History Biographies, History, Philosophy of Physics

[sbrothy]

As I told @AlexB23 in a DM I now have to actually read what I post to not look like I'm just making noise!

But seriously, it's all on my reading list (one of the reasons I post it here: to be able to find it again as it really does interest me). Unfortunately, I've got a lot of personal reasons for being behind on my list. I'll answer it when I get there.....

 

[AlexB23]

As I told @AlexB23 in a DM I now have to actually read what I post to not look like I'm just making noise!

But seriously, it's all on my reading list (one of the reasons I post it here: to be able to find it again as it really does interest me). Unfortunately, I've got a lot of personal reasons for being behind on my list. I'll answer it when I get there.....

So true. Just take your time, man.

 

[sbrothy]

arXiv: physics.hist-ph; gr-qc; physics.bio-ph. History and philosophy of Physics.

I'm not claiming that I know what this is about but at least it's history:

Is Gravity Truly Balanced? A Historical-Critical Journey Through the Equivalence Principle and the Genesis of Spacetime Geometry

We present a novel derivation of the spacetime metric generated by matter, without invoking Einstein's field equations. For static sources, the metric arises from a relativistic formulation of D'Alembert's principle, where the inertial force is treated as a real dynamical entity that exactly compensates gravity. This leads to a conformastatic metric whose geodesic equation, parametrized by proper time, reproduces the relativistic version of Newton's second law for free fall. To extend the description to moving matter, uniformly or otherwise, we apply a Lorentz transformation to the static metric. The resulting non static metric accounts for the motion of the sources and, remarkably, matches the weak field limit of general relativity as obtained from the linearized Einstein equations in the de Donder or Lorenz gauge. This approach, at least at Solar System scales, where gravitational fields are weak, is grounded in a new dynamical interpretation of the Equivalence Principle. It demonstrates how gravity can emerge from the relativistic structure of inertia, without postulating or solving Einstein's equations.

All this talk about quantum consciousness elsewhere, so I get this is sorta relevant:

Agency cannot be a purely quantum phenomenon

What are the physical requirements for agency? We investigate whether a purely quantum system (one evolving unitarily in a coherent regime without decoherence or collapse) can satisfy three minimal conditions for agency: an agent must be able to create a world-model, use it to evaluate the likely consequences of alternative actions, and reliably perform the action that maximizes expected utility. We show that the first two conditions conflict with the no-cloning theorem, which forbids copying unknown quantum states: world-model construction requires copying information from the environment, and deliberation requires copying the world-model to assess multiple actions. Approximate cloning strategies do not permit sufficient fidelity or generality for agency to be viable in purely quantum systems. The third agency condition also fails due to the linearity of quantum dynamics. These results imply four key consequences. First, agency requires significant classical resources, placing clear constraints on its physical basis. Second, they provide insight into how classical agents emerge within a quantum universe. Third, they show that quantum computers cannot straightforwardly simulate agential behavior without significant classical components. Finally, they challenge quantum theories of agency, free will, and consciousness.

 

[sbrothy]

arXiv: physics.hist-ph. History and philosophy of Physics.

Cosmology and Philosophy

Scientific cosmology has now reached its period of maturity with the establishment of a standard model, which is the theory of an expanding universe. The question of whether this expansion resolves itself, in the past, into a singularity identifiable with an absolute beginning, or whether the universe in which we are is only one of the multiple possible universes existing either in space or in time, is still under debate. Moreover, the assimilation of the beginning of the universe to a "creation" has often been contested by theology, which, since Thomas Aquinas, if not since the Fathers of the Church, tends to carefully distinguish the two. In the following article, after briefly summarizing some points in the recent history of scientific cosmology, we will attempt to present in broad outline the standard model that scientists have arrived at. Then, we will undertake to study some of the problems it raises as well as the alternative theories that can be opposed to it. Finally, we will discuss the problematic links that scientific cosmology continues to maintain with philosophy and theology, notably the thorny question of creation from nothing ({\it creatio ex nihilo}).

 

[sbrothy]

Oh, I seem to have overlooked this one:

arXiv: physics.hist-ph, cond-mat.dis-nn, cond-mat.str-el, cond-mat.supr-con, hep-th. History and Philosophy of Physics. A biographical memoir of P. W. Anderson to be published in Biographical Memoirs of Fellows of the Royal Society.

Philip Warren Anderson

Philip Warren Anderson was a pioneering theoretical physicist whose work fundamentally shaped our understanding of complex systems. Anderson received the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1977 for his groundbreaking research on localization and magnetism, yet he did so much more. His work on magnetism included antiferromagnetism, superexchange, the Kondo problem and local magnetic moments in metals. Anderson pointed out the importance of disorder through his work on localization, non-crystalline solids and spin glasses. In superconductivity, he is known for the dirty superconductor theorem, showing the gauge-invariance of the BCS theory, his study of flux creep, and for his collaboration with experimentalists to realize the Josephson effect. Anderson's resonating valence bond theory may yet play an important role in high temperature superconductivity. Anderson was also fascinated by broken symmetry, and he laid the theoretical groundwork for what is now known as the Anderson-Higgs mechanism, showing how gauge bosons can acquire mass - an insight that played a foundational role in the Standard Model of particle physics. In his seminal "More is Different" paper, Anderson argued that the collective emergent phenomena that arise in complex interacting systems cannot be deduced from their fundamental parts. Anderson's legacy endures not only through the lasting impact of his scientific work but also through his influence on generations of physicists who continue to explore the rich landscape of collective behavior in nature.

