Tag Archives: Physics

21Mar 2013

How Modern Physics Resonates with Ancient Mysticism

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Modern Physics

Modern science has always been shadowed by an underlying paradox. Its methods have no basis upon which to define consciousness itself, and yet they are dependent upon human consciousness to provide them with all of the “laws” that they work within the context of. In other words, the scientific method can only assert that various things seem to be true insofar as our own perception goes. This is why new findings are constantly replacing old “truths” in its search for objective certainty. It cannot grapple with what sensory perception actually is (outside of the physical organs that perform it), and yet it must rely upon the evidence provided by the five senses as its only verification of truth.

In its quest to get move closer to the roots of its own methods, and to contend with the mystery of consciousness itself, modern quantum physics has made certain landmark discoveries that echo statements that many mystics and seers have made about the nature of reality since ancient times. The disparity between the scientific and the philosophical approaches to consciousness may not be as wide as humanity has long believed.

Within the workings of quantum theory, atomic and subatomic particles can behave in ways that are utterly contradictory according to our typical understanding of physical reality. Under certain experimental conditions an atom can take more than one path simultaneously, or exist in two places at once. Other experiments have demonstrated that the same principles can apply to larger (i.e., visible) objects as well. These findings mirror the mystical understanding that we exist in more dimensions than just the one that our physical senses perceive.

Mysticism perceives a relationship between the “outer” world of form and an “inner” dimension that creates it and imbues it with life and consciousness. The macrocosm mirrors the microcosm: “As above, so below.” Another central tenet is the idea that we create our own reality as our thoughts and feelings are made manifest.

In the world of modern science, old “laws” are constantly being supplanted by new discoveries. This in itself is a seeming paradox. How can old principles be proved false when we have effectively utilized them for countless inventions and innovations? Breakthroughs in quantum physics have suggested a solution to this apparent contradiction: The scientific method finds what it seeks. When physicists seek to measure electrons as waves then they inevitably see waves. When they go looking for particles they find particles.

It is always easy for us to find “evidence” to support our beliefs because our beliefs generate the “proof” to begin with. Thoughts and expectations have been shown to affect scientific inquiries. In the mystical understanding of reality, form follows thought and focus determines reality. Ancient wisdom is asserting itself in the most modern of technological settings, proving that all our manipulations in the outer world can never divorce us from our dependence upon the inner one. Such developments may serve to heal the age-old rift between psychology and philosophy; between scientific objectivity and inner certainty; between reason and intuition.

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04Feb 2013

Adding Another Dimension to Computer Simulations

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Computer Simulations

Four-dimensional space is a difficult concept but this idea is driving a new revolution in programming today. Individuals familiar with August Ferdinand Möbius’ research know that an additional dimension allows a three-dimensional form to be rotated over on top of its mirror image. This gives us the so-called Möbius strip. While computer algorithms that really simulate scalable four-dimensional space are still in their infancy, they’re already making a big splash.

Mobius Strip. Credit: http://paulbourke.net/geometry/mobius/

Mobius Strip. Credit: http://paulbourke.net/geometry/mobius/

It’s important to remember that abstract mathematical concepts have no real bearing on the actual universe. Texts on theoretical physics use four-dimensional space as a term to describe the phenomenon caused by three-dimensional objects moving through time. Naturally, this concept of a fourth dimension is far different from that defined by computer scientists. While additional dimensions are valid mathematical constructs, they have little to do with the world around us. Software is merely producing two-dimensional output anyway, so its safe to assume that nothing a TV screen produces is going to break the space-time continuum.

Image Credit: John Hopkins

Image Credit: John Hopkins

Computers provide mathematicians with the opportunity to produce very complex geometrical forms. In three dimensions, polyhedra are made up of distinct two-dimensional polygons. Four-dimensional space grants engineers the freedom to create polychora made up of three-dimensional polyhedra. While this might be complicated, it’s actually useful outside of the world of mathematical research.

