Sunday, June 19, 2011

June 19 - International String Theory Day


Start today by wiggling tiny string. Next decide: should it be an open string or a closed string? Then ask: will I settle for only bosons or will I ask for fermions, too?

If the answer to the last question is "Bosons only, der!" then one gets bosonic string theory. If the answer is "No, I require that matter exist, dammit!" then we wind up needing supersymmetry, which means an equal matching between bosons and fermions.

The final question for making a string theory should be: can I do quantum mechanics sensibly? For bosonic strings, this question is only answered in the affirmative if the spacetime dimensions number 26. For superstrings we can whittle it down to 10. How we get down to the four spacetime dimensions we observe in our world is another story.

And if none of this makes any sense to you...just tie a string around your finger and tell everyone it's to celebrate string theory. They'll either think you're a genius or an idiot savant. Either way, you're good.

6 comments:

lost goddess said...

Ha ah aha hha nobody I guess we all just fall under the idiot savant category

Tracy Lynn said...

This is the closest I'll ever get to understanding string theory. I feel smarter already.

Schrodinger's Kitten said...

really....I just had some extra yarn around the house, and thought I should use it.

Hyperion said...

I'm very curious how many people actually got this joke.

Lady Jane Scarlett said...

I have your string theory here hypey, in all 11 dimensions.

Fatma said...

Pray explain to me what this day is!

Am at loss here! No comprend anything :-(

Fitèna