36
R. Barrett and P. P. Delsanto
2.5 Understanding
As we have seen in Chap. 1, at various times in history, physicists have felt
that everything of note in physics had already been discovered. Although
research work was still zealously proceeding, a Theory of Everything (TOE)
was postulated and the common wisdom was that it was only a matter of
time before all the details would be wrapped up as well. However, the demise
of physics, like that of Mark Twain, turned out to be “greatly exaggerated”: a
TOE is still sought in vain, and physicists continue to seek explanations for
new phenomena that are currently being discovered.
At the start of this chapter, we explored the origins of rational thought, the
nature of logic and its relationship with physics. We discussed two approaches
that are currently in use in the quest for understanding: a bottom-up methodology, where we begin with physical laws and deduce the consequences, and
a top-down approach, which looks for common patterns in a range of very
different phenomena.
Before proceeding further, we must clarify what we mean by “understanding”, a term that we have introduced glibly and even included in the title of
the Chapter. The various dictionaries are of little help, providing us with a
wealth of definitions with different shades of meaning. Richard Feynman has
added his contribution to the confusion by famously declaring that no one
understands Quantum Mechanics.
For our purposes in this book, let us try to firm up our interpretation
of “understanding” by comparing it with “knowledge”. In the course of our
lives we gain knowledge of many facts, which have been accrued from our
observations, readings, and other sources of information. In general, these
facts are collected one by one, as if they were isolated among themselves.
However, when we have garnered enough of them, we may start to notice
relationships between some of them. This is the beginning of what we mean
by understanding: true understanding occurs when these relationships enable
us to make predictions. In fact, predictability based on “understanding” is the
essence of science.
Some would argue that true understanding comes only when physical
laws are stated, from which mathematics can be used to deduce new facts,
which are in turn verified by further observations. This is the bottom-up
approach that we have discussed above, and whose power is demonstrated
by the success of Newtonian Mechanics. However, as we shall see in Chap. 4,
even this rigorous methodology may contain a fatal flaw embedded in its
heart.
R. Barrett and P. P. Delsanto
2.5 Understanding
As we have seen in Chap. 1, at various times in history, physicists have felt
that everything of note in physics had already been discovered. Although
research work was still zealously proceeding, a Theory of Everything (TOE)
was postulated and the common wisdom was that it was only a matter of
time before all the details would be wrapped up as well. However, the demise
of physics, like that of Mark Twain, turned out to be “greatly exaggerated”: a
TOE is still sought in vain, and physicists continue to seek explanations for
new phenomena that are currently being discovered.
At the start of this chapter, we explored the origins of rational thought, the
nature of logic and its relationship with physics. We discussed two approaches
that are currently in use in the quest for understanding: a bottom-up methodology, where we begin with physical laws and deduce the consequences, and
a top-down approach, which looks for common patterns in a range of very
different phenomena.
Before proceeding further, we must clarify what we mean by “understanding”, a term that we have introduced glibly and even included in the title of
the Chapter. The various dictionaries are of little help, providing us with a
wealth of definitions with different shades of meaning. Richard Feynman has
added his contribution to the confusion by famously declaring that no one
understands Quantum Mechanics.
For our purposes in this book, let us try to firm up our interpretation
of “understanding” by comparing it with “knowledge”. In the course of our
lives we gain knowledge of many facts, which have been accrued from our
observations, readings, and other sources of information. In general, these
facts are collected one by one, as if they were isolated among themselves.
However, when we have garnered enough of them, we may start to notice
relationships between some of them. This is the beginning of what we mean
by understanding: true understanding occurs when these relationships enable
us to make predictions. In fact, predictability based on “understanding” is the
essence of science.
Some would argue that true understanding comes only when physical
laws are stated, from which mathematics can be used to deduce new facts,
which are in turn verified by further observations. This is the bottom-up
approach that we have discussed above, and whose power is demonstrated
by the success of Newtonian Mechanics. However, as we shall see in Chap. 4,
even this rigorous methodology may contain a fatal flaw embedded in its
heart.