 but no luck yet.</div><d=
iv style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(85, 85, 85); margin-bottom: =
1.875rem; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 2.1875rem;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_=
1528154211156_8779">Ditto for the search for&nbsp;<a href=3D"https://www.nb=
cnews.com/mach/science/what-dark-matter-ncna871991" style=3D"box-sizing: bo=
rder-box; text-decoration-line: none; color: rgb(92, 0, 216);" id=3D"yui_3_=
16_0_1_1528154211156_8780">dark matter</a>&nbsp;particles being conducted a=
t facilities including the Sanford Underground Research Facility in South D=
akota and the Gran Sasso lab in central Italy. No dark matter particles hav=
e yet been found.</div><div style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(85,=
 85, 85); margin-bottom: 1.875rem; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 2.1875=
rem;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8781">And if string theory so far ha=
s resisted experimental verification, the so-called&nbsp;<a href=3D"https:/=
/www.nbcnews.com/mach/science/what-multiverse-ncna876136" style=3D"box-sizi=
ng: border-box; text-decoration-line: none; color: rgb(92, 0, 216);" id=3D"=
yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8782">multiverse</a>&nbsp;=E2=80=94 the idea tha=
t our universe is but one of many and perhaps an infinite number of univers=
es =E2=80=94 seems to some scientists more like science fiction than a desc=
ription of reality.</div><div style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; margin-botto=
m: 3rem;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8783"><div data-enigma=3D"true" =
data-slot=3D"boxinline" data-sizes=3D"[[[1000,1],[]],[[758,1],[[300,250],[7=
00,50],[5,5],[728,90],[360,360]]],[[0,0],[[300,250],[700,50],[5,5],[360,360=
]]]]" data-render-on-view=3D"true" data-targeting=3D"{&quot;noads&quot;:&qu=
ot;&quot;}" style=3D"box-sizing: border-box;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211=
156_8784"><div style=3D"box-sizing: border-box;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154=
211156_8785"></div></div></div><div style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; color:=
 rgb(85, 85, 85); margin-bottom: 1.875rem; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height=
: 2.1875rem;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8786">"What does it mean for=
 something to exist if you can't observe it?" asks Sabine Hossenfelder, a p=
hysicist at the Frankfurt Institute for Advanced Studies in Germany. "I thi=
nk that's a discussion that belongs safely in the realm of philosophy," she=
 adds. "People can believe in the multiverse all they want =E2=80=94 but it=
's not science."</div><h3 style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 2rem;=
 clear: both; font-family: FoundersGroteskCond-SmBd, Helvetica, Arial, sans=
-serif; line-height: 2.1875rem; font-weight: 400; text-transform: uppercase=
;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8787">SEDUCED BY MATH?</h3><div style=
=3D"box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(85, 85, 85); margin-bottom: 1.875rem=
; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 2.1875rem;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_15281542=
11156_8788">In a new book entitled "Lost in Math: How Beauty Leads Physics =
Astray," Hossenfelder argues that many physicists working today have been l=
ed astray by mathematics =E2=80=94 seduced by equations that might be "beau=
tiful" or "elegant" but which lack obvious connection to the real world.</d=
iv><div style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(85, 85, 85); margin-bot=
tom: 1.875rem; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 2.1875rem;" id=3D"yui_3_16=
_0_1_1528154211156_8789">"I can't believe what this once-venerable professi=
on has become," she writes. "Theoretical physicists used to explain what wa=
s observed. Now they try to explain why they can't explain what was not obs=
erved. And they're not even good at that."</div><div style=3D"box-sizing: b=
order-box; color: rgb(85, 85, 85); margin-bottom: 1.875rem; font-size: 1.12=
5rem; line-height: 2.1875rem;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8790">Galil=
eo was the first scientist to detail the link between mathematics and the p=
hysical world, and indeed all of today's successful physical theories are e=
xpressed mathematically. But there are also examples of great thinkers bein=
g led astray by math.</div><figure style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; margin:=
 1.25rem 0 2.5rem; width: calc(100% + 80px);" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211=
156_8791"><picture style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 0px; display=
: block; width: calc(100% - 80px); margin-left: 40px; float: left;" id=3D"y=
ui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8792"><source srcset=3D"https://media2.s-nbcnews.=
com/j/newscms/2018_22/2451831/180601-kepler-model-planets-mn-1540_7c291a781=
11c256c3389f14d4b929ac7.fit-560w.jpg" media=3D"(min-width: 1000px)" style=
=3D"box-sizing: border-box;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8793"><img sr=
c=3D"https://media2.s-nbcnews.com/j/newscms/2018_22/2451831/180601-kepler-m=
odel-planets-mn-1540_7c291a78111c256c3389f14d4b929ac7.fit-760w.jpg" alt=3D"=
Diagram of planetary spheres, illustration taken from Johannes Keplers Myst=
erium Cosmographicum, 1596" style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; border-width: =
0px; border-style: initial; width: 560px;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156=
_8794" data-id=3D"4a52d3b5-d493-c395-7afc-68186502c93f" class=3D""></pictur=
e><figcaption style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; position: relative; width: c=
alc(100% - 80px); float: left; margin-left: 40px; font-family: PublicoText,=
 Georgia, TimesNewRoman, &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, Times, Baskerville, s=
erif; font-size: 0.875rem; line-height: 1.5; margin-top: 1rem;" id=3D"yui_3=
_16_0_1_1528154211156_8795"><span style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; margin-r=
