Fuzziness on the road to physics' grand unification theory
October 6, 2008
UO physics doctoral student David Reeb and Stephen Hsu, professor of physics and member of the UO Institute of Theoretical Science. Credit: Photo by Jim Barlow
Leave it to hypothesized gravity to weigh down what physicists have thought for 30 years. If theoretical physicists, led by the University of Oregon's Stephen Hsu, are right, the idea that nature's forces merge under grand unification has grown fuzzy.
At issue are grand unified theories that first appeared in the 1970s. They have suggested that, at short distances or high-energy scales, electromagnetic forces, strong forces, which bind quarks in protons and neutrons, and weak forces, which drive nuclear decay, will coalesce into a single unified field. Indications of this idea could appear at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC).
Hsu and colleagues applied advanced computations to qualities that might exist in quantum gravity in distance-shortened, high-energy interactions. Working with Hsu on the project, to be described in the journal Physical Review Letters, were UO doctoral student David Reeb and Xavier Calmet, a former postdoc in the UO's Institute of Theoretical Science and now of the Center for Particle Physics and Phenomenology at Catholic University of Louvain in Belgium.
"The energy scale at which these three forces become equivalent is probably very high," Hsu said. "We do not have a direct way to probe what happens. We cannot actually produce the energies or produce the particles necessary to directly test whether unification occurs, so we look for hints at lower energy scales -- and look at how the interactions change. We have seen indications that these three interactions are starting to unify. If you extrapolate these trends to very high energy, it looks like, in certain models or theories, they could unify -- all based on experimental data. If grand unification exists, it might be shown at the LHC."
Enter quantum gravity. It's not the physical law version as seen under of Isaac Newton's apple tree but rather a physical theory about gravitational interactions of matter and energy that may be vital to grand unification. This is the realm of space time and its curvature. Hsu's team looked closely at quantum gravity and the interactions of the forces at work using extrapolations built by mathematical magnification.
"It is believed that at short distances and high energies the actual structure of space time will start to exhibit quantum fluctuations," Hsu said. "So there would be fuzziness in the nature of space and time. The scale at which this grand unification might occur is getting kind of close to the scale where quantum gravity might exhibit this kind of fuzziness."
The fuzziness, researchers theorize, blurs the envisioned highway to unification. The blurring, they say, is brought about in the interplay of nature's forces, where, in certain models of unification, there may be thousands of yet-unseen particles at the boundary, affecting the highway itself.
"The interplay of these forces, in our theory, creates more uncertainty than people previously though could exist in this whole discussion," said Reeb, who performed much of the number crunching. "It's an important result, because it is telling people that when you look at the low-energy data and you extrapolate them you may have to be much more careful than was thought."
If grand unification is to be found, the discovery would move particle physicist closer to the proposed idea of supersymmetry, whereby particles at each level have corresponding qualities in another level as they spin. "Our research says there are more uncertainties to this argument than previously believed," Reeb said.
The bottom line, Hsu said, is that as data is generated in the LHC, interpretations as to relationships to grand unification may be more difficult for particle physicists to pin down.
Source: University of Oregon
-
Is Everything Made of Mini Black Holes?
May 18, 2009 |
4.6 / 5 (60) |
56
-
End of an era at HERA accelerator
Jul 02, 2007 |
4.2 / 5 (5) |
0
-
Researchers Look Beyond the Birth of the Universe
May 12, 2006 |
4.6 / 5 (187) |
0
-
The 2004 Nobel Prize in Physics
Oct 05, 2004 |
1 / 5 (1) |
0
-
A further step in the design of the LAGUNA large neutrino observatory is launched
Oct 18, 2011 |
5 / 5 (1) |
7
-
Engineers build first sub-10-nm carbon nanotube transistor
Feb 01, 2012 |
4.9 / 5 (33) |
30
-
Something old, something new: Evolution and the structural divergence of duplicate genes
Jan 31, 2012 |
4.6 / 5 (7) |
1
-
The hidden nanoworld of ice crystals: Revealing the dynamic behavior of quasi-liquid layers
Jan 30, 2012 |
5 / 5 (4) |
1
-
Stock market network reveals investor clustering
Jan 27, 2012 |
3.9 / 5 (23) |
8
-
Of microchemistry and molecules: Electronic microfluidic device synthesizes biocompatible probes
Jan 26, 2012 |
5 / 5 (2) |
0
-
what makes two sounds similar???
