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What is Reality?

2009-10-29 21:06:08.302459+00 by petronius 4 comments

From the New Scientist: "Seven questions that keep physicists up all night". What is interesting is that many of the basic mysteries of physics when I was in college in the late 60s-early 70s have been far surpassed by the meaty mysteries of today. We discovered that the universe is way stranger than we thought when the Uncertainty Principle was the prime question. We even have a scientific blood feud going on between the stringologists and those who think stringology is sheer nonsense. Cool!

[ related topics: Cool Science Invention and Design Education Flying Spaghetti Monster ]

comments in ascending chronological order (reverse):

#Comment Re: made: 2009-10-29 21:13:30.466568+00 by: Dan Lyke

Do the stringologists have tables set up on the streets offering free personality tests?

#Comment Re: made: 2009-10-29 22:16:57.523529+00 by: jeff [edit history]

Possibly not in much of Europe, but definitely in America.

#Comment Re: made: 2009-10-30 20:34:46.97946+00 by: petronius

These blood feuds are always interesting. Sometimes it comes down to one guy pushing a viewpoint but he has enough clout to keep it going. This is a good part of the Margaret Mead Hoax controversy, which has generated much heat but little light. Jeff's point about Europe in also interesting. I understand that the continental drift theory was far more popular in Europe than in the US, until incontrovertible proof for it was discovered.

I don't think stringologist offer personality tests, but there are some who claim they do maintain blacklists of non-believers.

#Comment Re: made: 2009-10-30 23:22:58.295615+00 by: Dan Lyke

And, because someone's gotta say it, this is how you use Reality™. Be sure to use Reality™ each and every time you have sex.