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We came to understand more about the universe during the 19th century than in the 200,000 years of modern human existence. Rightly we should be proud of our achievements.
But by having our heads turned, we may lose sight of what lies ahead. |
“Each generation imagines itself to be more intelligent than the one that went before it, and wiser than the one that comes after it.” – George Orwell, Poetry Quarterly (1945)
The 19th century had been a time of rapid and tempestuous developments in the field of physics. Many hypotheses were proposed, a handful survived the rigorous tests and reviews of the scientific method. But of those handful, only a few can be universally recognized as truly groundbreaking.
For a theory to be elevated to such a level, it must take the riskiest path in the field: mess with existing theories. Physics is serious business, and this is no walk in the park.
The most fashionable branch of physics of the age had unsurprisingly been electromagnetism, a study that many physicists can explain its effects, but not the causes. The game is therefore afoot to unravel this mysterious new field involving unseen elements, as the players are setting foot on modern physics. But before that, the world of physics had faced a barrier, a manmade barrier.
For a theory to be elevated to such a level, it must take the riskiest path in the field: mess with existing theories. Physics is serious business, and this is no walk in the park.
The most fashionable branch of physics of the age had unsurprisingly been electromagnetism, a study that many physicists can explain its effects, but not the causes. The game is therefore afoot to unravel this mysterious new field involving unseen elements, as the players are setting foot on modern physics. But before that, the world of physics had faced a barrier, a manmade barrier.
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Hubris
Although it has been more than half a century since Michael Faraday had proven that there is a link between electricity and magnetism, the two are still seen as separate from the other branches of physics. Links have been made between mechanics, astronomy and thermodynamics, however electromagnetism was still relatively new and the least understood. Enter James Clerk Maxwell (1831 - 1879). In 1865, at only 34, he published A Dynamical Theory of the Electromagnetic Field, in what is considered to be a seminal work of modern physics. In it, he proposed the concept of electromagnetic waves to explain a peculiar observation that oscillating magnetic fields seems to travel at the speed of light. And went as far to propose that light itself is a form of oscillating electromagnetic field. This unification of light and electromagnetism later led to the development of radio waves as well as the better understanding of those which lies beyond the visible spectrum. This is further tied in the early 2th century by Edwin Hubble through the discovery of the redshift phenomena relating to the expanding universe. By the end of the 19th century it was thought that all there is to know about our universe is known, with the exception of understanding and fine tuning, here and there. With Maxwell’s equations, the great work was believed to be finished. |
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Humility
Ironically, it was a 19th century discovery that had poked a hole in our hubris. In our last article, J.J. Thomson had discovered the electron, which opened the field of particle physics. Henri Becquerel discovered radioactivity, along with contemporaries Pierre and Marie Curie. These discoveries – of subatomic particles and radioactive decay – calls into question the world as we see it.
Within the first decade, subatomic physics and Maxwell’s theory of electromagnetic radiation converged into what we now know as quantum mechanics. In 1900, Max Planck discovered the relationship between frequency and energy, which explains the effects of, say, infrared (low frequency) versus ultraviolet (high frequency) light on the human body. But to measure this relation requires a unit to link the time to energy (in the same way we use to measure speed, or work), something that was never thought of before. And not just that, this seminal idea became the groundwork for some extremely strange ideas along the way.
As it was for quantum mechanics to upset the atomic consensus of the 19th century, the idea that the universe is limited to the Milky Way was also cast into doubt. We mentioned Hubble’s expanding universe breakthrough, it’s implications are even larger as Newtonian mechanics are ill equipped to handle problems involving galaxy-sized scales and light-speed phenomena. We need a new construct to explain this, and luckily a German patent clerk-cum-physicist was more than happy to explain.
Ironically, it was a 19th century discovery that had poked a hole in our hubris. In our last article, J.J. Thomson had discovered the electron, which opened the field of particle physics. Henri Becquerel discovered radioactivity, along with contemporaries Pierre and Marie Curie. These discoveries – of subatomic particles and radioactive decay – calls into question the world as we see it.
Within the first decade, subatomic physics and Maxwell’s theory of electromagnetic radiation converged into what we now know as quantum mechanics. In 1900, Max Planck discovered the relationship between frequency and energy, which explains the effects of, say, infrared (low frequency) versus ultraviolet (high frequency) light on the human body. But to measure this relation requires a unit to link the time to energy (in the same way we use to measure speed, or work), something that was never thought of before. And not just that, this seminal idea became the groundwork for some extremely strange ideas along the way.
As it was for quantum mechanics to upset the atomic consensus of the 19th century, the idea that the universe is limited to the Milky Way was also cast into doubt. We mentioned Hubble’s expanding universe breakthrough, it’s implications are even larger as Newtonian mechanics are ill equipped to handle problems involving galaxy-sized scales and light-speed phenomena. We need a new construct to explain this, and luckily a German patent clerk-cum-physicist was more than happy to explain.
Lessons
In all fairness, we can’t blame them for their pride. The 19th century was a time of great achievements, and for a time it was believed to be the apex of human civilization. Modern physics was developed from the most important realization of the scientific method: its perpetual continuity.
Although, one major drawback is that physics became more esoteric. Calculus, the bedrock of classical physics, is no longer adequate to solve problems involving non-observable scales and abstract concepts such as spacetime, relativity, and the four fundamental forces of nature. This gap between the real world and hypothetical models may have led to the estrangement of the public on the subject, which is a long way away from the days of Humphry Davy and Michael Faraday, where science was popular and digestible.
If anything, the 20th century became the time when physics, and science in general, are seen only as functional tools, rather than a way for us to look for purpose, meaning and truth in the universe. This trend is certainly worrying as the more we are occupied with the functionalities of science, the further we are from pushing its boundaries beyond.
In all fairness, we can’t blame them for their pride. The 19th century was a time of great achievements, and for a time it was believed to be the apex of human civilization. Modern physics was developed from the most important realization of the scientific method: its perpetual continuity.
Although, one major drawback is that physics became more esoteric. Calculus, the bedrock of classical physics, is no longer adequate to solve problems involving non-observable scales and abstract concepts such as spacetime, relativity, and the four fundamental forces of nature. This gap between the real world and hypothetical models may have led to the estrangement of the public on the subject, which is a long way away from the days of Humphry Davy and Michael Faraday, where science was popular and digestible.
If anything, the 20th century became the time when physics, and science in general, are seen only as functional tools, rather than a way for us to look for purpose, meaning and truth in the universe. This trend is certainly worrying as the more we are occupied with the functionalities of science, the further we are from pushing its boundaries beyond.
Ponder this
What actually made the physicists of the 19th century thought they had figured out everything there is about physics? Did something like this happened in biology or chemistry as well?
Should this approach be applied in daily life? As Socrates supposedly said, "the unexamined life is not worth living". Are there any perspective in your life that resemble hubris?
Discuss
How should we meet the problem of popularising physics as it became more alien and distant from the general public due to the level of technical knowledge required to make sense of it?
People such as Stephen Hawking, Neil deGrasse Tyson, and Brian Cox tried to explain the beauty and mysteriousness of modern physics, with a mixed degree of success. Do you think physics should return to answering the question How rather than Why of the universe? Why, why not?
Further readings
Modern physics, at Wikipedia
"Quantum Themes: The Charm of the Microworld", a good introductory book by Prof. Thanu Padmanabhan on QM. It's first chapter discusses the limitations of classical mechanics.
"Has there ever been a paradigm shift?", at Quantum Diaries blog. Just to drive the fact that scienctific theories are never right, just haven't been proven wrong yet. It happened before, it might happen again.
