Has Physics Gone Stale?

Here is the link to a very good commentary about the present state of physics,
a state of affairs which seems to be running out of steam.

http://nautil.us/blog/the-present-phase-of-stagnation-in-the-foundations-of-physics-is-not-normal

Here are some brief excerpts:

Nothing is moving in the foundations of physics.

Experimentalists are just poking in the dark.

[The word,] Crisis is so optimistic. It raises the impression that theorists realized the error of their ways, that change is on the way, that they are waking up now and will abandon their flawed methodology. But I see no awakening.

Physicists knew about these two problems already in 1930s. And until the 1970s, they made great progress. But since then, theory development in the foundations of physics has stalled.

[End of excerpts]

My response is that science needs a new paradigm.
May I suggest
http://thegodparadigm.blogspot.com/ ?

-

Did Ancient Technology Exceed Ours?

Part I
The present view of world history is incomplete at best, and grossly inaccurate at worst.

 

I recently viewed a lengthy video documentary, similar to others I have seen before, which calls into question the accepted historical paradigm.  That paradigm characterizes our present level of technological advancement as being the highest point ever attained.  There is some evidence, albeit tentative, that before recorded history, human society may have exceeded our present-day technology, at least in certain respects.

 

I wish to exclude from this particular discussion all references to possible extraterrestrial visitors.  While such references may or may not be appropriate in other discussions, their removal here is based on the simple fact that the topic does not need them.  All the known ancient technologies of humans can be explained in more ordinary terms, and the topic of ancient aliens unnecessarily complicates the discussion.

 

The discussion here focuses on the possibility, based on widely accepted physical evidence, that human civilizations existed at least ten thousand years ago, which had developed at least some technologies that were lost to present-day knowledge.

 

While this may sound extraordinary, there are ordinary examples in historical times that demonstrate the actual fact of lost technologies.  A literally concrete example of how this is possible exists in ancient Roman technology less than three thousand years old.  Concrete.  The Romans had developed a form of concrete that can set under water.  Many hundreds of years passed before this technology was reinvented, only recently.  It is used today, after having been forgotten for centuries.

 

Another ordinary example is steam power.  In the year 90, in Alexandria Egypt, a working, rudimentary steam turbine engine was invented and put on display.  However, while the invention proved the principle that steam power can be harnessed to do work, no one at the time took the demonstration seriously enough to further develop it into a practical, useful steam engine.  This further development took centuries, and when it did, steam engines powered the Industrial Revolution.  One can only imagine how radically history might have been changed had the ancient engineers recognized the potential of their invention, a potential which today we recognize as obvious. 

 

If these examples exist within recorded history, perhaps there is evidence that before recorded history, these, or other, potentials were recognized and developed to a high degree, higher than we have developed them today—but then lost, just as in the case of the concrete.

 

Before we dismiss this possibility as being unfounded speculation, we should consider that even the most conservative archaeologists admit that the present paradigm needs revision at the least, and perhaps even an overhaul.

 

The dig at Göbekli Tepe is one example.  Before it was explored, the paradigm stated that human civilization began in caves, attested to by the drawings therein.  This culture stagnated through millennia of hunting and gathering.  Then, around 6,000 years ago, came the development of agriculture.  This led to the agricultural revolution, in which humans settled into farming communities.  Only after stable, settled communities had been established, did humans begin their practice of building large stone structures (megaliths), such as Stonehenge and the Pyramids.  At least, that is the paradigm.

That paradigm was strongly shaken, however, because Göbekli Tepe is dated as being around 11,000 years old.  Further evidence shows that the builders were hunter-gatherers, not farmers.  How is this possible?  How could hunter-gatherers build megaliths?  Sociologists struggle to revise their model of how societies formed and advanced.

While all of this may be dismissed as anecdotal curiosity, there are too many more data points to ignore.

 

---1.       When the corpse of the so-called Ice Man was discovered after having been frozen for five thousand years, there was found among his possessions a copper hammer.  The production of such an artifact proved that his society was capable of a degree of technology well in advance of what had previously been considered possible. 