Mapping Euclidean space gives scientists the opportunity to produce stereographic projection diagrams of theoretical objects like the Clifford torus. This could be useful in the construction of space colonies, for instance. Puzzles based around 120-cell hecatonicosachoron objects became popular for a time, and illustrate the advantages of constructing objects in a virtual world.

Average computer users probably aren’t too interested in this type of research either. They might be more pleased to hear that four-dimensional simulations are revolutionizing video games. While virtual reality might not actually be the future, a simulation of it very well could be.

Edwin A. Abbot popularized the concept of different dimensions in fiction, and Marc Ten Bosch’s new independent video game is taking it to the next level. Miegakure is a platform that is essentially set in a three-dimensional environment, but players can go through walls and inspect them by entering into an additional dimension. The game has yet to be released to the general public, but it illustrates the possibilities programmers have when they leave the confines of our limited universe. Just as an author isn’t limited when writing a novel, computer programmers can create simulations that aren’t defined by what real individuals can and cannot do.

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22Jun 2012

Black Holes as Garbage Dumps

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Some commentaries on black holes focus on their form being similar to the initial state of the universe. Since electromagnetic radiation can’t even escape their gravitational pull, John Wheeler decided to apply the name black hole to these objects in 1969. According to some studies, they might very well account for the majority of occupied space.

Assuming that they exist, there might be other uses for them. Black holes are remarkably common, in one manner of thinking. Nothing could escape them, since it’s not possible to exceed the speed of light. Faster than light travel may be theoretically possible by certain means, but nothing could easily get out of a black hole.

That’s why some people have theorized that future societies could use them to dispose of trash. While it might sound absolutely ridiculous, black holes could be the ultimate recycling facilities. Any matter inserted into the event horizon would be turned into some sort of energy at a distant point in the universe.

Disposing of trash this way could also be the ultimate example of mankind’s self-indulgence. After all, no one would ever bother to find out where the matter stream ends up. Humanity could be dumping its trash everywhere in the universe.

Image Credit: StarCraft II

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13Jun 2012

Understanding Black Holes – The Basics

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Black holes are frequently mentioned as a sort of metaphor. In reality, black holes are generally understood to be large, empty voids in space where light cannot escape. It’s almost as if objects and energy are sucked into them. Though this is the basic premise behind black holes, they are much more complex objects that can tell us a number of facts about our universe and how it began.

Definition of Black Holes

Black holes are the last evolutionary stage in the lives of enormous stars that were once 10 to 15 times the size of our own sun. At the end of their lives, they may explode in a gigantic “supernova” event that scatters matter, but leaves behind a cold remnant of the star that collapses in on itself. This is the budding black hole that begins to suck in matter and light. However, light and matter must pass so close to black hole so that they cannot escape. This point is called the “event horizon.”

The Study of Black Holes

Black holes have been theorized since the late 1700’s. Einstein’s theories also predicted the existence of black holes. However, it wasn’t until 1967 that physicist John Wheeler began referring to these phenomena as “black holes.” Though no one has ever seen one, these black holes gave way to much scientific study in recent decades.

What Black Holes Tell Us

The study of black holes has demonstrated how the universe can hide much of its matter. This fact helps to account for all the missing matter that falls outside the mathematical computations about the universe. Black holes not only probably existed when our galaxy was formed, but also aided in the galaxy’s formation. The study of black holes also suggests that all matter that exists can become a black hole if compressed to zero volume and thus, infinite density.

Facts About Black Holes

  • At the center of each black hole is a point where the laws of physics break down and space-time cease to exist.  This point is called a “singularity.”
  • Black holes vary in size depending on the size of the matter within it. No one has actually seen a black hole because light does not escape from a black hole. However, the dust and gas clouds that swirl around black holes emit radiation that can be detected.
  • Black holes can suck up other black holes when they are in close proximity to each other, usually with the larger ones devouring smaller ones. Black holes can also circle each other in a swirling motion.
  • As black holes age, they gain more mass because they gain more matter over time. Black holes will eventually disintegrate over trillions of years.
  • The nearest black hole in 1,600 light years away. It is called V4641 Sgr and is a rare type of black hole called a micro quasar. This black hole is located in the Sagittarius arm of the Milky Way.
  • Black holes have no temperature, but objects about to enter the black hole are heated to millions of degrees before they disappear. They also emit x-rays.
  • Black holes do not actually suck things into them. The objects simply fall into the black hole and disappear due to the dense gravity of the hole.
  • Black holes are the simplest objects in the universe and can be described completely by their mass, spin rate, and electrical charge.

