String Theory?

Question

I was watching "Nova" on PBS yesterday, and they were talking about string theory as a possible building block of the universe & I just couldn't grasp the concept. Could someone put it in their own words? AND! How would one understand this concept through a mathmatical equation? Is it that the equations depict it somehow?

Answer 1

string theory requires several dimensions (11 i think). the strings vibrate in these dimensions, and the frequency determines what kind of particle they represent in our world. i'm sure it's backed up by equations, but there's probably only a handful of people on Earth that cam understand them.

if you want to read more, Brian Greene has written a few books that are directed towards laymen.

Answer 2

Before you launch into string theory - which is unproven and widely disputed - you should understand two theories which are not. The first is general relativity, which describes how gravity affects everything; it is a classical theory, and applies smoothly down to the very smallest level. It has been fairly well supported by experiments.

The second is the standard model, which describes how the building blocks of the universe and three of the forces between them work. It is a quantum theory - it is not smooth at a small level. The standard model is the most accurate theory ever created.

The trouble is, the standard model does not include gravity. And the two theories are incompatible, because relativity says things are smooth and the standard model says they are not. This only matters at very small scales when gravity is big - and this only happens at the big bang and in black hols/supernovae etc.

In the standard model, all of the particles in the universe are modelled as points with no size at all. This is just how you look at things in a physics class when you let two balls bounce off each other - you assume they are points. Given the accuracy of the theory, this point particle assumption clearly works well at normal energies and scales.

In order to go beyond the standard model, string theorists proposed that the quantum model must be right and extended it by modelling the particles as 1 dimensional strings. To make the maths for this work they have to introduce extra dimensions - up to a total of 11 in some cases. This is clearly wrong - we demonstrably only observe 3 spatial and 1 temporal dimension - and there have been various fudges to explain this rather disastrous predicition.

No one knows if string theory is right. So far it does not even reduce completely to the standard model at relevant scales, which is a problem because it should. More importantly, it has made no predictions that have been tested by experiment and until it does it is not really science. Attempts are beginning this year to make measurements that will take the theory one way or the other.

More significantly, it does not justify why one should take the stance that the quantum approach is more valid that the relativistic one. The truth may well still be out there to be discovered.

Answer 3

the deepest you can go inside light refracts and moves in a rotation of a star with so many points it looks round. The speed of the light moving with every pass it leaves a gravity trail behind to guide the next pass so they dont smash together but the speed of this if faster then anything we can measure " unless you know that qunatum leaping is possible and we already have the technoloogy and answer but can't give it to every country it would be world war 7 but anyway we don't have the technology so we tell all the dumb foool half the truth that it's a circle but doesn't move at every infinte angel at the speed of instanious.


The periodic table of quantum energy. There is light of a unseen or seen nature inside the atom structure that we have not found yet, because there are 4 seen light and 4 unseen called refraction and have yet to understand how it bounces and reflects or refracts light but by mean of changing the structure of the atom I have found a anti-gravity atom at a density that nothing can integrate threw it. This leads us two the other side of the quantum periodic table of quantum physics the true and the true art of. The atom has a rotary outside like the move contact which controls the light from hitting it self as it bounces there are many speeds that can be control and that causes a different frequency there can be a second structure on the center of the atom two make the light inside the atom bounce all around But controlled by nano physics of gravity and magnetic field both one in the same if you move a north and south field back and forth until one cancels each other out you have zero magnetism and causes gravity.

Answer 4

As many have answered, string theory is a theory to explain the universe and all within it based on mathematical constructs called strings. Most people are aware of "old" theories using atoms and the subatomic particles such as neutrons, protons, and electrons of which they are theoretically composed. Many are also aware of theories which state that the particles such as neutrons and protons are made up of even smaller particles called quarks. Strings are allusions to even smaller "wiggling" pieces which make up the quarks and just about all particles.

