Unification of Physics

Framework for Unification of Physics (pdf, 29p, 400k)

Physics is in trouble. In the eight decades since quantum mechanics was formulated, nobody has figured out what it means or why it works - despite the fact that it works perfectly, always. Moreover, quantum mechanics remains fundamentally incompatible with relativity theory. Theoretical physicist Lee Smolin, writing in his book The Trouble with Physics, laments that there has been no significant breakthrough in physics for more than thirty years. When it comes to the foundations of current physics, to be brutally honest, nobody has a clue what is going on.

I have thought about the "big problems" of physics ever since my university years in the late 1970s. Recently a unique opportunity arose to devote myself full time to this enduring conundrum. For two years I immersed myself in dozens of books and texts, along with endless hours of quiet reflection. There is nothing like a good puzzle to keep one motivated! And, if one is to believe that Nature is rational, there has got to be a consistent solution (in Einstein's words: God is subtle but not malicious). Since generations of physicists have sifted through the details in search of understanding, to no avail, clearly they have been making wrong assumptions. So I returned to the basics, to the empirical facts, and started from there.

As a result of this investigation, key insights have emerged elucidating the big problems of physics. Within this paradigm, quantum mechanics and special relativity come together naturally, while time and quantum phenomena are each brought into a new light. Once deduced, the facts stand logically clear and difficult to deny, based strictly on the evidence. If indeed these insights are found to reflect Nature, they point to the Holy Grail of physics - a unified understanding of space, time, and quantum phenomena (light and matter), all within one framework.

There is one little catch, however: The conclusions are pure heresy. The unification requires the presence of a space (brane) with four spatial dimensions, interpenetrating our normal three-dimensional space. This stands in direct contradiction to the scientific belief that nothing exists outside the physical universe. For many scientists, to give up this belief would be akin to a religious person giving up God, while even to consider these insights would be professional suicide. So the orthodox scientific mind simply will not go there - who cares if it solves the big problems! And who said science is not a religion?

While this framework may be scientific heresy, it is logically and empirically consistent and illuminates some of the most intractable problems in physics. I assume that these facts must count for something - this is physics, not religion, after all.

The paper is written for any intelligent reader, from expert physicist to interested layperson. Please leave your assumptions behind, follow the logic, and make up your own mind.

Addendum, 20 August 2010
Mathematical readers will note my (miss)use of the term "complex space", which conventionally refers to a space C^n having n complex dimensions, but which is applied here to a space having both real and imaginary dimensions. Hence, coordinates in this space are defined by pure real and imaginary numbers rather than by complex numbers. Beyond these provisos the argument presented here stands intact. Non-mathematical readers will find these terms explained in the text.

Framework for Unification of Physics (pdf, 29p, 400k)

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