Of course all of this could change tomorrow if someone were to somehow disprove the theories behind black holes. Many people debate whether they even exist or not however scientific research in recent years has generally reinforced their existence and role within the universe.

Image Credit: XMM-Newton/ESA/NASA

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12Jun 2012

Confronting the Unknown

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I try my best to keep a close eye on developments within science and technology to share on here (and for school/work purposes as well). For instance, I closely follow the current debate regarding the legitimacy of climate change happening within the U.S. The current debate over the legality or morality of gay/lesbian marriage is another one that fascinates me. Theories I’ve researched and written about regarding the technological singularity and human evolution each have proponents and opponents.

What causes seemingly rational individuals to ignore actual facts or scientific proof? What might cause some individuals to hide behind their religious beliefs or other belief system to form an opinion on something? Conversely, what might cause individuals to simply form an opinion simply because it “feels right”?

I’ve written quite a bit on the probable existence of intelligent life beyond our own and even explored UFO phenomena and alien abduction accounts. Naturally I think quite a bit about the future of humanity as well (I’m dedicating my life to this in fact), and I often worry that perhaps we’re regressing at the intellectual level in spite of the many wonderful technological and scientific advances occurring all around us. When exploring issues such as climate change (or any other controversial issue for that matter), I try to look past the banter and determine what exactly may be causing individuals to choose one side over another. Is it a lack of education? Perhaps their religious beliefs are influencing their thought processes one way or another? I believe that the answer most often lies within a fear of the unknown. Granted while these other things mentioned may influence our beliefs to an extent, I propose that when one delves down to the true heart of the matter, our fear of the unknown is the true culprit. Today’s post explores this hypothesis further.

Introduction
Each of us exists at the crossroads between darkness and light, knowledge and the unknown, existence and non-existence. At a conscious level, we primarily remember only a fraction of our own experiences and dreams. We cannot even trust the blood flowing in our veins and we know less about the after-life that we are heading towards than about the pre-birth from which we first appeared in the world. In our futile flight from darkness we often fall back on erotic love, of which the instinctive goal is most often to fight the unknown with new birth. Even in the short moment of an orgasm lurks the dark possibility of betrayal.

Pre-historic Man and the Fear of the Unknown
In Pre-historic times, when man did not yet understand the wonder of birth, it was attributed to female magic. In those days, the rituals and festivals attributed to a mysterious and occult female deity was connected to the fear of being destroyed by an unpredictable nature. Fear of the unknown was the underlying motive for rituals and sacrifices marking the end of winter and the beginning of summer. Mid-winter rituals that would in Christian times become the very Christmas celebrations of today were intended to satisfy the spirits of the ancestors. People prayed to the ancient earth goddess presiding over life, death, prosperity, disaster and jealously. They pleaded to the earth goddess, responsible for hiding the future of mankind under a veil of the unknown, to reveal the more merciful side of her nature to them. These pre-historical rituals along with sculptures, rock drawings, words, songs, fairy tales, and customs each would plan an influential role in the evolution of modern civilizations and religions in the years ahead.

Ancient Philosophers Confronting the Unknown
The ancient Greeks confronted the fear of the unknown through rational reasoning long before their “barbarian” neighbors came along. The philosophy that underlies the history of knowledge and the birth of Western Civilization is in reality based upon man’s early confrontation with, fear of, and wonder at the unknown.

