A brief history about development of String Theories

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Discussion Overview

The discussion centers on the historical development of string theories, examining their theoretical foundations, connections to established physics models, and the current state of experimental evidence. It includes critiques of existing explanations and suggestions for incorporating recent ideas into the narrative.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Debate/contested
  • Technical explanation

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants question the clarity of the term "Newtonian paradigm" and suggest that its relationship to string theory needs further elaboration.
  • There are mentions of recent ideas regarding the application of string theory in quantum chromodynamics (QCD) and the relevance of sub-millimeter dimensions in experimental physics.
  • One participant asserts that string theory lacks experimental predictions and evidence, highlighting concerns about the vast number of solutions in the theory's landscape that could lead to arbitrary predictions.
  • Another participant raises questions about the outcomes of experiments designed to test deviations from the inverse square law of gravity at sub-millimeter scales, inquiring about any results beyond null findings.
  • There is a suggestion that the goal of exploring sub-millimeter dimensions may be to reconnect string theory with the standard model of particle physics.
  • A participant emphasizes the importance of proper citation and attribution when referencing others' work, noting a specific source related to string theory.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express differing views on the clarity and implications of string theory, particularly regarding its predictive power and experimental validation. There is no consensus on the relationship between string theory and established physics models or the significance of sub-millimeter experiments.

Contextual Notes

Some discussions reference the lack of experimental evidence for string theory and the ambiguity surrounding its predictions. The conversation also touches on the need for clearer definitions and connections between concepts, particularly in relation to established theories.

kiarash_niknejad2003
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References:

1) Green M., Schwarz J., Witten E., Superstring Theory Vol. 1,2, Cambridge Univ. Press, 1987
2) S.Klimenko, V.Talanov, I.Nikitin ``Singularities on the world sheets of open relativistic strings'', Preprint IHEP 95-7, (Institute for High Energy Physics, Protvino, Russia, 1995).
3) Introduction to Superstring Theory {http://www.arxiv.org/abs/hep-ex/0008017)
4) "String theory in a nutshell" written by (JM Figueroa-O'Farrill)
{http://www.strings.ph.qmw.ac.uk/WhatIs/Nutshell.html }


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Good text, excet by the fuzzy concept of "Newtonian paradigm". One should clarify why it is a model, why it is from Newton, and how it does realte to strings after all.

Also, I'd like to include the recent (a couple years old by now) ideas of reusing the string in its original context, in QCD, and some more mentions to submilimeter dimensions etc.
 
You might also want to find some place in your text to note that string theory makes no predictions and there is not the slightest shred of experimental evidence for it after twenty years of work on the idea.

Or, alternately, you could explain how an increasingly large number of string theorists think that if string theory makes sense, it is completely vacuous, since the "landscape" of its 10^1000 or more solutions can give you any predictions about physics you want.
 
sub-mm dimensions?

Originally posted by arivero
*SNIP

... and some more mentions to submilimeter dimensions etc.
AFAIK there've been quite a few experiments done to look for deviations from inverse square law gravity (for example), down to ~1 micron. Have there been any results other than NULL? What other objectives have sub-mm experiments had?
 
social reinsertion

Perhaps a goal of submilimeter stuff, but also of Randrall Sundrum etc, was to bring back gradually into reality to the string theoreticians far far away the standard model. At the end the string theory could recover its original rule as a phase of SU(3)...
 
We do not condone plagiarism here on physicsforums. If you copy someone else's work, you must provide at least a link to the original, if not a full citation including the author's name.

For reference, the original text is available here:

http://www.strings.ph.qmw.ac.uk/WhatIs/Nutshell.html

and was written by JM Figueroa-O'Farrill.

- Warren
 
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