vol 3: Development
chapter 3: Physics
page 8: Energy
Site map
Directory
Search this site
Home
1: About
2: Synopsis
3: Development
Next: page 9: Fixed points
Previous: page 7: Entanglement
This site is part of the natural religion project The natural religion project A new theology A commentary on the Summa The theology company
Energy
Introduction
We are working here to combine two ancient ideas: first, that God is pure act, utterly unlike this world (theism); and second, that this world of our experience is itself God (pantheism). Monotheism - Wikipedia, Pantheism - Wikipedia.
The classical monotheist God is eternal, existing all at once outside time. Aquinas 47 The universe, on the other hand, clearly has both spatial extension, a history and a future. If we are maintain that the universe is divine, we must show that space, change and time are logically connected in a consistent model of God.
We are modelling the universe as a communication network whose active ingredients are computers. A computer proceeds by executing a series of operations one after another, rather like walking. Davis, Recursion theory - Wikipedia
Aquinas defines God as pure act and derives all the classical properties of God from this definition. Aquinas 14 Here we measure act by the quantum of action and assume that both the world comprises aleph(0) quanta of action. Action (physics) - Wikipedia
Both networks and computers are layered. The atomic logical operations of a computer are present in every process executed by the machine. Tanenbaum These operations are executed billions of times per second and are invisible to the user.
Here we are interested in the origin of energy, the source of movement and life. The classical God, as well as being eternal, is a living God. Aquinas reconciles these two divine attributes with the idea of 'immanent action'. Aquinas 113
The 'standard model'
Over the past few centuries physicists, mathematicians and astronomers have constructed a picture of the universe known as the standard model. Standard model - Wikipedia, Weinberg The standard model is built from general relativity, which describes the large scale structure of the universe, and quantum field theory, which describes microscopic systems. Hobson, Peacock, Zee
In quantum field theory, a particle exists when a state of the field representing it is excited, that is, has energy. It ceases to exist when this energy goes elsewhere. Creation and annihilation thus correspond to a possible state obtaining and losing energy. This idea is quite general. I am a particle. I need energy to live, and my basic life task is to collect that energy from my environment. When my energy goes, I go. Quantum field theory describes birth and death at all scales.
Quantum field theory assumes the existence of energy and tells us how this energy is distributed among the various possible structures of the world. We work here on the assumption that the network model can go deeper, explaining the origin of energy. Ultimately, it seems, energy is needed to enable the universe to be consistently both one and many.
The initial state
From a physical point of view, space-time is the stage in which the game of existence is played. Intuitively space is something that remains the same (like the playing field) while other things move around on it (the players). Space addresses the positions of the players while time addresses their motions.
This intuition is good as far as it goes, but we may imagine that there was a stage in the history of the universe when it had not yet differentiated into space-time and particles. A first step toward creating the present universe is to explain how space-time came to be in the initial singularity. Initial singularity
Let us say that the initial singularity is zero dimensional system with but one state having probability 1 (since it exists). In logical terms, we imagine the initial singularity as an embodiment of the identity operation, which is equivalent to no operation, nop. We see it as the root of a dynamical tree which grows within it.
Dynamics
Dynamics can only have meaning in a space of two or more states. Things cannot move if they have nowhere to go. We thus guess that space, time and motion come into existence at the same time: they are logically connected.
We associate energy with both space and motion. The energy of motion is kinetic energy; the energy of space is potential energy. It is universally observed that energy is conserved, that is in a closed system the sum of potential and kinetic energy remains constant.
General relativity suggests that the total energy of the universe, like the energy of the initial singularity, may be zero. Feynman All the kinetic energy (which includes mass energy) that we see in the universe may be exactly equivalent to the potential energy of the space that has grown out of the initial singularity.
Let us guess that the logical operation corresponding to time it not. We represent this quantum mechanically with the Pauli X operator operating on a qubit:
From the Einstein relation E = hf, we see that the frequency of the X operation is a function of its energy. Taken in itself, this operator gives no direction to time, but merely 'ticks'. The X operator itself we take to be a potential whose kinetic effect is to swap the basis vectors of the qubit.