The prize of all this theorizing is to llink the five major forces in nature under one theory and equation. These forces are electric, magnetic, strong, weak, and gravitational. Electric and magnetic forces were related in the 19th century by a set of elegant mathematical equations which could be used to tie all of the then known formulas describing observed electromagnetic behavior together. These equations are known now as Maxwell's equations (see link). String theory seeks to link all five forces together.

String theory postulates extra dimensions which are too small to observe as a form of math trick. Part of the reason that such math tricks are used is that they have a particular symmetry to them and thus provide elegant solutions similar to how Maxwell's equations convey so much information in a simple form which has symmetry as well. There were actually several string theories, which was puzzling because it would seem only one should be correct. These used up to 10 dimensions. An 11th dimension was tried and it was shown that all of the existing string theories were correct solutions with this 11th dimension present. The theory describing all string theories using an 11th dimension is called "M Theory". I believe most string theories have fallen by the wayside and this M Theory is currently in favor. M Theory actually mathematically shows that there can be an infinite or almost infinite series of parallel universes, which in some ways can have deep philosophical and religous meanings.

See the last link concerning the math...and how it is unlikely to be explained satisfactorily in a tome let alone on this answer board.

Answer 5

and now for a correct answer.

String theory came into existence in an attempt to create a Grand Unified Theory (GUT) which would combine the quantum (small) nature of the universe with the gravitational forces (large) nature of the universe.

In an attempt to better conceptualize the equations they had been working on physicists tried to work out the physical appearance of these smaller constituents. What they found was best described as strings.

String theory, it's most general form, states that beyond the sub atomic particles we know and love (quarks, muons, glouns, etc) there are vibrating strings.

These strings vibrate in different ways such as fast, slow.
These strings may as be shaped differently such as loops or lines.
These string can combine, and it is these different combination of strings that produce different larger particles such as quarks, electrons or even photons.

Something important to understand is that string theory is only a special case of a larger theory known as Membrane theory, or M-theory.

Answer 6

the numbers in a mathmatical equation represent energy and/or mass. Basicly string theory says that there are little strings of elctro-magnetic energy that make up quarks, witch make up atoms. What string theory trys to prove is that there is something that makes up the quarks, but this also means that there has to be at least 11 dementions and that both quantom physics, cahos theory and relitivity don't exist even though it is has been proven. If you want to know more about it try reding fabric of the cosmos.
i personaly don't beleve in it.

Answer 7

Well, the thing about string theory, is even physicists make fun of it. They try to explain things, but succeed at nothing. These NOVA programs just end up advertising for them to recruit students into an already saturated field.

They say they explain everything, but don't. They haven't the predictive power that physicists like. Maybe in 10 or 20 years they'll be up to par.

Answer 8

the equations measure different things in string theory.

Basically string theory is the theory that ALL particles are made up of strings. each string vibrates in 11 dimensions at its resonant frequency.

open strings are attached to branes(a stretched out string). they cannot leave the brane. we are made of open strings.

closed strings on the other hand, like gravitons and antigravitons are not attached to our brane and therefore move off into other branes. this explains why gravity is so weak.

please note that the other 7 dimensions are too small for us to comprehend.

hope this helps.

Answer 9

its hard to explain by using examples, even harder by equations. there is a book that the nova special was based off of that goes into more detail where brian greene holds your hand as he walks you through different topics.. the first half of the book does a better job of getting you to understand topics in very tiny sections of space. the second half is harder to read and its been a while since i have. the book never actually shows the equation but shows pieces of it, and even if it did, by the time you got to that point in the book it starts to go over your head.. i dont know if this helps but if u go to a borders or b&n and read the first chapter and like it, its worth a read.

Answer 10

Pretty much there are extra dimensions other than up/down, side/side, front/back, and time.... This allows this theory.
The string theory pretty much just states that little string like particles make up everything....Just think of it as a small string that wiggles that builds atoms and the smaller parts.....
I don't quite know about the equations however...But your second question is pretty correct I believe.....