Link for the boyfriend

[treeskin]

Got this off the campus infolist; someone sends out links to teaching resources periodically. Anyway, there's a 3-hr mini-series from PBS on the Elegant Universe--String Theory. The email said it's all online. Have fun!

Comments

[bladed-pentacle.livejournal.com]

For those who might be wondering, the reason Jera posted this is because of one of my long-term projects. For years, I've noticed that a lot of people think us Pagan folk are nuts not because of the polytheism angle, but because of magick. So, I figured I'd try and see if there wasn't some sort of scientific angle by which to explain magick. After all, if science can explain it--even if you can provide a reasonable hypothesis--you're far less likely to be labeled a crackpot. Based on some of my studies, I'd noticed that quantum physics and some of the truly odd things associated with it might provide a place to start looking for answers.

I found a book last spring that detailed several aspects of how quantum physics might start to explain magick. Okay, cool. Then I started reading "The Elegant Universe" (one of the things I picked up on the Great Lawrence Excursion). Turns out that while string theory isn't easily verified by experimental means, the math works astoundingly well. Trouble is, it undermines the core ideas expressed in the book I picked up earlier this year. So, arrogant fool that I am, I decided to see if I could find a way to merge the first theory with what I've learned about string theory (and, no, I'm really not talking about knitting--much to Jera's dismay). And, luckily, now I've got another resource with which to work.

Thanks, sweetheart. Least now I've got something to do this weekend. :)

[cammie018.livejournal.com]

If you are wanting to look into links between theoretical physics and magic, this might have some info. I will look around tonight and see if I still have those books.

http://www.theory.caltech.edu/

[bladed-pentacle.livejournal.com]

Books? What are these books of which you speak?

[cammie018.livejournal.com]

It's way to late and I am still at work, I am unable to recognize sarcasm right now :)

[bladed-pentacle.livejournal.com]

Actually, I wasn't being sarcastic. Was wondering which books you were referring to. Until I saw your earlier comment and realized what you were talking about.

**suddenly feels WAAAAY too dumb to be studying high-energy multidimensional physics**

[iarraidh.livejournal.com]

I think a lot of us that have interest in science have also seen the possible relationship between 'magick' and the yet-do-be-quantified physics.

Some people look to Science as the Truth Detector; the absolute.
If you go back and look, there is of course the famous "bumblebees can't fly" situation, along with way too many 'scientific facts' that have been disproven for this to be True.

For me, what Is IS.
It is Science that is growing and developing.
We allow ourselves that when Science grows and learns enough to be able to wrap its theorems around something, when Science finally develops a way to measure something older than Time, that this previously unbelievable thing is now Fact; it is now Scientifically Proven, and therefore it's OK to believe it.

"I have this nifty pair of calipers. Everything that I can measure with it is Real. Anything I cannot measure with it is theory, conjecture or myth."
Kinda limiting for my tastes.

For some, Science is the Religion; the go/no-go switch that tells you what you can believe. Yet a thousand years ago, look where Science was. The Universe was as it is now, but Science saw it compeletely differently.
The Universe did not fundamentally change; Science did.

So which is the more stable, more "believable" entity?

Once upon a time, there was a 2 dimensional world. It was completely composed of 2 dimensional geometric entities. They were happy in the security of their 2 dimensional world.
One day a sphere, happily going along its own way, passed through the plane of this 2 dimensional world.
To the 2 dimensional creatures, a strange and unknown Point suddenly appeared out of nowhere. It started to grow in every direction. Curiousity surrendered to abject panic; their scientists used every tool they had, and predicted that the evil would consume their entire world. The 2 dimensional creatures waged war on the evil; but to no avail.
In time, the Priests came to dispell the Evil. All rites and rituals were hurled at the Evil.
About this time the equator of the sphere was passing through the plane.
The Evil was shrinking; it was getting smaller! Religion was saving the day!
The Evil shrunk back to a point and disappeared completely.
The 2 dimensional world was shaken forever.
The sphere was only aware of a tickle that was moving from its bottom to its top and giggled.

"Captain, his manuevers indicate 2 dimensional thinking..."

Sometimes Science is not the Be All - End All our society wants it to be now, is it?

[bladed-pentacle.livejournal.com]

Continuing this train of thought here in my journal...