As it is written, the frequency of this operation is arbitrary, and we may assume that the potential energy represented by the operator is exactly balanced by the kinetic energy of the operation.
Why does this clock tick? Because it can? From this point of view the very existence of two states implies that the system will oscillate between them, in the same way that the existence of oscillation implies the existence of more than one state.
Possibility or potential is an active ingredient in process. We assume that a process will occur if there are no inhibitions. Here lies a key difference between modern physics and Aristotelian ideas. Aristotle defines potential to be passive, ultimately requiring to be actualized by the first unmoved mover.
Natural science sees the universe as pure act, perpetual motion, and analyzes act into kinetic and potential energy which are must both be counted to see the conservation of energy.
Space and time
What makes the universe go from one state to two? Our answer is that if the hypotheses of Cantor's theorem are realized, it would be formally inconsistent for it not to do do. We may see this theorem as the formal model of a complexifying force which we might call the Cantor force. Complexification We return to this question on the next page. page 9 Fixed points
We may think of this two state system as the ticker of a clock without the accompanying counter. Let us imagine that a cycle of the clock represents a quantum of action. In an ordinary clock the counter gives a name to each tick by mapping it onto the natural line. This structure will come later when the universe acquires memory. This line can be constructed by a computer (a 'Peano machine') that simply adds 1 to its history at each cycle.
Energy and probability
The conservation of energy tells us that as energy is shared between more and more processes, the energy available for each process is reduced, so that its frequency is reduced. Conservation of energy - Wikipedia In the physical layer, where processes are few and simple, they are also fast. At higher levels, where processes are more complex and various, things move more slowly.
Quantum mechanics makes statistical predictions which are related to the energy of the predicted outcome. The probability of observing a given state is proportional to the energy associated with that state. Expectation value (quantum mechanics) - Wikipedia This idea implies that the probability of observing a state with no energy is zero. We might say that that state does not exist.
Max Planck founded quantum mechanics in 1901 with his discovery of the radiation law and the quantum of action. Planck's law - Wikipedia One consequence Planck's work was the discovery of zero point energy, the minimum energy available to a quantum state. Zero-point energy - Wikipedia. In 1913 Einstein and Stern, studying the specific heat of hydrogen at low temperatures concluded that 'the existence of a zero point energy of size h bar nu / 2 is probable.' Einstein & Stern, Kuhn
The possession of this zero point energy is thus the minimum qualification for existence in the quantum world, that is the minimum energy required for a state to be communicable or observable, ie to be able to exhibit its own existence.
(revised 20 November 2008)
Further reading
Books
| Aquinas, Thomas, Summa Theologica (translated by Fathers of the English Dominican Province), Tabor Publishing 1981 'Brother Thomas raised new problems in his teaching, invented a new method, used new systems of proof. To hear him teach a new doctrine, with new arguments, one could not doubt that God, by the irradiation of this new light and by the novelty of this inspiration, gave him the power to teach, by the spoken and written word, new opinions and new knowledge.' (William of Tocco, T's first biographer) Amazon back |
| Davis, Martin, Computability and Unsolvability, Dover 1982 Preface: 'This book is an introduction to the theory of computability and non-computability ususally referred to as the theory of recursive functions. The subject is concerned with the existence of purely mechanical procedures for solving problems. ... The existence of absolutely unsolvable problems and the Goedel incompleteness theorem are among the results in the theory of computability that have philosophical significance.' Amazon back |
| de Witt, Bryce S and Neill Graham (eds) , and Hugh Everett III, J A Wheeler, B S DeWitt, L N Cooper, D van Vechten, N Graham (contributors), The Many-Worlds Interpretation of Quantum Mechanics, Princeton UP 1973 Jacket: 'A novel interpretation of quantum mechanics, first proposed in brief form by Hugh Everett in 1957, forms the nucleus around which this book is developed. The volume contains Dr Everett's short paper from 1957, "'Relative State' Formulation of Quantum Mechanics", and a far longer exposition of his interpretation, entitled "The Theory of the Universal Wave Function", never before published. In addition, other papers by De Witt, Graham and Cooper and van Vechtem provide further dicussion of the same theme. Together they constitute virtually the entire world output of scholarly commentary on the Everett interpretation.' Amazon back |
