Daily Archives: September 27, 2021

Our quirky minds thwart psychologists efforts to find durable theories. But terror-management theory has held up quite well since three psychologists proposed it more than 30 years ago. It holds that fear of death underpins many of our actions and convictions. We cling to our beliefs more tightly when reminded of our mortality, especially if those beliefs connect us to something transcending our puny mortal selves.

Terror-management theory can account for puzzling political trends, such as our attraction to outlandish conspiracies and authoritarian leaders. Last year I invoked the theory to explain why Donald Trumps popularity surged at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Recently I have begun to wonder whether terror-management theory can explain trends in physics, too.

Physicists pride themselves on their rationality, yet they are as prone to existential dread as the rest of us, if not more so. Their investigations force them to confront infinity and eternity in their day jobs, not just in the dead of night. Moreover, physicists equations describe particles pushed and pulled by impersonal forces. There is no place for love, friendship, beauty, justicethe things that make life worth living. From this chilly perspective, the entirety of human existence, let alone an individual life, can seem terrifyingly ephemeral and pointless.

Steven Weinberg, arguably the greatest physicist of the last half-century, urged us to accept the soul-crushing implications of physics, and he rejected attempts to turn it into a substitute for religion. In Dreams of a Final Theory, Weinberg said science cannot replace the consolations that have been offered by religion in facing death. Weinberg, who died in July, was unusually resistant to wishful thinking (except for his thinking about a final theory). Other physicists, I suspect, cling to certain hypotheses precisely because they make mortality more bearable. Below are examples.

There is a whole class of conjectures that, like religion, give us a privileged position in the cosmic scheme of things. Call them we-were-meant-to-be-here theories. They imply that we are not an accidental, incidental part of nature; our existence is somehow necessary. Without us, the universe might not exist. One example is the anthropic principle, which dates back to the 1960s. The anthropic principle suggests that the laws of nature must take the form that we observe because otherwise we would not be here to observe them.

The anthropic principle is a tautology masquerading as a truth, but it has proved remarkably resilient. Stephen Hawking took it seriously, as did Weinberg. A major reason for the endurance of the anthropic principle is the proliferation of multiverse theories, which hold that our universe is just one of many. If you buy multiverses (to which I will return below), the anthropic principle can help explain why we find ourselves in this particular universe with these particular laws.

Quantum mechanics has inspired lots of we-were-meant-to-be-here proposals because it suggests that what we observe depends on how we observe it. Look at an electron this way, it behaves like a particle; that way, it resembles a wave. Physicists, notably Eugene Wigner and John Wheeler, have speculated that consciousness, far from being a mere epiphenomenon of matter, is an essential component of reality. Your individual consciousness might not endure, but consciousness of some kind will last for as long as the universe does. I critique these we-were-meant-to-be-here propositions here and here.

A more subtle source of consolation is what Richard Feynman, in The Character of Physical Law, calls the great conservation principles. According to these laws, certain features of nature remain constant, no matter how much nature changes. The best-known conservation law involves energy. Energy can take many formskinetic, potential, electrical, thermal, gravitational, nuclearand it can change from one form into another. Matter can become energy, and vice versa, as Einstein revealed with his famous equation E = mc2. But if you add up all the kinds of energy at any given instant, that sum remains constant.

Other conservation laws apply to angular momentum and charge. In what way are these laws consoling? Because to be human is to know loss. When we look at the worldand at our own faces in the mirrorwe see the terrible transience of things. What we love will vanish sooner or later. It is reassuring to know that, on some level, things stay the same. According to conservation laws, there are no endings or beginnings, only transformations.

The most consoling conservation law involves information. Physicist Leonard Susskind says conservation of information underpins everything, including classical physics, thermodynamics, quantum mechanics, energy conservation, that physicists have believed for hundreds of years. According to the law, everything that happens leaves its imprint, permanently, on the universe. Eons after you die, after the earth and the sun have vanished, every minute detail of your life will endure in some formsupposedly.

Back to multiverse theories, which stipulate that our universe is just one among multitudes. Physicists have proposed different multiverse theories inspired by quantum mechanics, string theory and inflation, a speculative theory of cosmic creation. What the theories all have in common is a lack of evidenceor even the hope of evidence. So what explains their popularity?