2 hours ago
-
What would happen when a jet travelling at Mach 10 experiences engine failure
8 hours ago
-
Rust from my microwave ruined a nice bowl of soup and also my day
10 hours ago
-
gas leaks in space
13 hours ago
-
Weight required to balance a boom stand?
15 hours ago
-
Questions about Equivalence principle & Einstein Elevator?
16 hours ago
- More from Physics Forums - General Physics
More news stories
Explained: Sigma
It's a question that arises with virtually every major new finding in science or medicine: What makes a result reliable enough to be taken seriously? The answer has to do with statistical significance -- but ...
Feb 09, 2012 |
5 / 5 (20) |
76
Quantum physicist explains $100K offer for proof scaled-up quantum computing is impossible
(PhysOrg.com) -- MIT researcher Scott Aaronson has certainly riled the physics community with his offer this past Friday, of $100,000 to anyone who can prove that scaled-up quantum computing is impossible. ...
Diamond light, brighter than the sun
Its the size of five football pitches and generates light 10 billion times brighter than the sun. As the Diamond Light Source celebrates its tenth anniversary this year, Penny Bailey visits one of the ...
Feb 07, 2012 |
4.4 / 5 (9) |
18
|
Physicists 'record' magnetic breakthrough
An international team of scientists has demonstrated a revolutionary new way of magnetic recording which will allow information to be processed hundreds of times faster than by current hard drive technology.
Feb 07, 2012 |
4.6 / 5 (43) |
14
|
Hints of the Higgs - papers are submitted
Back in December 2011, the ATLAS and CMS experiments at CERN presented some exciting results that provided tantalising hints of the Higgs boson.
Feb 08, 2012 |
4.3 / 5 (8) |
10
Overeating may double risk of memory loss
New research suggests that consuming between 2,100 and 6,000 calories per day may double the risk of memory loss, or mild cognitive impairment (MCI), among people age 70 and older. The study was released today and will be ...
Google might launch Drive for cloud storage soon
(PhysOrg.com) -- Google's next big move, according to the Wall Street Journal, is a cloud storage service called Drive. Hardly first to the plate, Google is simply catching up to introducing its cloud reposi ...
Scientists discover molecular secrets of 2,000-year-old Chinese herbal remedy
For roughly two thousand years, Chinese herbalists have treated Malaria using a root extract, commonly known as Chang Shan, from a type of hydrangea that grows in Tibet and Nepal. More recent studies suggest that halofuginone, ...
New method to examine batteries -- MRI from the inside
There is an ever-increasing need for advanced batteries for portable electronics, such as phones, cameras, and music players, but also to power electric vehicles and to facilitate the distribution and storage of energy derived ...
Lab study raises questions over nano-particle impact
Tests involving chickens have raised questions about the impact on health from engineered nano-particles, the ultra-fine grains commonly used in drugs and processed foods, scientists said on Sunday.
Injured boomers beware: Know when to see doctor
(AP) -- It happened to nurse Jane Byron years after an in-line skating fall, business owner Haralee Weintraub while doing "men's" push-ups, and avid cyclist Gene Wilberg while lifting a heavy box.
Oct 06, 2008
Rank: 3.4 / 5 (5)
Oct 06, 2008
Rank: 3.3 / 5 (3)
Bob, all the info in the world wont help if you cant absorb what u read. Besides, there is plenty of food for thought here!
Oct 06, 2008
Rank: 2.5 / 5 (2)
Oct 06, 2008
Rank: 4.5 / 5 (2)
Says it pretty clearly!!!! Grand fantasy!!
Oct 07, 2008
Rank: 4.5 / 5 (2)
They are merely fine-tuning their math so they can count for all permutations and variables so they don't miss it if it crops up.
Oct 07, 2008
Rank: 4.3 / 5 (3)
Oct 07, 2008
Rank: 5 / 5 (1)
Or Both?
Oct 12, 2008
Rank: not rated yet
Which is quite correct and consistent result from AWT perspective.