ight: 0.75rem;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8796">Diagram of the plane=
tary spheres from Johannes Kepler's Mysterium Cosmographicum, 1596.</span><=
span style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; display: inline-block; font-family: F=
oundersGroteskMono, Menlo, Monaco, monospace; font-size: 0.75rem; color: rg=
b(85, 85, 85); letter-spacing: -0.04em; word-spacing: -0.1em;" id=3D"yui_3_=
16_0_1_1528154211156_8797">De Agostini Picture Library / Getty Images</span=
></figcaption></figure><div style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(85,=
 85, 85); margin-bottom: 1.875rem; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 2.1875=
rem;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8798">In the 17th century, for examp=
le, German astronomer Johannes Kepler developed an elaborate theory that de=
scribed the orbits of the planets in terms of the five "<a href=3D"http://m=
athworld.wolfram.com/PlatonicSolid.html" style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; t=
ext-decoration-line: none; color: rgb(92, 0, 216);" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528=
154211156_8799">Platonic solids</a>" of Euclidian geometry. His hypothesis =
was certainly elegant, but it was also wrong.</div><h3 style=3D"box-sizing:=
 border-box; font-size: 2rem; clear: both; font-family: FoundersGroteskCond=
-SmBd, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 2.1875rem; font-weight: 4=
00; text-transform: uppercase;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8800">IN S=
EARCH OF SIMPLICITY</h3><div style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(85=
, 85, 85); margin-bottom: 1.875rem; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 2.187=
5rem;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8801">Physicists have often sought =
mathematical elegance in their theories; at the same time, they've been dra=
wn by the closely related idea of simplicity (or economy, as it's sometimes=
 called). Some justify this attraction to aesthetics with references to "<a=
 href=3D"https://www.britannica.com/topic/Occams-razor" style=3D"box-sizing=
: border-box; text-decoration-line: none; color: rgb(92, 0, 216);" id=3D"yu=
i_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8802">Occam's razor</a>," a dictum that holds that=
 when choosing between competing theories the simpler one is usually correc=
t.</div><div style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; margin-bottom: 3rem;" id=3D"y=
ui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8803"><div data-enigma=3D"true" data-slot=3D"boxi=
nline" data-sizes=3D"[[[1000,1],[]],[[758,1],[[300,250],[700,50],[5,5],[728=
,90],[360,360]]],[[0,0],[[300,250],[700,50],[5,5],[360,360]]]]" data-render=
-on-view=3D"true" data-targeting=3D"{&quot;noads&quot;:&quot;&quot;}" style=
=3D"box-sizing: border-box;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8804"><div st=
yle=3D"box-sizing: border-box;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8805"></di=
v></div></div><div style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(85, 85, 85);=
 margin-bottom: 1.875rem; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 2.1875rem;" id=
=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8806">"We hope the laws that we find will be=
 beautiful," says Frank Wilczek, an MIT physicist who won the Nobel Prize f=
or his work on the strong nuclear force in 2004. "We hope that they'll exhi=
bit symmetry, and that they will explain a lot of things in terms of a few =
hypotheses =E2=80=94 so that you get more out than you put in."</div><div s=
tyle=3D"box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(85, 85, 85); margin-bottom: 1.87=
5rem; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 2.1875rem;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528=
154211156_8807">But Wilczek cautions that there is no guarantee these princ=
iples pay off. Although they have a good track record, he says, "They don't=
 have to work."</div><div style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(85, 8=
5, 85); margin-bottom: 1.875rem; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 2.1875re=
m;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8808">Wilczek agrees that physics in r=
ecent years has seemed lackluster, but he says that's partly because we wer=
e "so spectacularly successful earlier on, in the '70s and '80s =E2=80=94 w=
hich led to such good models of the world that it's been very, very difficu=
lt to improve on them."</div><div style=3D"box-sizing: border-box; color: r=
gb(85, 85, 85); margin-bottom: 1.875rem; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: =
2.1875rem;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8809">As for supersymmetry and=
 the dark matter particle, he says it's too soon to bury either idea. "Some=
times," he says, "you have to be patient."</div><div style=3D"box-sizing: b=
order-box; margin-bottom: 3rem;" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8810"><di=
v data-enigma=3D"true" data-slot=3D"boxinline" data-sizes=3D"[[[1000,1],[]]=
,[[758,1],[[300,250],[700,50],[5,5],[728,90],[360,360]]],[[0,0],[[300,250],=
[700,50],[5,5],[360,360]]]]" data-render-on-view=3D"true" data-targeting=3D=
"{&quot;noads&quot;:&quot;&quot;}" style=3D"box-sizing: border-box;" id=3D"=
yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8811"><div style=3D"box-sizing: border-box;" id=
=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_1528154211156_8812"></div></div></div><div style=3D"box-si=
zing: border-box; color: rgb(85, 85, 85); margin-bottom: 1.875rem; font-siz=
e: 1.125rem; line-height: 2.1875rem;" dir=3D"ltr" id=3D"yui_3_16_0_1_152815=
4211156_8813">Turok, too, remains optimistic that a new era of physics may =
be just around the corner =E2=80=94 one that might produce bold new ideas o=
n the scale of quantum theory and relativity. "What we need is for probably=
 some young person to come forward and say, 'Aha, this is the way it all fi=
ts together.'"</div></div></div></article></div></div></body></html>
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