 

---2.       The pyramids in Egypt are a well-known example of ancient engineering that continues to defy explanation.  Modern-day builders cannot duplicate them without extensive use of power tools that are deemed not to have been available in ancient times.  Contrary to popular belief, no human remains have ever been discovered inside the three largest pyramids, making their purpose a matter of controversy.  Indeed, the very age of these three pyramids may be far older than present estimates. 

---3.       The Sphinx also presents well-documented issues that call into question its age.  It has features that indicate extensive erosion caused by heavy rains or floods, conditions which have not existed in Egypt since before the Sphinx is said to have been built.  Its facial features do not conform to the pharaoh that scholars say it represents.

 ---4.       It is also known that the pharaohs of ancient Egypt often reinvented their own history to glorify whichever pharaoh was in power at the time.  Each pharaoh claimed credit for the achievements of others, denigrated former rulers, and embellished accounts of their own exploits.  Therefore, all claims that the pyramids were built by known Pharaohs are subject to doubt and dispute.  It is nothing extraordinary to suggest that the pyramids were built long before any pharaoh came into power.

 

Part II
Replacing the historic paradigm presents its own uncertainties.

 

The megalithic structures such as pyramids could not have been built without extensive infrastructure.  This would have included tools and means of transport.  The evidence for the necessary infrastructure is scant at best.  Other forms of infrastructure would have included record keeping.  The ancient Egyptians seem to have kept meticulous records, but where are the records of tools, of labor, and technique?

 

At https://www.history.com/news/egypts-oldest-papyri-detail-great-pyramid-construction

There is an indication that ancient accounting documents have been discovered which record the construction of one of the three great pyramids.  If the documents do indeed give a detailed analysis that reasonably answers the questions, then this will provide powerful support for the current paradigm, or at least a large portion of it.

 

What would really help is a set of engineering documents, comparable to modern-day blueprints, along with something like flowcharts that show the schedule of steps in construction.  Such documents would permit, at least in principle, a means of constructing a duplicate pyramid using ancient tools and techniques.  It seems inconceivable that a complicated project could be successful without a high level of documentation both before and during the construction.  Such documentation might have existed, and the recent discovery might include them.

 

Even so, there remains the mysteries of technique and tools.  Massive amounts of stone had to be quarried, measured and cut with great precision.  Doing this with copper tools would have required enormous amounts of copper, because copper is soft, and the tools would quickly wear out.  Did the ancients recover the tiny grains of copper that would fall from the tools, or did they simply quarry more copper? 

 

Lifting the stones into place would also have posed significant problems.  How that was done remains unclear.  Were levers and pulleys used?  Block and tackle?  Wood?  Is there evidence, or recordings, that shed light on the tools and methods of construction?

 

Speaking of shedding light, another problem with the pyramids is that there seems to be no evidence of torches or lamps that lit the interior passageways.  Such items should have left soot or other residue.  Were these cleaned up?  Or was some other, as yet unknown method of illumination used?

 

If the latter, then why was the method lost?  Why is there no record of this—or is there?

 

Finally, there is the question, for what function, or expected function, were the pyramids built?  Do the written records specify a function?  Their supposed use as tombs seems to be unsubstantiated by the physical evidence.  No mummies, coffins or other such evidence has been found.  Some of the passageways seem to be at peculiar angles.  Were these design details ceremonial?  Were they based in myth, legend, and superstition?  Did the pyramids serve some purpose as astronomical observatories? 

 

All of these questions should be addressed by ancillary evidence, such as documents, or by implements such as tools, measuring devices or the like.

 

Turning again to the mysteries at Göbekli Tepe, there not only seems to be no formally kept records, it is questionable whether writing had even been invented at the time.  The structures there are far simpler than the pyramids, and it is conceivable that they could have been built without a high degree of infrastructure.  Even so, they did require enormous amounts of time and labor, something which requires constant motivation by large numbers of people for long periods of time.  The mystery here is as much one of human nature as it is of the physics of construction.

Part III

Has human nature evolved significantly in the past 12,000 years?

