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Is physics becoming too complex for normal theoretical physicists?

Anonymous Wed 07 Oct 16:52:40 2020 No.12204378 View Reply Original Report

Quoted By: >>12204388 >>12204456 >>12204689 >>12205389 >>12206806

Is the math becoming too complex for normal theoretical physicists to understand? What leads me to believe this is that it seems like the best work done in physics is done by mathematical physicists?

Anonymous

Anonymous Wed 07 Oct 2020 16:56:35 No.12204388 Report

Quoted By: >>12204424 >>12204494

>>12204378
>What leads me to believe this is that it seems like the best work done in physics is done by mathematical physicists?
Not disputing this, but this claim needs to be substantiated. What makes you think this is the case?

Anonymous

Anonymous Wed 07 Oct 2020 17:03:04 No.12204419 Report

Quoted By: >>12204424 >>12204689

It has something to do with something I read in the past that physics was getting too hard for physicists, and that I was seeing most of the physicists who are influential for their work being labeled mathematical physicists, and noticing that all the tv physicists like Brian Cox are theoretical physicists. Its has nothing to do with looking at hard data, just from what Ive seen on my own.

Anonymous

Anonymous Wed 07 Oct 2020 17:04:06 No.12204424 Report

Quoted By: >>12204494

>>12204388
>>12204419

Anonymous

Anonymous Wed 07 Oct 2020 17:17:34 No.12204456 Report

Quoted By:

>>12204378
It's just becoming convoluted because of sunk cost fallacy and not wanting to discard false premises

Anonymous

Anonymous Wed 07 Oct 2020 17:30:41 No.12204494 Report

Quoted By:

>>12204388
>>12204424
sure, but I still see a lot of researchers, physics and math alike, writing about statistical mechanics. Hell, i've seen CS researchers write about it due to connections with algorithmic randonmess and the Ising model. I feel like this idea of "X field is too hard for people in this field" feels sort of childish and overfitting to your own knowledge biases.

Anonymous

Anonymous Wed 07 Oct 2020 18:36:18 No.12204689 Report

Quoted By: >>12204914 >>12204918 >>12205383 >>12205386

>>12204378
>>12204419
No. I bet you can't even name a single mathematical physicist besides Witten without googling.
>tv physicists
Oh lordy.

Anonymous

Anonymous Wed 07 Oct 2020 19:39:53 No.12204914 Report

Quoted By:

>>12204689
Penrose, take that

Anonymous

Anonymous Wed 07 Oct 2020 19:40:55 No.12204918 Report

Quoted By:

>>12204689
t. triggered theoretician

Anonymous

Anonymous Wed 07 Oct 2020 22:05:00 No.12205383 Report

Quoted By:

I'm a "theoretical physicist", and I can say it's way too fucking complicated for me. I've made my little career just shitting out simulations that I barely understand.

>>12204689
How about Rodney Baxter?

Anonymous

Anonymous Wed 07 Oct 2020 22:07:39 No.12205386 Report

Quoted By:

>>12204689
Not the guy you're referring to, but you're basically right. I mean, it's more like mathematical physicists do ridiculously wonderful, powerful work, but it's not as fashionable as theoretical physics. For example
>Stat mech has giants like Lebowitz
>Arnold, dismissive of pure math as he is, undeniably huge
>Folland
Lebowitz once wrote about the importance of unfashionable science. I feel like mathematical physics is very unfashionable yet very important, high impact work. It ends up turning the heads of people who appreciate math first, and then turning the heads of the students who will learn physics second (think Maxwell's equations)

Anonymous

Anonymous Wed 07 Oct 2020 22:08:14 No.12205389 Report

Quoted By:

>>12204378
>What leads me to believe this is that it seems like the best work done in physics is done by mathematical physicists?
I legit wonder what you consider to currently be "the best work done in physics"

Anonymous

Anonymous Thu 08 Oct 2020 07:36:59 No.12206806 Report

Quoted By:

>>12204378
No, the math is not at all too complex. It's just the interpretation of the math that is becoming too complex

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