| Elkana, Yehuda, The Discovery of the Conservation of Energy, Hutchinson Educational 1974 Jacket: 'This book chronicles historically and in a philosophical context the discovery and gradual develoment of the concept of energy ... Metaphysical beliefs in the principle of 'conservation of something' in nature resulted finally in the statement of the physical laws of the conservaiton of energy in the work of Hermann von Helmholtz.' Amazon back |
| Everett III, Hugh, and Bryce S Dewitt, Neill Graham (editors), The Many Worlds Interpretation of Quantum Mechanics, Princeton University Press 1973 Jacket: 'A novel interpretation of quantum mechanics, first proposed in brief form by Hugh Everett in 1957, forms the nucleus around which this book has developed. The volume contains Dr Everett's short paper from 1957, "'Relativge State' formulation of quantum mechanics" and a far longer exposition of his interpretation entitled "The Theory of the Universal Wave Function" never before published. In addition other papers by Wheeler, DeWitt, Graham, Cooper and van Vechten provide further discussion of the same theme. Together they constitute virtually the entire world output of scholarly commentary on the Everett interpretation.' Amazon back |
| Feynman, Richard, Feynman Lectures on Gravitation, Westview Press 2002 Amazon Editorial Reviews Book Description 'The Feynman Lectures on Gravitation are based on notes prepared during a course on gravitational physics that Richard Feynman taught at Caltech during the 1962-63 academic year. For several years prior to these lectures, Feynman thought long and hard about the fundamental problems in gravitational physics, yet he published very little. These lectures represent a useful record of his viewpoints and some of his insights into gravity and its application to cosmology, superstars, wormholes, and gravitational waves at that particular time. The lectures also contain a number of fascinating digressions and asides on the foundations of physics and other issues. Characteristically, Feynman took an untraditional non-geometric approach to gravitation and general relativity based on the underlying quantum aspects of gravity. Hence, these lectures contain a unique pedagogical account of the development of Einstein's general theory of relativity as the inevitable result of the demand for a self-consistent theory of a massless spin-2 field (the graviton) coupled to the energy-momentum tensor of matter. This approach also demonstrates the intimate and fundamental connection between gauge invariance and the principle of equivalence.' Amazon back |
| Gamow, George, and Roger Penrose (Designer), Mr Tomkins in Paperback, Cambridge University Press 1993 Amazon customer review: 'This is one of the best introductions to the concepts of relativity and quantum theory I have ever read. Not only does it have an excellent nonmathmatical and easy to understand description of these areas of modern physics, but it has an interesting and funny story to move it along. It also includes a more technical description for those who are up to it (even the technical description is nothing too difficult, and also nonmathmatical, it can be skipped)' Edward Wendt III Amazon back |
| Hobson, M P, and G. P. Efstathiou, A. N. Lasenby, General Relativity: An Introduction for Physicists, Cambridge University Press 2006 Amazon Editorial Reviews Book Description 'After reviewing the basic concept of general relativity, this introduction discusses its mathematical background, including the necessary tools of tensor calculus and differential geometry. These tools are used to develop the topic of special relativity and to discuss electromagnetism in Minkowski spacetime. Gravitation as spacetime curvature is introduced and the field equations of general relativity derived. After applying the theory to a wide range of physical situations, the book concludes with a brief discussion of classical field theory and the derivation of general relativity from a variational principle.' Amazon back |
| Kuhn, Thomas S, Black-Body Theory and the Quantum Discontinuity 1894-1912, University of Chicago Press 1987 Jacket: '[This book] traces the emergence of discontinuous physics during the early years of this century. Breaking with historiographic tradition, Kuhn maintains that, though clearly due to Max Planck, the concept of discontinuous energy change does not originate in his work. Instead it was introduced by physicists trying to understand the success of his brilliant new theory of black-body radiation.' Amazon back |