Here is my guess: physicists are freaked out by the mortality of our little universe. What was born must die, and according to the big bang theory, our cosmos was born 14 billion years ago, and it will die at some unspecified time in the far future. The multiverse, like God, is eternal. It had no beginning; it will have no end. If you find that proposition reassuring, perhaps you shouldnt read this critique of multiverse theories.

Determinism, physics-style, assumes that reality is strictly physical. Everything that happens, including our choices, results from physical forces, like gravity pushing and pulling physical objects. Moreover every present moment is associated with a single unique past and a single unique future. I do not like determinism because it subverts free will and makes us more likely to accept that the way things are is the way they must be.

But I can see the upside of determinism. The world often seems disturbingly out of control. We have the sense that at any moment bad things might happen, on scales small and large. A truck might strike you as you cross the street, absent-mindedly brooding over quantum mechanics. A nearby supernova might bathe the earth in lethal radiation. Millions of my fellow citizens might become enthralled by a thuggish buffoon. A mutant virus might suddenly emerge from who knows where and kill millions of people.

We desperately want to believe that beneath the apparent randomness, someone or something is in control. God, for many people, is the tough but fair chief executive running this seemingly chaotic cosmic corporation. It is hard for us to see Her/His/Their plan, but She/He/They surely know what She/He/They are doing.

If you find the God hypothesis implausible, then perhaps an extreme form of determinism, called superdeterminism, might serve as a substitute. Superdeterminism attempts to eliminate several puzzling features of quantum mechanics, including the apparent randomness of quantum events and intrusive role of measurement. Two physicists I admire, Sabine Hossenfelder and Gerard t Hooft, have promoted the theory.

According to superdeterminism, the universe is not careening wildly into an unknowable future. It is gliding serenely, undeviatingly, along a rigid track laid down at the beginning of time. As a free-will fanatic I do not find this perspective comforting, but I understand why others do. If determinism is true, there is nothing you can do to change things, so sit back and enjoy the ride. Everything is as it should beor must be.

The one physics principle that is hard to spin positively is the second law of thermodynamics. It decrees that all the creative energy in the universe will eventually dissipate, becoming useless heat. The marvelous, intricate structures that we see around usstars, planets, cathedrals, oaks, dragonflies, human beingswill vanish. The universe will descend into heat death, a state in which nothing ever happens. Clever physicists have imagined ways in which we can escape this dismal fate, but their proposals do not seem much more plausible than the heaven hypothesis.

I dont find any physics hypotheses very consoling. I wish I did. I have been brooding over death a lot lately because of my advanced age and the precarious state of the world. I have my consolations. I am a writer and father, so I fantasize about people reading my books after Im gone, and I envision my son and daughter living good, fulfilling lives and possibly having children of their own. These wishful visions require civilization to continue, so I persuade myself that civilization, in spite of its manifest flaws, is pretty good and getting better. Thats how I manage my terror.

Further Reading:

I delve into the philosophical and spiritual implications of science in my two most recent books: Pay Attention: Sex, Death, and Science and Mind-Body Problems: Science, Subjectivity and Who We Really Are.

See my podcast Mind-Body Problems and in particular my recent chat with Sabine Hossenfelder: Consolations of Physics.

See also Meta-Post: Posts on Physics, a collection of my columns on physics.

This is an opinion and analysis article; the views expressed by theauthor or authorsare not necessarily those of Scientific American.

See the original post:

Death, Physics and Wishful Thinking - Scientific American

The general theory of relativity, or simply general relativity, has been touted as the biggest scientific breakthrough of the 20th century. Published by Albert Einstein in 1915, the theory changed our understanding of Newtonian gravity as a force between bodies into a warping of the very fabric of space and time - spacetime. But the theory is not entirely foolproof and there are situations, particularly in the world of black holes and quantum physics, where cracks start to appear.

According to the principles of general relativity, black holes ought to be completely inert objects with singularities at their cores where the known laws of physics break down.

Professor Stephen Hawking was the first to put a dent in that model in the early Seventies when he revealed his Hawking radiation theory.

Based on his theoretical calculations, quantum effects near a black hole's event horizon - the point of no return - allow for thermal radiation to escape into space.

The process is also known as "blackbody radiation" and demonstrates, in essence, that black holes are not entirely black.

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Einstein even famously railed against the "topsy turvy" world of quantum physics, believing it was too messy and unprincipled.