 

The advent of science and technology has redirected human activity from superstition and symbolism to logic and reason.  In this regard, there have been suggestions that humans think differently now than they did in prehistoric times.  How much differently is unknown, but clearly, in ancient times, superstition and symbolism were much more dominant among the ruling classes than is now the case.

 

People then lived much closer to nature than we do today.  They were intimately familiar with its nuances.  In modern times, by contrast, these nuances escape the notice of city dwellers, who have little or no contact with the wilderness.  Because of this, it has been suggested that some ancient societies were able to exploit principles of nature that we do not understand, and thereby to develop advanced technologies which we have not.

 

If this seems to be too extraordinary to believe, consider, for example, the modern science of quantum physics.  This branch of science allows technologists to produce the components necessary for computers.  Consider also, the physics of general relativity.  This branch of science allows technologists to produce such things as global positioning satellites. 

 

Neither of these sciences is intuitive.  They both require ways of thinking that at first seem illogical, unreasonable, and mysterious.  What is more problematic, is that the quantum and relativistic theories are incompatible with each other.  We have a seeming paradox, in which two scientific bodies must both be correct, while at the same time, they seem to contradict each other.  How can this be?

 

Almost certainly, they do not really contradict each other, but rather, our human ways of thinking need to change in such a way that scientists can resolve the seeming discrepancies.  We probably need new discoveries, but at the same time, we need new methodologies, indeed a new paradigm.

 

This need is beginning to show up in social structures and politics.  Two opposed systems of economics are at the heart of political movements around the world.  Socialism and capitalism are being positioned in a conflict that cannot end well for either side.  Socialism has too often been interlocked with authoritarian regimes that wreck their economies.  Capitalism has succeeded in spreading wealth to billions of people, but has concentrated too much wealth in too few hands, leaving the lowest rungs of society to feel oppressed by debt, and by a system rigged against them.  Whichever system people live under, many are perceiving that their system does not work for them, and in both cases, there is the irony that the grass seems greener on the other side.

 

Our ways of thinking dictate our actions.  They direct our science.  They direct our systems of governance.  They shape our ethics and morality.  The question is, did the ancients have a way of thinking, a way of perceiving reality, that enabled them to detect natural principles that are invisible to us?  Did they apply these principles to technology?

 

If they did, then surely, something catastrophic must have happened to obliterate all, or nearly all, traces of those technologies.  Coincidentally or not, nearly all societies today have legends of precisely such a catastrophe, a worldwide event, before which there is little or no record.

 

In South America, recent satellite images have revealed that a very large civilization once existed, that ended about 6,000 years ago, right about the time when the catastrophe is thought to have occurred.

 

At this point, our discussion must stop, to await further developments.  Speculation can be useful if it is well reasoned, debated, and set aside to await those developments.  Far too many people are selling books based on these speculations.  When they do, they become locked in to one or another paradigm, the details of which are either too sketchy to be informative, or far more detailed than is warranted by the known facts.

For now, it is enough that we recognize our limitations, work diligently to overcome them, and to remain open to the ideas that other people present to us.  The universe is a place of seemingly endless mysteries, and if we cannot solve all of them, we can at least savor and delight in them.

 

Indeed, perhaps doing that is part of the secret of the ancients.

The Prediction Paradox

The prediction paradox is a thought experiment which may demonstrate that a deterministic universe is inherently impossible.  It attempts to show that under some circumstances, a deterministic chain of events may lead to two mutually exclusive outcomes, both of which must happen.  The impossibility of that is what produces the paradox.

The thought experiment begins with the stipulation, already accepted by many (if not most) physicists that the universe is in principle predictable in every detail, and has been since it began.  The chain of cause and effect, in principle, is immutable and inalterable.

A familiar way of simplifying that concept is to cite a row of dominoes, wherein the tipping of one domino produces a chain reaction that leads to the tipping of all the dominos.  In this example there is no paradox.

Let’s use another example.  Suppose that one has planned a picnic on a certain date.  One then forecasts the weather, and sees that there will be inclement weather that day.  This forecast causes one to change the plans for the picnic, either to cancel it or to reschedule it.

This is still not the paradox, but it sets the stage for it.