| Lonergan, Bernard J F, Insight : A Study of Human Understanding (Collected Works of Bernard Lonergan : Volume 3), University of Toronto Press 1992 '... Bernard Lonergan's masterwork. Its aim is nothing less than insight into insight itself, an understanding of understanding' Amazon back |
| Pais, Abraham, 'Subtle is the Lord...': The Science and Life of Albert Einstein, Oxford UP 1982 Jacket: In this ... major work Abraham Pais, himself an eminent physicist who worked alongside Einstein in the post-war years, traces the development of Einstein's entire ouvre. ... Running through the book is a completely non-scientific biography ... including many letters which appear in English for the first time, as well as other information not published before.' Amazon back |
| Peacock, John A, Cosmological Physics, Cambridge University Press 1999 Nature Book Review: 'The intermingling of observational detail and fundamental theory has made cosmology an exceptionally rich, exciting and controversial science. Students in the field -- whether observers or particle theorists -- are expected to be acquainted with matters ranging from the Supernova Ia distance scale, Big Bang nucleosynthesis theory, scale-free quantum fluctuations during inflation, the galaxy two-point correlation function, particle theory candidates for the dark matter, and the star formation history of the Universe. Several general science books, conference proceedings and specialized monographs have addressed these issues. Peacock's Cosmological Physics ambitiously fills the void for introducing students with a strong undergraduate background in physics to the entire world of current physical cosmology. The majestic sweep of his discussion of this vast terrain is awesome, and is bound to capture the imagination of most students.' Ray Carlberg, Nature 399:322 Amazon back |
| Smil, Vaclav, Energy at the Crossroads: Global Perspectives and Uncertainties, MIT Press 2003 Amazon Book Description: 'In Energy at the Crossroads Vaclav Smil considers the twenty-first century's crucial question: how to reconcile the modern world's unceasing demand for energy with the absolute necessity to preserve the integrity of the biosphere. With this book he offers a comprehensive, accessible guide to today's complex energy issues -- how to think clearly and logically about what is possible and what is desirable in our energy future. After a century of unprecedented production growth, technical innovation, and expanded consumption, the world faces a number of critical energy challenges arising from unequal resource distribution, changing demand patterns, and environmental limitations. The fundamental message of Energy at the Crossroads is that our dependence on fossil fuels must be reduced not because of any imminent resource shortages but because the widespread burning of oil, coal, and natural gas damages the biosphere and presents increasing economic and security problems as the world relies on more expensive supplies and Middle Eastern crude oil. Smil begins with an overview of the twentieth century's long-term trends and achievements in energy production. He then discusses energy prices, the real cost of energy, and "energy linkages" -- the effect energy issues have on the economy, on quality of life, on the environment, and in wartime. He discusses the pitfalls of forecasting, giving many examples of failed predictions and showing that unexpected events can disprove complex models. And he examines the pros and cons not only of fossil fuels but also of alternative fuels such as hydroenergy, biomass energy, wind power, and solar power. Finally, he considers the future, focusing on what really matters, what works, what is realistic, and which outcomes are most desirable.' Amazon back |
| Smolin, Lee, The Life of the Cosmos, Oxford University Pres 1997 Jacket: 'Smolin posits that a process of self-organisation like that of biological evolution shapes the universe, as it developes and eventually reproduces through black holes, each of which may result in a big bang and a new universe. Natural selection may guide the appearance of the laws of physics, favouring those universes which best reproduce. ... Smolin is one of the leading cosmologists at work today, and he writes with an expertise and a force of argument that will command attention throughout the world of physics.' Amazon back |
| Tanenbaum, Andrew S, Computer Networks, Prenctice Hall International 1996 Preface: 'The key to designing a computer network was first enunciated by Julius Caesar: Divide and Conquer. The idea is to design a network as a sequence of layers, or abstract machines, each one based upon the previous one. ... This book uses a model in which networks are divided into seven layers. The structure of the book follows the structure of the model to a considerable extent.' Amazon back |
