Philosophy

Inside the Scientific Box: History and Challenges Today

/
1 Comment
In Memoriam In Memory of Dr. Thomas J. LeCompte (1964-2025), Detector Designer and Champion of Education and Science. Prologue Defining "the box" Someone…
Learn the Math

I Know the Math Says so, but Is It Really True?

/
104 Comments
I'm sure anyone who has hung out long enough here on Physics Forums has encountered threads that go something like this (I'll use an example based on threads…
block universe time illusion

Does the Block Universe of Physics Mean Time is an Illusion?

/
29 Comments
I have written many Insights (and coauthored an entire book) explaining how the puzzles, problems, and paradoxes of modern physics can be attributed to…
Science Authority

How Non-Scientists Should Evaluate Scientific Claims

/
66 Comments
How should non-scientists evaluate scientists' public claims? In a previous article, I discussed why scientists (among others) are rarely interested…
Kuhnian Revolution

Modern Physics Understood as an Unrecognized Kuhnian Revolution

/
16 Comments
People often claim on Physics Forums and in the foundations community proper that quantum mechanics is "incomplete." Indeed, Lee Smolin recently wrote…
create a universe story

How to Create a Universe: Instructions for an Apprentice God

/
11 Comments
Preface (-: ##~~~## A fantasy to be read at leisure time ##~~~## :-)Background & Links Written October 7, 1999 to relax from the strains of…
against quantum interpretations

Against “interpretation”

/
195 Comments
Against interpretations in QM I am against "interpretations" of Quantum Mechanics (QM) in a sense in which John Bell [1] was against measurement in QM…
information definition

How to Better Define Information in Physics

/
11 Comments
Introduction When I ask questions about the conservation of information I frequently get the reply, “It depends on what you mean by information.”  …
bizarro univerise

Lessons From the Bizzaro Universe

/
23 Comments
The terms Bizarro and Bizarro World originated in Superman comics, where strangely imperfect versions of Superman, other action characters, and even Earth…
classicalphysics

Addressing the “Classical Physics Is Wrong” Fallacy

/
186 Comments
Introduction One of the common questions or comments we get on PF is the claim that classical physics or classical mechanics (i.e. Newton's laws, etc.)…
highercategorytheory

Why Higher Category Theory in Physics?

/
30 Comments
 This here is my personal story. For an alternative introduction see my talk: Higher Structures in Mathematics and Physics.Initially,…
spacetimecon

Struggles with the Continuum: Spacetime Conclusion

/
4 Comments
 We've been looking at how the continuum nature of spacetime poses problems for our favorite theories of physics --- problems with infinities.…
logicp2

Scientific Inference: Do We Really Need Induction?

/
14 Comments
  Part 2. "We don't need no stinkin' induction" -- Sir Karl Popper The traditional scientific method supposedly employs induction both in the…
logic1

Hume and the Problem of Induction in Science Explained

/
39 Comments
Click for Full SeriesPart 1: Logical induction ain’t logical Part 2: We don’t need no stinkin’ induction Part 3: Balancing Predictive Success…
personaltheories1

Why Won’t You Look at My New Theory?

/
290 Comments
In any forum where science is discussed, there will always be people who have a great new personal theory and can't understand why no one else is interested…
theneedforinfinity

Why the Need of Infinity in Physics

/
31 Comments
Infinity in Mathematics and Physics It is beyond doubt that the notion of infinity lies somewhere near the core of all mathematics, probably in a finite…
peterblockuniverse

The Block Universe – Refuting a Common Argument

/
153 Comments
The "block universe" interpretation of SR has come up repeatedly in threads here on PF. Rather than link to them, I want to summarize a common argument…
Retrocausality

Understanding Retrocausality and Blockworld

In an Insights series “Blockworld and its Foundational Implications,” I quoted Huw Price and Ken Wharton in several places advocating a blockworld…
blockuniverse5

Blockworld and its Foundational Implications: Delayed Choice and No Counterfactual Definiteness

 In parts 1 and 2 of this 5-part Insights series, I explained the blockworld (BW) implication of special relativity. In part 3, I introduced…
blockuniverse4

Blockworld and its Foundational Implications: General Relativity and Closed Timelike Curves

/
2 Comments
 In parts 1 and 2 of this 5-part Insights series, I explained the blockworld (BW) implication of special relativity (SR). In part 3, I introduced…
blockuniverse3

Blockworld and its Foundational Implications: General Relativity and the Big Bang

 In parts 1 and 2 of this 5-part Insights series, I explained the blockworld (BW) implication of special relativity (SR). Geroch sums up the…
spacetime

Is Spacetime Really a Continuum?

/
29 Comments
  Introduction Is spacetime really a continuum?  That is, can points of spacetime really be described---at least locally---by lists of four…
bioethics

Bioethics & Genetic Engineering: Ethics and Policy

/
0 Comments
Bioethics Key PointsWorrying about the future now means recognizing advances in technology, such as genetic engineering, that have already arisen. …
crackpot

How to Spot Pseudoscience: A Practical Science Guide

/
0 Comments
It often feels like we're being swamped with "science" these days — but much of it is not real science. Genuine science follows the scientific method,…
crackpot_index

The Science Crackpot Index and Bingo Game

/
112 Comments
Discussing science online can be a frustrating experience when no quality controls are in place—which is often the case. As part useful reference and…