Undergrad Understanding Space-Time & Fields: A Flowchart Guide

[Quest_Ion]

I am having a very difficult time picturing space-time and fields and all...

Anyone here have a sort of flow chart or procedural chart that I could use to try to better wrap my head around what this place is?

Sort of starting with universe and then going into spacetime and from spacetime to fields or if spacetime is a field then put fields first or however it is ordered and then placement for field excitations (particles) coming from which field they come from? Like a flowchart?

Anyone have anything like that or maybe could you draw a rough sketch for me?
Is spacetime a singularly unified substance or field?

Is spacetime a collection of fields?

Are fields excitations of spacetime or is spacetime an excitation of something more fundamental?

If a force is an excitation of a field Is a field a non-excited force?

What is the starting point exactly?

etc?

 

[Paul Colby]

Is spacetime a singularly unified substance or field?

An answer that can be given in terms of the current models and theories. For the Standard Model in flat space-time, space-time is neither a substance or a field. It appears as a group of real numbers that parametrize the quantum fields which make up the standard model. These 4 parameters transform under the Poincare group which is made up of the rotations, boosts and translations as do the SM fields. The General relativity space-time is again a real number parameters set but making up a mathematical object called a manifold.

 

[Quest_Ion]

It appears as a group of real numbers that parametrize the quantum fields which make up the standard model.

Spacetime is a sort of measure, like in wave-collapse, or a conceptual measure on paper used for illustrating/measuring fields by people?

In the above diagram, I should replace spacetime with universe and the line between the universe and em field, I should label spacetime? Or is spacetime just a concept?

How would you map it as above?

 

[Paul Colby]

is spacetime just a concept?

I can't think of anything in physical theories that isn't just a made up concept by definition. I once talked to someone who happen to meet Linus Pauling in a restroom. He asked him how he happened to develop his spin formalism. He said beaming down to my friend who was rather short; "I just made it up." Integers, real number, Hilbert spaces, quantum fields are all just things people made up / developed . Now, having said that, these things are very useful things because they work. My suggestion for a flow chart would go,

$\text{Physics}\rightarrow\text{Read Some}$

Other than this I'm at a loss to help.