Now, let us examine the paradox.  It begins with the question of whether the predictability (in principle) of the universe can produce a correct prediction (in actual fact) by a human (or other agent).   

If the answer to that question us no, that in itself poses a philosophical dilemma which bears careful investigation—what principle prevents accurate prediction in a theoretically predictable universe?

On the other hand, if the answer yes—if practical inerrant predictability is possible—then can such a prediction be the cause of altering subsequent events, thereby rendering the inerrant prediction to become false?

At this point, the paradox becomes a bit more convoluted, as do the rebuttals.  Those rebuttals perhaps are made plausible because there may be a flaw in the way the paradox is expressed, but there is a persistent underpinning that seems to remain despite all the rebuttals.

The most convenient way out of the paradox is to reject the idea that the universe is, whether in principle or not, inherently predictable.

If predictions are made by human agents whose thinking is not dictated by inexorable cause and effect, but rather, by people who can think as truly independent agents through their free will—if this is the case, then the chain of cause and effect in the universe is alterable by such free-thinking agents.

Since most physicalists seem to reject even the possibility of such volition, it remains their duty (imposed by me) to answer the following questions:

1. Can the predictability (in principle) of the universe produce a correct prediction (in actual fact) by a human (or other agent)?   
2. If not, then what principle prevents accurate prediction in a theoretically predictable universe? 
3. What would be the consequences of practical unpredictability in a deterministic universe?
4. On the other hand, if the answer yes—if practical inerrant predictability is possible—then can such a prediction be the cause of altering subsequent events, thereby rendering the inerrant prediction to become false?
5. Is there a way out of the paradox other than the existence of free will?

= = = = = =

Other recipients:

Thanks for a well-stated post, Adur. As you say, there are so many problems with determinism and multi-verse theory that the proponents bear a heavy burden of proof. For example, the theory that says, "anything that can happen, must happen, and

A reader responded on another discussion board.

My reply:

As you say, there are so many problems with determinism and multi-verse theory

that the proponents bear a heavy burden of proof.

For example, the theory that says, "anything that can happen, must happen, and must happen an infinite number of times," is in my view, another way of saying that "nothing ever happens."

i.e., if you flip a coin, and it lands both heads and tails, then in effect, the outcome is neutral.The two cancel each other out.  Things may happen locally, but on the whole, nature would be a non-event.

My proposal takes a short-cut, by attempting to prove that determinism cannot rule the universe,

and that, therefore, free will must come into play.  Since free will is a force external to physics, it
strongly implies that there is a nature above nature, a super-nature, a spiritual reality that underpins
physical reality.
 
But that's jumping ahead.  Let's back up.
 
In the past, when I have proposed the paradox, the response has been something like this:
 
In a deterministic universe, any possible prediction would already have been "foreseen" (so to speak)
by the chain of events, by cause-and-effect.  Not only would the chain of events have predicted that the
prediction would be made, but also, any consequences of that prediction are also predetermined.
Therefore, there can be no paradox.
 
While this initially sounds like it disqualifies the paradox, a deeper dive is required.

That is why I ask the five questions at the end of the OP.

 

1.       Can the predictability (in principle) of the universe produce a correct prediction (in actual fact) by a human (or other agent)?   

2.       If not, then what principle prevents accurate prediction in a theoretically predictable universe? 

3.       What would be the consequences of practical unpredictability in a deterministic universe?

4.       On the other hand, if the answer yes—if practical inerrant predictability is possible—then can such a prediction be the cause of altering subsequent events, thereby rendering the inerrant prediction to become false?

5.       Is there a way out of the paradox other than the existence of free will?

I have not seen these questions asked or answered in any other forum.

Perhaps there are really good answers to them that disqualify the prediction paradox,
and perhaps any answers are beyond my limited intellectual abilities.
 
Even a blind squirrel can find a nut now and then, and I smell a nut in here somewhere.

= = = = =
It would seem absurd that in a predictable, deterministic universe,

a predictor could be forced to make a prediction which is accurate,

and then be forced to predict that his accurate prediction will now alter the original prediction,

rendering it inaccurate, in which case, he would no longer have to alter the prediction,

making it accurate once again, in an eternally oscillating series of conflicting predictions.