 

[BillTre]

What's all this mean?
"cond-mat.dis-nn, cond-mat.str-el, cond-mat.supr-con, hep-th."
Pretty sure I figured out this: "physics.hist-ph".

 

[renormalize]

What's all this mean?

Take a look at https://arxiv.org/:

• Physics: History and Philosophy of Physics
• Condensed Matter: Disordered Systems and Neural Networks
• Condensed Matter: Strongly Correlated Electrons
• Condensed Matter: Superconductivity
• High Energy Physics - Theory

The Anderson biography appears under all those categories on arXiv.

 

[BillTre]

Take a look at https://arxiv.org/:

• Physics: History and Philosophy of Physics
• Condensed Matter: Disordered Systems and Neural Networks
• Condensed Matter: Strongly Correlated Electrons
• Condensed Matter: Superconductivity
• High Energy Physics - Theory

Edit the post for for understanding unencumbered by unexplained meanings.

 

[renormalize]

Edit the post for for understanding unencumbered by unexplained meanings.

Good advice for @sbrothy.

 

[sbrothy]

Good advice for @sbrothy.

Oh yeah. Sorry. The thought struck me but I just kinda assumed you all new what those abbreviations meant. That was naive of me. Another thing to clean up I guess. No problem. I like tinkering around with it.

EDIT: Corrected misspellings.

 

[sbrothy]

Tried just putting the arXiv category legend in my signature but I can see that wont really work. So much for the easy solution.

 

[sbrothy]

arXiv: History and Philosophy of Physics. I almost wanted to write "bunk" here but I may be the one not smart enough to understand the deeper meaning - if any - so I'll settle for: WTH?!

Found this one which I admit I cannot really find head or tail in. I find it vaguely funny though:

We Have Never Been Sophisticated

Many philosophers of physics maintain that a physical theory that exhibits (certain kinds of) symmetries is flawed, on the grounds that such theories posit "excess structure". In an influential paper, Dewar [2019, "Sophistication about Symmetries", Brit. J. Phil. Sci. [...] introduces a distinction between "reduction" and "sophistication" as alternative ways of removing excess structure. In this paper we re-examine the distinction as Dewar draws it, and we argue that there is no physically or philosophically important distinction between what Dewar calls "reduction" and what he calls "internal sophistication". We then argue that there are multiple notions of "reduction" in the literature that ought to be distinguished, both in motivation and in outcome.

 

[sbrothy]

arXiv: High Energy Physics - Phenomenology (hep-ph); High Energy Physics - Experiment (hep-ex); High Energy Physics - Theory (hep-th); Mathematical Physics (math-ph); History and Philosophy of Physics (physics.hist-ph)

Here's a C. N. Yang retrospective which may have flown under the radar:

Chen Ning Yang Retrospective

Chen-Ning Yang made important contributions to the theory of solvable models in statistical mechanics, including generalizations of the Bethe Ansatz, magnetization in the Ising model, the Lee-Yang circle theorem, and the Yang-Baxter equation. Most famously, Yang made transformative contributions to the current Standard Model of elementary particle interactions. The proposal of Yang and T. D. Lee, that left-right symetry (parity) is violated in weak particle decays, established that the primary currents involved in weak interactions are left handed. The work of Yang and R. L. Mills gave a framework for force carriers coupling to these currents that are non-Abelian generalizations of the electromagnetic photon, which unlike the electrically neutral photon, carry ``charges'' to which they self-couple . Two decades of work by others on quantization and mass-generation mechanisms then culminated in the Standard Model.

 

[sbrothy]

arXiv: History and Philosophy of Physics (physics.hist-ph); High Energy Physics - Experiment (hep-ex)

Post-Cold War Diaspora of Russian Particle Physicists

While the migration of scientists from the Soviet Union to the West occurred at a modest pace during the 1970s and 1980s, the dissolution of the USSR in 1991 and the ensuing economic and social hardships precipitated a massive exodus that amounted to a true brain drain. The international physics community, particularly in Europe and the United States, absorbed a substantial influx of specialists in nuclear, high-energy, and accelerator physics, including both seasoned scientists and engineers as well as promising graduate students and postdoctoral fellows. Many of these emigre researchers went on to assume leadership positions, drive major experimental and theoretical initiatives, and achieve scientific distinction that equaled or even surpassed their accomplishments at home. In this article we explore the defining features of this post Cold War scientific diaspora, assess its impact on Russia research infrastructure and capabilities, and evaluate its enduring contributions to global particle physics collaborations and discoveries.