Without a way to combine general relativity and quantum mechanics, the Sussex researchers used so-called effective field theory (EFT) to study the black hole singularity.

The theory stipulates gravity at the quantum level is very weak, which allows for some calculations that otherwise fall apart in the face of strong quantum gravity.

Dr Calmet said: "If you consider black holes within only general relativity, one can show that they have a singularity in their centres where the laws of physics as we know them must break down.

"It is hoped that when quantum field theory is incorporated into general relativity, we might be able to find a new description of black holes."

With the aid of EFT, Dr Calmet and his colleague were able to find mathematical evidence of pressure within a black hole.

According to astrophysicist Paul Sutter, this is the same type of pressure hot air exerts on the inside of a balloon.

However, because the model only works with weak quantum gravity, while neglecting strong gravity, it cannot be used to completely explain black hole behaviour.

Dr Calmet added: "Our work is a step in this direction, and although the pressure exerted by the black hole that we were studying is tiny, the fact that it is present opens up multiple new possibilities, spanning the study of astrophysics, particle physics and quantum physics."

Read more:

Black hole breakthrough as Einstein's theory challenged with find: 'Might need a new one' - Daily Express

As a college student I took three courses in physics. What we studied was called Newtonian physics since much of it was based on principles originally described by Sir Isaac Newton.

Another sort of physics, known as quantum physics, has been the focus of a great deal of work by modern physicists. Why start a pastors column with a mention of Newtonian and quantum physics? Certainly not because I am an expert in either one. We can learn something useful from the differences between these two types of physics, however.

Newtonian physics deals primarily with physical objects that can be seen or touched or both. Quantum physics is more concerned with subatomic particles which cannot be directly seen or touched in any ordinary human fashion. All I need you to understand about physics is that the laws of Newtonian physics do not work well for subatomic particles and that the laws of quantum physics do not work well for larger objects even though both types of physics deal with real physical matter. The search for an integrated theory that works for both large objects and subatomic particles has thus far failed to bring a fully satisfactory result.

We can conclude that reality is much more complicated than most people think. For the Christian this is no problem. Our faith is in a God who understands all there is about reality. Jesus, in John 8:32, says You shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free. Though none of us is likely to know the whole truth about much of anything, God does.

Not having all the answers in life is not such a big deal if you know the one who does. The truth we need for daily living can be found with Gods help.

Pastor Dan York ministers at Dover Community Church.

More here:

Physics, reality and God - Bonner County Daily Bee

$968 million have been awarded to research initiatives

The Office of Research published record-breaking annual funding with an increase of $27 million from last year. This years $968 million will fund a range of research topics across various departments.

A primary contributor to this years growth came from increased funding related to public health and medicine, Director of Marketing and Communications of the Office of Research AJ Cheline stated via email. The School of Medicine recognized the largest increase in funding, up $92 million from the previous year, totaling $368 million. Funding related to COVID-19 research totaled $42 million for the year.

Even with a focus on contributing to research on COVID-19-related issues, efforts in other departments continue. The Department of Physics and Astronomy has benefited from increased funding from the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Science, the National Science Foundation and other federal agencies. Projects funded included high energy particle theory, theoretical cosmology and astronomical observations at major telescopes.

The Department of Physics and Astronomy has seen steadily increasing external support over recent years, and this has allowed the department to recruit excellent graduate students and postdocs and expand the overall research efforts of the faculty, Professor John Conway of the Department of Physics said via email. At the federal level, support for basic scientific research has been very solid despite the great budget challenges we face as a nation.

Conway is involved in research projects on topics including the Higgs boson, neutrinos, dark matter and quantum physics, which were granted $7.5 million from the U.S. Department of Energy.

Other important medical projects such as the Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) initiative had greatly benefited from $3 million funding this year. The collaboration project between UC Davis and Yolo County healthcare providers and agencies aims to increase support for patients by developing a trauma-informed network of care and universal screening for adverse childhood experiences.

The funds are being used to increase ACEs screening in primary care clinics that serve patients receiving MediCal, to improve workflow and communication from providers, patients, and buffering services, Principle Investigator Professor Leigh Ann Simmons said in an email. Among these services include food or housing assistance and employment assistance.

Written by: Christine Lee campus@theaggie.org

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Office of Research reports record-breaking funding - The Aggie - The Aggie