The Greek Philosopher Thales, who lived in 624-546 B.C.E., was the first to discuss the secrets of the origin of the cosmos. Thales regarded water as the origin of all things and believed that everything was born out of the ocean. According to Thales, everything must have moved from water into some other form, which is why he viewed movement as the soul of all things (Dreyer 27, 28).

Xenophanes was the first to state that the human soul is not capable of obtaining complete knowledge (Dreyer 38).

Medieval Man and the Fear of the Unknown
It was widely believed during medieval times that Christ would return to Earth ten centuries after his departure, that all humans would be judged, and that each person would consequently go to either heaven or hell. During medieval times the fear of the unknown was manifested in an unprecedented fear of God, by which philosophy, art, science, religion, politics, law, and social life were regulated. People who worshipped foreign gods were subjected to the wrath of the Christian doctrine, whose word was the only law, and to which all human behavior was expected to conform.

While the medieval Roman Catholic Church would not tolerate any scientific discoveries contradicting the Christian doctrine, it ironically paved the way for scientific discoveries that took place during the Renaissance and later periods. By forcing the Western mind into obeying a single law, the scientific method that is based upon the reduction of things to a single principle, was eventually created. The emphasis on the inner life also trained mankind in the practice of abstract thought that would form a vital part of scientific thought from the Renaissance onward (Hoffding 3).

Scientists Confronting the Unknown during the Renaissance and Enlightenment
While Renaissance scientists confronting an unknown universe were still restricted by the Church, scientists believed during the Age of Enlightenment (or Age of Reason) that human reasoning could save mankind from fear of the unknown.

Two very important Renaissance scientists and philosophers were Nicolaus Copernicus (1473-1543) who discovered that the earth revolves around the sun (Höffding 173), and Galileo Galilei (1564-1642) who invented the telescope and scientific method (Höffding 103). Both were severely restricted by the Roman Catholic Church during their lifetimes.

Isaac Newton (1642-1727), arguably one of the most important scientists of all times, discovered the workings of the law of gravitation throughout the known universe (Höffding 407).

Scientists Rediscover the Strangeness and Unpredictability of the Unknown
The Law of Relativity discovered by Albert Einstein (1879-1955) posed serious challenges to the mechanical Newtonian world-view. According to the Special Law of Relativity, weight and time are changed by motion. Additionally, the General Law of Relativity states that the movement of starlight is influenced by gravitation. Einstein’s work would later lead to research of black holes and many other areas of astronomy/physics (Henbest 147).

Newtonian physics were also radically challenged by discoveries at the sub-atomic level by Werner Heisenberg (1901-1976). Heisenberg believed that the less a researcher knows about the momentum of a particle, the more he/she knows about its position, and vice versa (Hilgevoord 1).

21st century scientist Stephen Hawking (1942-) is trying to reconcile quantum physics with the rules of gravity and relativity dominating the macro-universe. Ultimately, his conclusions play havoc with the singularity of Newtonian physics by stating that the universe was created in many different ways and that many different universes (multiverses) may exist. To be able to shed light on why our specific universe is the way it is, a theory of wave functions at the sub-atomic level will be required (Highfield 1).

Conclusion
After more that five thousand years of research and scientific discovery, we are still confronted with universes that can’t be viewed and were created in ways that can’t be imagined. This conclusion is a subtle reminder that despite phenomenal scientific discoveries thus far, the unknown is still as impenetrable as ever.

Being confronted with a fear of the unknown is an integral part of the human condition at all times. We can either allow ourselves to be paralyzed by that fear, or we can react to it by bringing our own individual set of religious, philosophical, scientific, or creative contributions to life for the benefit of humanity. Perhaps in the process we will discover that elusive part of the unknown potential that lies hidden within each of us, while simultaneously confronting our fear of the unknown in our own individualistic way.