= = = = =
 

Previously poorly worded post:

Here is a puzzle.  Can you solve it?

In a deterministic universe, it should be possible, in principle, to predict the future course of events.  Furthermore, if such a prediction were made, it would itself be made because deterministic cause-and-effect forced it to be made.  Moreover, the prediction might be correct, insofar as it was based on the inevitable outcome of the past chain of cause-and-effect.  Herein, a paradox could arise.  The very act of making the prediction could itself cause the prediction to not occur, even though based on determinism, it was correct and inevitable. 

However, if the prediction were accurate, it would have to predict that the prediction itself would render the prediction inaccurate.

Therefore, because of this possible paradox, it must be concluded that a predictable determinism cannot exist.

Can a correct prediction, based in determinism, predict that the prediction itself will alter what it predicted, making it incorrect?

The Universe is Purpose-Built

That's why it works.

Can Existence be without Purpose?

If we begin with the (obvious) premise that we perceive that we exist, and then conclude (obviously) that we do exist, then the next question that must be asked is, is there a (cosmic) purpose for our existence?

While the premise and conclusion (listed above) are obvious (to most people), the next question seems not to have an obvious answer, particularly to physicalists.  To them, the perception of physical existence is proof enough that reality is physical, and only physical.  To the physicalist, everything is material, even perception—but can perception be explained as being purely physical?  Does not the very perception itself, of physical reality, suggest something of a higher order?

At its most extreme, the purely physicalist view is that physical nature exists without plan, purpose or meaning, and moreover, that it could exist just as it is, even if there were no conscious beings to perceive it.

To them, life is merely a chemical process, a sort of molecular chain reaction, a series of self-regenerating chemicals.  To them, life relies upon physical reality, but physical reality does not rely upon life, nor upon consciousness, nor upon any form of wilfull intent.

Consciousness (and conscious perception) poses a larger problem for physicalists, and they admit (generally) that they have not answered the question of what consciousness is—but they profess to be making progress toward producing a purely physical explanation for it.  (In fact, they will be able to produce such an explanation only if they define consciousness as being something other than our ineffable inward experience of it.)

Cosmic purpose involves an entirely higher level of perceived reality, encompassing something that is completely outside the thinking of physicalists.  Indeed, it involves something that is regarded as physically impossible:  the existence of an independent, sovereign, causative agent other than physical.

Yet, purpose is something we all experience in our daily life.  It involves having a desire for something, be it merely air, water and food; or be it comfort and pleasure; or be it prestige, intellectual satisfaction, or heaven.  Having desires, we set out to obtain the objectives.  In the course of doing that, we make plans and exert effort.  All of this encompasses a sense of purpose, be it base or lofty.

The personal experience of purpose is not, however, something easily attributed to physical nature, at least not within the physicalist framework.  Things just happen, they say.  One thing leads to another.  Cause and effect, and random chance, are all that is needed to explain every event.

Physicalists may assert that they find no evidence, no necessity for any objective purpose in nature.  Yet, such evidence abounds.  It is everywhere.  Its very abundance seems to make it invisible.  If it looks like a duck—you know the saying.  Occam’s Razor.  The universe seems to be intelligently designed, and the most direct explanation for that is, because it is.

This leads to the greatest and most vital question of all, is there a God?

The question of whether or not there is a God (specifically, as in the Torah) is for many people a purely emotional one, whether pro or con.  The true believer is devotedly unshakeable in his faith, but atheists can be just as attached to their disbelief, or perhaps, to their faith in reason.

The question is further encumbered by our inability to define God.  Any such so-called definition must include words such as, unknowable, essence, and transcendent.  It must include concepts such as absolute, ultimate and infinite.  The question cannot be surrounded by reason, nor by intellect, nor even by proof.

Why, then, even ask it?

The only recourse is to rely on divine revelation, a reliance which physicalists reject, and which others seek, but do not find.  However, if one begins with the proposition that life has plan, purpose and meaning—if we assert that life, consciousness and free will are at the core and foundation of nature—then one’s life can be fulfilling in a way that a physicalist world view can never impart.

