Physics Tweeps

It is somewhat ironic that Albert Einstein was considered the Father of Quantum Mechanics. Yes, he did "discover" the photoelectric effect by explaining how and why electons move when light strikes metal. For this he was awarded his only Nobel Prize. But this discovery led to the eventual conclusion that the universe was "lumpy" at sub-atomic sizes. He was never comfortable with the hypotheses that things weren't "smooth", but rather, acted randomly and unpredictably at sub-atomic levels. That's why he made the often misused and misunderstood statement "God does not play dice".

Einstein was rather a champion of his own explanation of the universe, the Theory of General Relativity. General Relativity is very good at explaining the behavior of things larger than atoms, especially the motion of stars and planets, in essence, gravity. Quantum Mechanics specializes in things smaller than an atom and has almost no explanation for gravity. At very small sizes, gravity is so weak that it is not an issue. At very large sizes, gravity is the main force acting on objects in space. Both theories are extremely well tested. But here is the dilemna: BOTH CANNOT BE RIGHT!

Einstein spent the last 30 or so years of his life searching for answers to the dilemna. It became called the search for the Theory of Everything (TOE). It is still the focus of physicists around the world! It has been called the search for a theory of Quantum Gravity. 

Two of the best-known physicists of our time are Brian Green and Michio Kaku.

I chose to follow these two physicists on Twitter because they are both intimately involved with the leading-edge research done on Quantum Gravity. They are both professors and authors and I have read one each of their books.

In the last decade or so, Superstring Theory has gained a lot of support in the physics community. Brian Greene is one of its champions.

His book, "The Elegant Universe: Superstrings, Hidden Dimensions, and the Quest for the Ultimate Theory," is easy to understand and provides an interesting and sometimes humorous explanation of the state of the science today and how it evolved over the last century. It also explains the essence of String Theory and why that theory requires 10 dimensions or so, some of them being "curled up". Brian Greene is qualified to speak on the state of the science as he is a professor and co-director of the Institute for Strings, Cosmology, and Astroparticle Physics at Columbia University.

Michio Kaku is the co-founder of string field theory.

Having earned his PhD in physics at the University of California at Berkely, he is now a Professor at the City College of New York. He has published more than 70 peer-reviewed articles and 7 books. He is known as a "popularizer of science" due to his appearances on television programs and film, and his weekly radio show.

I am interested in seeing information about the latest discoveries in string theory and classic particle physics. If a testable theory of Quantum Gravity can be produced, it could provide insight into all the secrets of the universe.