So the theory of gravity is bunk?

[DrixDzanth]

As a fellow scientist, I’m impressed by Jermofoot’s well reasoned and patient responses- we scientists can be arrogant at times with our proximal knowledge of the natural world.

However, Balungalof, I think much of the confusion has to do with your concept of Newtonian Gravity. Newton’s theory of gravity (it is not a law, unlike his contributions to thermodynamics) simply stated that there existed an attractive force between two masses via gravitational potential energy. And Newton was almost exactly right. However, his theory fell short of explaining exactly “what” gravity is. That’s where Einstein came in with general relativity and improved (if not completely resolved) the question of “how” gravity occurs. However, with the blossoming field of Quantum Theory growing at the same time, gravity became a sort of conundrum as it was the weakest of the fundamental forces.
-extra credit for anyone who can list them
So now we have some new theories concerning quantum gravity that start springing up around this time while Einstein’s general theory gets scrutinized.
Fast forward to the present and we’ve again confirmed General Relativity with a new gravity probe launched by NASA last year, I belive. Einstein was completely right. And we still haven’t unified physics yet (despite the best efforts of string, and later, M-theorists). Maybe someday you can take the banner of the likes of Pauli and Einstiein and try to figure out a “Theory of Everything”!

Ladies and gentlemen, that’s what makes science so special. It’s not a “religion” because we rely on physical, falsiafiable evidence which can be confirmed by repeated testing and statistical verification. The method is very beautiful, and I think it begs everyone’s respect before we start claiming that her major theories are “broken”.

[balungaloaf]

i know the theory of gravity is not bunk.

if you read everything here, you will see i’m just messing around saying how neat it would be if nature had allowed such a thing and such forces to let something levitate naturally on earth.  our perception of gravity would have been pretty messed up.

[cystic crypt]

@balungaloaf:

i know the theory of gravity is not bunk.

if you read everything here, you will see i’m just messing around saying how neat it would be if nature had allowed such a thing and such forces to let something levitate naturally on earth.  our perception of gravity would have been pretty messed up.

If a frog had wings, it wouldn’t bump its ass when it hopped!

[dezrtfish]

If my uncle had boobs he’d be my aunt  :evil:

[Jermofoot]

@dezrtfish:

If my uncle had boobs he’d be my aunt  :evil:

So, he has all the other parts necessary?

And if he gets old enough…boobs may just be in his destiny…

[dezrtfish]

LOL, ok if my aunt had balls she’d be my uncle!

[Nuclear]

Science is completely useless and meaningless.

Take this for example.

Dave conducts and experiment and gets the following results:  1,3,5,7

Dave now constructs a law off that.  It happens to be X+2.  You keep adding 2 to get the next number.

However Susan saids no, that is wrong.  It goes by prime numbers.  Hence the next number is 11 not 9 as Dave proposes.

Finally a thrid person saids, no both of those people are wrong.  I can graph this thing and claim that the real results are 1,2,3,4,5,6,7 hence the next number is 8.  Dave did not find enough information to justify his results.

Yet a fourth person saids, well I have another theory.  How about 1,3,5,7 then 10,13,16,19.  For the first 4 numbers you add 2.  For the second 4 numbers you add 3 and so on and so further.

Notice how each of these theories all explains the same data and can all be right.  Sure you can do more tests and find more points.  But no matter how much info you find, there will be an infinite number of possible theories to explain and account for those points.

[Guest]

String Theory
M Theory
Quantum Foam
Unified Field

Lets have FUN with this discussion!

[cyan]

@ncscswitch:

String Theory
M Theory
Quantum Foam
Unified Field

Lets have FUN with this discussion!

I unfourtantunly can tell you what 3 of those 4 things are.  what is Unified field. does that ave to do with unify all the forces into a single force? like electromagnetic, strong nuclear force, weak nuclear force and Gravity all being traced back to its original force?

[Guest]

Unified Field Theory goes back to Einstein, so it has been around a while.

A single theory that covers all energy types known and how they interact.

No working Unified Field Theory has yet been worked out (string, M, etc. all were results of trying to solve the Unified Field theory).  And Balung may get a kick out of this with how this thread started… GRAVITY is the force that seems to be the ongoing problem child in working out a Unified Field Theory!

And that is the extent of what I am able to drag out of my brain on Unified Field theory  :roll:

[cyan]

@ncscswitch:

Unified Field Theory goes back to Einstein, so it has been around a while.

A single theory that covers all energy types known and how they interact.

yeah thats what i thought. I just didn’t know the name of it. I think Maxwell worked on it before Einstein. unifying electricity and magnetism.

[Nuclear]

@ncscswitch:

String Theory
M Theory
Quantum Foam
Unified Field

Lets have FUN with this discussion!

String Theory - Currently losing out.  Even though it would make sense the simpliest thing would be a one dimensional thing.  The theory itself still have too much to try and prove.

M Theory never heard of this.

The other two never heard of.

[Guest]

M Theory = String Theory squared :-)

Unified Field, was advanced by Einstein (though he did not create it) and has not been proven.

Quantum Foam… Outside my ability to explain in laymans terms from memory… let me find a link for you…

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quantum_foam