| Weinberg, Steven, Cosmology, Oxford University Press, USA 2008 Amazon book description: 'This book is unique in the detailed, self-contained, and comprehensive treatment that it gives to the ideas and formulas that are used and tested in modern cosmological research. It divides into two parts, each of which provides enough material for a one-semester graduate course. The first part deals chiefly with the isotropic and homogeneous average universe; the second part concentrates on the departures from the average universe. Throughout the book the author presents detailed analytic calculations of cosmological phenomena, rather than just report results obtained elsewhere by numerical computation. The book is up to date, and gives detailed accounts of topics such as recombination, microwave background polarization, leptogenesis, gravitational lensing, structure formation, and multifield inflation, that are usually treated superficially if at all in treatises on cosmology. Copious references to current research literature are supplied. Appendices include a brief introduction to general relativity, and a detailed derivation of the Boltzmann equation for photons and neutrinos used in calculations of cosmological evolution. Also provided is an assortment of problems.' Amazon back |
| Zee, Anthony, Quantum Field Theory in a Nutshell, Princeton University Press 2003 Amazon book description: 'An esteemed researcher and acclaimed popular author takes up the challenge of providing a clear, relatively brief, and fully up-to-date introduction to one of the most vital but notoriously difficult subjects in theoretical physics. A quantum field theory text for the twenty-first century, this book makes the essential tool of modern theoretical physics available to any student who has completed a course on quantum mechanics and is eager to go on. Quantum field theory was invented to deal simultaneously with special relativity and quantum mechanics, the two greatest discoveries of early twentieth-century physics, but it has become increasingly important to many areas of physics. These days, physicists turn to quantum field theory to describe a multitude of phenomena. Stressing critical ideas and insights, Zee uses numerous examples to lead students to a true conceptual understanding of quantum field theory--what it means and what it can do. He covers an unusually diverse range of topics, including various contemporary developments,while guiding readers through thoughtfully designed problems. In contrast to previous texts, Zee incorporates gravity from the outset and discusses the innovative use of quantum field theory in modern condensed matter theory. Without a solid understanding of quantum field theory, no student can claim to have mastered contemporary theoretical physics. Offering a remarkably accessible conceptual introduction, this text will be widely welcomed and used. Amazon back |
Papers
| Chyba, Christopher E, "Energy for microbial life on Europa", Nature, 403, 6768, 27 January 2000, page 381-2. 'A radiation driven ecosystem on Jupiter's moon is not beyond the bounds of possibility'. back |
| Einstein, Albert, Otto Stern, "Einige Argumente für die Annahme einer molekularen Agitation beim absoluten Nullpunkt (p 551-560)", Annalen der Physik, 345, 3, 1913, page 551-560. back |
| Guegan, J F, S Lek. T Oberdoff, "Energy availability and habitat heterogeneity predict global riverine fish diversity", Nature, 391, , 22 January 1998, page 382. back |
| H, Timothy, Boyer, "The Classical Vacuum", Scientific American Magazine, 253, 5, August, 1985, page 70-78. 'Aristotle and his followers believed no region of space could be totally empty: This notion that "nature abhors a vacuum" was rejected in the scientific revolution of the 17th century; ironically, though, modern physics has come to hold a similar view. Today there is no doubt that a region of space can be emptied of ordinary matter, at least in principle. In the modern view, however, a region of vacuum is far from being empty or featureless. It has a complex structure, which cannot be eliminated by any conceivable means.'. back |
| Planck, Max, "On the Law of Distribution of Energy in the Normal Spectrum", Annalen der Physik, 4, , 1901, page 553-. 'Moreover, it is necessary to interpret ... [the total energy of blackbody radiation] not as a continuous infinitely divisible quantity, but as a discrete quantity composed of an integral number of finite equal parts.' . back |
Links