We can never find God, but we can allow Him to find us.

In the end, each individual is free to choose for himself.  Perhaps that is our purpose.

.

Is Life Inevitable?

 

Planet Earth is teeming with life.  From its coldest climates to its hottest thermal springs, from its highest altitudes to its deepest depths, and from the most obvious places to the least, life seems to be everywhere we look—on Earth.

 

But such seems not to be the case on places other than Earth.  The moon is almost certainly sterile, and Mars, despite its earthlike geo-history, shows no convincingly strong evidence that living creatures have ever existed there.  The moons of Jupiter and Saturn are considered to be places where life might possibly exist, but further investigation is necessary.

 

This further investigation is ongoing, and if life is ever found that did not arise on Earth, it will be a profound discovery, one that will define the universe.  Is it an inherent property of physical nature that life inevitably arises from inert atoms?

 

There is another side to this.  If we search for centuries into the future, scouring the galaxy for any evidence of life, and find none, that also will define the universe.

 

This is the great question of physics, and its answer will be more significant than the exotic questions of dark matter, black holes, and even cosmic inflation.  The question has been phrased, are we alone?  What it really asks is, are we special?  Are we just another phenomenon of physics, or are we in fact the very purpose of physical reality?

 

All sorts of scenarios come to mind, even to the minds of sober-thinking, highly educated professional scientists.  These scientists scan the sky with radio-telescopes, seeking for distant transmissions from extraterrestrial civilizations. So far, except for noise, there is only silence.  Spectroscopes are employed to look for water on exoplanets, the theory being that where there is water, there is the possibility of life having arisen.  Even unusual phenomena such as that observed on “Tabby’s Star,” invite reasonable speculation about exo-civilization engineering on a stellar scale.

 

It remains plausible that, even if life is found to be ubiquitous in the universe, advanced technological civilizations could be exceedingly rare, perhaps unique (meaning ours).  Even if that is found to be the case, or at least the conclusion, the discovery of even the most primeval form of life of extraterrestrial origin, would be of profound significance, because it is assumed by many that our own life originated from such humble origins, and gradually evolved into what we are today.  If we find life, however primitive, anywhere else, there is the implication that other than for chance, we are nothing special.

 

This question of whether we are special is central.  We either are, or not, with very little room if any in the middle.  The secular, physicalist view that we are not special, permits all sorts of sociopathic implications.  That view presents us with the image of a cold, uncaring reality that produced us only by happenstance, and will eradicate us later if not sooner.  If we are not intrinsically worthy of more respect than that, then by what principle should we regard each other as having any objective rights or responsibilities?  In the end, nothing will be of any account.  Final oblivion will render moot any questions of truth, justice, or morality.

 

Finding ourselves unique in the universe may not answer any of that, but it will force us to ask whether we exist by accident or intent.  Intent will be a very plausible consideration.

 

On the other hand, suppose that we somehow do conclude that there are highly advanced, technological civilizations spanning the cosmos.  That opens infinite possible paradigms.  Are the exoplanets our future, or our doom?  Are their inhabitants, if any there are, like us, or entirely inscrutable?  Do they believe in our humanitarian values, or are they exclusively utilitarian?  Do they believe in God, or are they atheists?

 

Before we veer off on these tangents, we have more immediate and pragmatic concerns.  We know that life exists here on earth, but science defines (or describes) life as a sort of chemical chain reaction arising without plan or purpose from nonliving matter.  Plan and purpose require consciousness, and in fact, we do observe ourselves as conscious creatures, capable of both.  As for questions of intent, we perceive ourselves as sovereign individuals endowed with free will, and therefore, acting with intent, as well as purpose.

 

Physicalism defines reality as being composed of space-time and energy-mass, governed by natural law and mathematical constants.  It recognizes neither plan nor purpose, mis-defines life, cannot identify precisely what consciousness is, and denies that free will can exist.

 

The God paradigm recognizes that life is more than the chemicals which exhibit it, regards consciousness as evidence that we are beings with a spiritual dimension, and holds that free will makes us participants in our lives, accountable for our deeds.

While there are variations within each of these two paradigms, neutrality seems an untenable option.