Hold your right hand in front of a mirror. Or, just place your left hand in front of your right with palms facing. Now (in 3D) try to “swap in” (superpose) your left for your right hand. It’s not a replacement, eh. So, chirality. “Chiral” – a word that’s hugely important in physics. (Wiki)The term… Continue reading Chirality – the mirror mismatch
I’ve cited Nick Lucid’s Science Asylum YouTube channel over the years. His latest video is a wonderful take on all the quantum cat clickbait which I’ve noticed lately – another nostalgic set of pieces on Schrödinger’s legendary thought experiment. Much misunderstood [1]. A favorite of fabulists (and mystics). Well, Nick nails the reality. Yet, I… Continue reading Enough cat in a box! – an isolation setup
In quantum field theory, if gravity isn’t a fundamental force, how does it emerge? This article describes a theory of deep quantum electromagnetic interactions. Photon transactions (emission / absorption) populate a relational network of events which structures spacetime. According to the theory, each transaction gives rise to a pair of events in spacetime, effectively stitching… Continue reading Reframing spacetime – a stitch of events or pitch of time
The romance of living in space and space travel skyrocketed as I was growing up. Post WWII. Sputnik, Disney’s Man in Space, NASA’s man on the moon, Star Trek, … classic sci-fi books … Maybe back then millionaires dreamed of retiring in space (as a refuge from the Cold War). Now maybe some billionaires dream… Continue reading Senior health in space – longevity in freefall
[Draft 1-6-2025 see comments for updates] Yeah, quantum physics is weird. What might be called Weirdness 1.0 (QM), 1.1 (QED), 1.2 (QCD), etc., as I’ve written about, have embedded frozen tropes in the popular psyche. But can’t we do better? When physicists talk about analogies – use everyday language (terms) to talk about the quantum… Continue reading Advancing QFT visualization – further demystification?
There are some rarified (typically mathematical) arguments that random processes – given an infinite scope & time – will “almost surely” produce any specific artifact spontaneously – a complex thing in its entirety, rather than its components. Such claims strike me as mythic (at best). Yet, naturally, the meaning and emergence (evolution) of consciousness (conscious… Continue reading Boltzmann brain RIP?
[Draft] The beckoning frontier … the adventure … “not in my lifetime, you say … or for generations” … and live like what? … well, maybe I’ll pass on that Golden Ticket … Faster-than-light travel (FTL) is a common plot device in science fiction, with a long history in books, short stories, drama series, and… Continue reading The romance of FTL, a stark reality
How dark is the universe? Optically – for visible light. Far away from star light and reflected dust. Here’s an interesting perspective on electromagnetic (EM) cosmic energy density – just for optical wavelengths. And without any clarification of fuzzy bounds for a galaxy’s reach. The entire electromagnetic spectrum is another story. • Live Science >… Continue reading How dark is the universe – optically?
Here’s a possible story which helps demystify quantum field theory. A personal visualization, which stays within the bounds of spacetime and avoids needless paradoxes. There are two key concepts to my sketch: the Grid and a quantum’s tail. This post lays out the second idea, namely, a quantum’s tail.
Here’s a possible story which helps demystify quantum field theory. A personal visualization, which stays within the bounds of spacetime and avoids needless paradoxes. There are two key concepts to my sketch: the Grid and a quantum’s tail. This post lays out the first idea, namely, the Grid.