Reference:

  • Dreyer, P.S. Die Wysbegeerte van die Grieke:  Hollandsch Afrikaansche Uitgevers Maatschappij, 1975
  • Henbest, N. The Exploding Universe: Marshall Cavendish, 1979
  • Highfield, R. “Stephen Hawking’s Explosive new Theory”: Telegraph.co.uk, 2008. Web
  • Hilgevoord, J.  “The Uncertainty Principle”: Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. First published 8 October 2001, revised 3 July 2006. Web
  • Höffding, H.  A History of Modern Philosophy, Dover Publications, 1955
  • Lehane, B. The Enchanted World, Time-Life Books, Amsterdam, 1986

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02Jun 2012

Viktor Hambardzumyan on Star Formation

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Viktor Amazaspovich Ambartsumian, also known as Viktor Hambardzumyan, was a scientist that most people have probably never heard of. The old Great Soviet Encyclopedia lauded his work in the former USSR, though some official Soviet documents had a tendency to blend science and politics. Nevertheless, his work on theoretical astrophysics should not be ignored.

In 1946, Ambartsumian founded the Biurakan Astrophysical Observatory of the Academy of Sciences. His work often dealt with theories that attempted to quantify the emissions of gaseous nebulae. He proposed a particular method used to calculate the amount of mass that nova stars eject, as well as the outflow of star surfaces. The individual stars he studied were not regular stationary orbital bodies. These theories revolutionized the way in which people thought about the way stars exist.

Ambartsumian’s theories often involved the concept of discrete dark nebulae. According to his research, the absorption of light in interstellar deep space wasn’t caused by the attenuation of traveling along the absent medium. Instead, he believed discrete dark nebulae caused the phenomenon.

Such nebulae make the direct observation of many phenomena quite difficult. In fact, things that they obscure can only be viewed with radio or infrared astronomy equipment. That being said, they also call into question the nature of the universe. Scientists are still learning the science behind star formation but I’m sure our progress thus far would certainly make Ambartsumian proud.

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25Apr 2012

A Paradoxical Laser Effect [Research]

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Two lamps are brighter than one. This simple truism does not necessarily apply to lasers, as a team of scientists, led by the Vienna University of Technology found out. When one laser is shining and next to it another laser is turned on gradually, complex interactions between the two lasers can lead to a total shutdown and no light is emitted anymore. For technologies connecting the fields of electronics and photonics, this result may be very important. The new findings have now been published in the journal “Physical Review Letters” (referenced below). Read More →

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17Apr 2012

Magnetic Fields Can Send Particles to Infinity

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I’ve always thought that if we’re ever to achieve long-range intersteller space travel, magnetics will play a fairly large role in the process. This is especially true if we’re going to get away from the dependence of currently used rocket fuel in the process. I’m not quite certain of the physics/mechanics involved (yet) but surely magnetic fields will be needed to control the alternative energy source (whatever that may be). Anyhow, this new research (referenced below) caught my attention and I thought I’d share it with you to get your input. Researchers from the Complutense University of Madrid (UCM, Spain) have mathematically shown that particles charged in a magnetic field can escape into infinity without ever stopping. One of the conditions is that the field is generated by current loops situated on the same plane. Read More →

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09Apr 2012

Opening the Gate to Robust Quantum Computing

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Scientists have overcome a major hurdle facing quantum computing: how to protect quantum information from degradation by the environment while simultaneously performing computation in a solid-state quantum system. The research was reported in the April 5 issue of Nature (referenced below).

A group led by U.S. Department of Energy’s Ames Laboratory physicist Viatsheslav Dobrovitski and including scientists at Delft University of Technology; the University of California, Santa Barbara; and University of Southern California, made this big step forward on the path to using the motions of single electrons and nuclei for quantum information processing. The discovery opens the door to robust quantum computation with solid-state devices and using quantum technologies for magnetic measurements with single-atom precision at nanoscale. Read More →

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04Apr 2012

Finding Nanoscale Defects in Memory Devices

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The future of space travel, artificial intelligence, and AI are dependent upon our ability to store massive amounts of data in really small areas. It’s a complex undertaking to say the least. Fortunately, new research indicates that we may get there a bit faster by enabling engineers to discover defects that lead to memory problems much more accurately than was previously possible.  Read More →

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