| Action (physics) - Wikipedia Action (physics) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia 'In physics, the action is a particular quantity in a physical system that can be used to describe its operation in an alternative manner to the usual differential equation approach. The action is not necessarily the same for different types of system. The contemporary action approach for physical systems yields the same results as those found using differential equations to describe the system, but only requires the states of the physical variable to be specified at two points, called the initial and final states. The values of the physical variable at all intermediate points may then be determined by 'minimizing' the action.' back |
| Aquinas 113 Summa I, 18, 3: Is life properly attributed to God? Life is in the highest degree properly in God. In proof of which it must be considered that since a thing is said to live in so far as it operates of itself and not as moved by another, the more perfectly this power is found in anything, the more perfect is the life of that thing. ... back |
| Aquinas 14 Summa: I 3 1: Is God a body? 'I answer that, It is absolutely true that God is not a body; and this can be shown in three ways. First, because no body is in motion unless it be put in motion, as is evident from induction. Now it has been already proved (2, 3), that God is the First Mover, and is Himself unmoved. Therefore it is clear that God is not a body. ...' back |
| Aquinas 47 Summa I, 10, 3: Does it belong to god to be eternal? 'I answer that, Eternity truly and properly so called is in God alone, because eternity follows on immutability; as appears from the first article. But God alone is altogether immutable, as was shown above (9, 1). Accordingly, however, as some receive immutability from Him, they share in His eternity. ... ' back |
| Completeness - Wikipedia Completeness - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia 'In general, an object is complete if nothing needs to be added to it. This notion is made more specific in various fields.' back |
| Conservation of energy - Wikipedia Conservation of energy - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia ' In physics, the conservation of energy' states that the total amount of energy in any isolated system remains constant but cannot be recreated, although it may change forms, e.g. friction turns kinetic energy into thermal energy. In thermodynamics, the first law of thermodynamics is a statement of the conservation of energy for thermodynamic systems, and is the more encompassing version of the conservation of energy. In short, the law of conservation of energy states that energy can not be created or destroyed, it can only be changed from one form to another.' back |
| Expectation value (quantum mechanics) - Wikipedia Expectation value (quantum mechanics) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia 'In quantum mechanics, the expectation value is the predicted mean value of the result of an experiment. It is a fundamental concept in all areas of quantum physics.' back |
| Gödel's incompleteness theorems - Wikipedia Gödel's incompleteness theorems - Wikipedia 'In mathematical logic, Gödel's incompleteness theorems, proved by Kurt Gödel in 1931, are two theorems stating inherent limitations of all but the most trivial formal systems for arithmetic of mathematical interest. The theorems are also of considerable importance to the philosophy of mathematics. They are widely regarded as showing that Hilbert's program to find a complete and consistent set of axioms for all of mathematics is impossible, thus giving a negative answer to Hilbert's second problem. Authors such as J. R. Lucas have argued that the theorems have implications in wider areas of philosophy and even cognitive science as well as preventing any complete Theory of Everything from being found in physics, but these claims are less generally accepted.' back |
| Monotheism - Wikipedia Monotheism - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia 'In theology, monotheism (from Greek [monos] 'one' and [theos] 'god') is the belief in the existence of one deity, or in the oneness of God.[1] In a Western context, the concept of "monotheism" tends to be dominated by the concept of the god of the Abrahamic religions and the Platonic concept of God as put forward by Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite. back |
| Pantheism - Wikipedia Pantheism - Wikipedia 'Pantheism is the view that everything is of an all-encompassing immanent abstract God; or that the Universe, or nature, and God are equivalent' back |
| Planck scale - Wikipedia Planck scale - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia In particle physics and physical cosmology, the Planck scale is an energy scale around GeV (corresponding to the Planck mass) at which quantum effects of gravity become strong. At this scale, the description of sub-atomic particle interactions in terms of quantum field theory breaks down (due to the non-renormalizability of gravity). That is; although physicists have a fairly good understanding of the other fundamental interactions or forces on the quantum level, gravity is problematic, and cannot be integrated with quantum mechanics (at high energies) using the usual framework of quantum field theory. . . . ' back |
