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Using Causality to Solve the Puzzle of Quantum Spacetime

Posted June 25, 2008 10:11 AM

From Scientific American:

How did space and time come about? How did they form the smooth four-dimensional emptiness that serves as a backdrop for our physical world? What do they look like at the very tiniest distances? Questions such as these lie at the outer boundary of modern science and are driving the search for a theory of quantum gravity--the long-sought unification of Einstein's general theory of relativity with quantum theory. Relativity theory describes how spacetime on large scales can take on countless different shapes, producing what we perceive as the force of gravity. In contrast, quantum theory describes the laws of physics at atomic and subatomic scales, ignoring gravitational effects altogether.

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Guru
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Re: Using Causality to Solve the Puzzle of Quantum Spacetime

06/26/2008 9:37 AM

Quantum gravity. As I recall, gravity is a property of mass - the more mass an object has, the more gravity it displays. When dealing with planetary-sized objects, gravity is obviously an important part of every equation. The gravitational attraction of human-scale objects is so small as to be routinely disregarded. But even the smallest subatomic particles that are not massless (and perhaps even they DO have some tiny amount) have some gravitational attraction associated with them. After all, Jupiter has much gravity because it consists of many atoms of hydrogen and other gases. While this tiny quantum of gravity that each electron, proton, and neutron must therefore have is difficult to imagine, much less measure, it does, it must, exist. In this fascinatingly tiny realm, might not even energy be found to have some kind of gravity associated with it? I'm keeping an eye on this line of research!

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Re: Using Causality to Solve the Puzzle of Quantum Spacetime

06/27/2008 4:11 AM

I'm satisfied that Theory shall follow Theory, yet we shall not while living here, ever understand it all.

The magnificent design of what we con only perceive poorly, obviously had a Designer and Creator.

Kind Regards....

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