Stringing together a picture of superconductors

Friday, August 6, 2010 - 03:07 in Physics & Chemistry

For decades, physicists have been trying to reconcile the two major theories that describe physical behavior. The first, Einstein’s theory of general relativity, uses gravity — forces of attraction — to explain the behavior of objects with large masses, such as falling trees or orbiting planets. However, at the atomic and subatomic level, particles with negligible masses are better described using another theory: quantum mechanics.A “theory of everything” that marries general relativity and quantum mechanics would encompass all physical interactions, no matter the size of the object. One of the most popular candidates for a unified theory is string theory, first developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s. String theory holds that electrons and quarks (the building blocks of larger particles) are one-dimensional oscillating strings, not the dimensionless objects they are traditionally thought to be. Physicists are divided on whether string theory is a viable theory of everything, but...

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