| Planck's law - Wikipedia Planck's law - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia 'In physics, Planck's law describes the spectral radiance of electromagnetic radiation at all wavelengths from a black body at temperature T. As a function of frequency . . . .' back |
| Quantum superposition - Wikipedia Quantum superposition - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia 'Quantum superposition is the application of the superposition principle to quantum mechanics. The superposition principle is the addition of the amplitudes of waves from interference. In quantum mechanics it is the sum of wavefunction amplitudes, or state vectors. It occurs when an object simultaneously "possesses" two or more possible values for an observable quantity (e.g. the position or energy of a particle)' back |
| Recursion theory - Wikipedia Recursion theory - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia 'Recursion theory, also called computability theory, is a branch of mathematical logic that originated in the 1930s with the study of computable functions and Turing degrees. The field has grown to include the study of generalized computability and definability. In these areas, recursion theory overlaps with proof theory and effective descriptive set theory.' back |
| Standard model - Wikipedia Standard model - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia 'The Standard Model of particle physics is a theory that describes three of the four known fundamental interactions between the elementary particles that make up all matter. It is a quantum field theory developed between 1970 and 1973 which is consistent with both quantum mechanics and special relativity. To date, almost all experimental tests of the three forces described by the Standard Model have agreed with its predictions. However, the Standard Model falls short of being a complete theory of fundamental interactions, primarily because of its lack of inclusion of gravity, the fourth known fundamental interaction, but also because of the large number of numerical parameters (such as masses and coupling constants) that must be put "by hand" into the theory (rather than being derived from first principles) . . . ' back |
| Universal wavefunction - Wikipedia Universal wavefunction - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia 'The Universal Wavefunction is a term introduced by Hugh Everett in his Princeton PhD Thesis, entitled The Theory of the Universal Wavefunction and forms a core concept in the relative state interpretation or many-worlds interpretation of quantum mechanics. However, it has also received more recent investigation from James Hartle and Stephen Hawking[6] in which they derive a specific solution to the Wheeler-deWitt equation to explain the initial conditions of the Big Bang cosmology. The thesis introduction reads: Since the universal validity of the state function description is asserted, one can regard the state functions themselves as the fundamental entities, and one can even consider the state function of the entire universe. In this sense this theory can be called the theory of the 'universal wavefunction', since all of physics is presumed to follow from this function alone..' back |
| Zero-point energy - Wikipedia Zero-point energy - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia 'In physics, the zero-point energy is the lowest possible energy that a quantum mechanical physical system may possess and is the energy of the ground state of the system. The concept was first proposed by Albert Einstein and Otto Stern in 1913. The term "zero-point energy" is a translation of the German Nullpunktsenergie. All quantum mechanical systems have a zero point energy. The term arises commonly in reference to the ground state of the quantum harmonic oscillator and its null oscillations. In quantum field theory, it is a synonym for the vacuum energy, an amount of energy associated with the vacuum of empty space. In cosmology, the vacuum energy is taken to be the origin of the cosmological constant. Experimentally, the zero-point energy of the vacuum leads directly to the Casimir effect, and is directly observable in nanoscale devices.' back |
Click on an "Amazon" link in the booklist at the foot of the page to buy the book, see more details or search for similar items
Related sites:
Concordat Watch
Revealing Vatican attempts to propagate its religion by international treaty
Copyright: You may copy this material freely provided only that you quote fairly and provide a link (or reference) to your source.
