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Elegant Universe Airs Tonight on PBS

fatarfy writes "USA Today among others has an article discussing tonight's presentation of Brian Greene's Elegant Universe, which discusses String Theory. It airs on PBS. From the article: 'The two segments of the show turn their spotlights on a crisis in physics, one invisible to the general public but increasingly embarrassing to the discipline. Simply put, Einstein's unbelievably accurate explanation of gravity, known as general relativity, is completely out of whack with the equally accurate explanation of electromagnetism, radioactivity and atomic forces known as quantum mechanics. The theories are mankind's most fundamental views of verifiable reality, and the disagreement means that something important about the universe eludes our understanding.' Sounds like it's worth watching."

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  1. String Theory by Academy+Girl · · Score: 5, Interesting

    The thing I find funny about critics of string theory is their objection to the idea that there can be multiple dimensions beyond the three dimensions people can perceive. This is where philosophy and physics should intersect -- right at Kant, who pointed out that you cannot understand the world, only your perception of the world. Now, whether or not you agree with Kant, the point is that you, at least, shouldn't be limited by your perception of the universe. It seems plainly obvious that just because people can only perceive three dimensions, the universe certainly doesn't have to be contained by that premise.