Related papers: The dangers of non-empirical confirmation
Effective string theory describes the physics of long confining strings in theories, like Yang-Mills theory, where the mass gap $M_{gap}^2$ is of the same order as the string tension $T$. In $2+1$ dimensions, there is a class of confining…
I review at a non-technical level the use of the gauge-string duality to study aspects of heavy ion collisions, with special emphasis on the trailing string calculation of heavy quark energy loss. I include some brief speculations on how…
Scientific hypotheses typically concern specific aspects of complex, imperfectly understood or entirely unknown mechanisms, such as the effect of gene expression levels on phenotypes or how microbial communities influence environmental…
Theory and empirical science should be in constant dialogue, but often find it hard to understand one another. Here we describe a graduate-level university course we developed to improve matters. The course was designed to help…
In string theory, the consequences of replacing the measure of integration $\sqrt{-\gamma}d^2 x$ in the Polyakov's action by $\Phi d^2 x$ where $\Phi$ is a density built out of degrees of freedom independent of the metric $\gamma_{ab}$…
We show a possibility that the matrix models recently proposed to explain (almost) all the physics of M-theory may include the superstring theories that we know perturbatively. The ``1st quantized'' physical system of one IIA string seems…
This is a talk given at YKIS '95, primarily to non-string theorists. I review the evidence for string duality, the principle that any string theory at strong coupling looks like another string theory at weak coupling. A postscript…
Further experiments showed the incorrectness of proposed interpretation.
These notes are based on lectures given by Michael Green during Part III of the Mathematics Tripos (the Certificate for Advanced Study in Mathematics) in the Spring of 2003. The course provided an introduction to string theory, focussing on…
Critical String Theory is by definition an $S$-matrix theory. In this sense, (quantum) gravity situations where a unitary $S$-matrix may not be a well-defined concept, as a consequence of the existence of macroscopic (global) or microscopic…
Point particles fall freely along geodesics; strings do not. In string theory all probes of spacetime structure, including photons, are extended objects and therefore always subject to tidal forces. We illustrate how string theory modifies…
Using the generalised AdS/CFT correspondence, we show that there are certain ten-dimensional differentiable manifolds such that string theory on such a manifold is unstable [to the emission of "large branes"] no matter what the metric may…
In this letter, we will demonstrate that the breaking of supersymmetry by a non-anticommutative deformation can be used to generate the generalized uncertainty principle. We will analyse the physical reasons for this observation, in the…
This paper is concerned with the question of when a theory is refutable with certainty on the basis of sequence of primitive observations. Beginning with the simple definition of falsifiability as the ability to be refuted by some finite…
We review recent work that employs the framework of logical inference to establish a bridge between data gathered through experiments and their objective description in terms of human-made concepts. It is shown that logical inference…
The cosmic string theory for cosmological fluctuations is a good example of healthy scientific progress in cosmology. It is a well defined physically motivated model that has been tested by cosmological observations and has been ruled out…
Amidst all candidates of physics beyond the Standard Model, string theory provides a unique proposal for incorporating gauge and gravitational interactions. In string theory, a four-dimensional theory that unifies quantum mechanics and…
We demonstrate a first-principle analysis of the string theory landscapes in the framework of non-critical string/matrix models. In particular, we discuss non-perturbative instability, decay rate and the true vacuum of perturbative string…
Recently, a topological proof of the spin-statistics Theorem has been proposed for a system of point particles which does not require relativity or field theory, but assumes the existence of antiparticles. We extend this proof to a system…
Ever since its birth, up until its present development, the major role of string theory involves being the best candidate for the theory of quantum gravity and other species of interactions. In the present work, we would like to accomplish…