Home > Science and Technology > Physics > Physics

Topic:string theory

Visit our new topic page about string theory

string theory

The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition | Date: 2008

string theory description of elementary particles based on one-dimensional curves, or "strings," instead of point particles. Superstring theory, which is string theory that contains a kind of symmetry known as supersymmetry, shows promise as a way of unifying the four known fundamental forces of nature. The strings are embedded in a space-time having as many as 10 dimensions—the three ordinary dimensions plus time and seven compactified dimensions. The energy-scale at which the stringlike properties would become evident is so high that it is currently unclear how any of the forms of the theory could be tested.

Bibliography: See P. C. W. Davies and J. Brown, ed., Superstrings (1988); L. Smolin, The Trouble with Physics (2006).

Author not available, STRING THEORY., The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition 2008

Related newspaper, magazine, and journal articles from HighBeam Research

	Fit to be tied: impatience with string theory boils over. Science News; 10/21/2006; Weiss, Peter; 1956 words ; ... articles, and interviews with Science News that the theory remains rudimentary and ... popularity surged. Woit, age 48, tells Science News that as a theoretical-physics postdoc ... grassroots thing, Strominger told Science News. Woit's and Smolin's books have generated ... Read more
	'String theory' is new dimension Deseret News (Salt Lake City); 10/13/2003; Joe Bauman Deseret Morning News; 864 words ; During the late 20th century, "much of the public considered physics kind of nutty," conceded Richard H. Price, University of Utah physics professor. "Now physicists consider physics kind of nutty." Price's comments came last week when he introduced Gary T. Horowitz, professor of physics at the Read more
	THE GOOD AND BAD OF STRING THEORY.(News) The Cincinnati Post (Cincinnati, OH); 3/18/2005; 549 words ; Byline: Keay Davidson San Francisco Chronicle The most celebrated theory in modern physics faces increasing attacks from skeptics who fear it has lured a generation of researchers down an intellectual dead end. In its original, simplified form, circa the mid-1980s, string theory held that reality Read more
	String theory seems to unravel: Two new books seriously question whether the once-lauded string theory has been good for the field of physics.(Book review) Philadelphia Inquirer (Philadelphia, PA); 12/20/2006; Bortz, Fred; 1001 words ; Byline: Fred Bortz ``The Trouble With Physics: The Rise of String Theory, the Fall of a Science, and What Comes Next'' by Lee Smolin; Houghton Mifflin ($26) ``Not Even Wrong: The Failure of String Theory and the Search for Unity in Physical Law'' by Peter Woit; Basic Books ($26) I recently Read more
	Math, physics experts team up at Snowbird meet on 'string theory' Deseret News (Salt Lake City); 6/14/2004; Joe Bauman Deseret Morning News; 628 words ; SNOWBIRD RESORT -- Mathematicians and physicists seem to live in separate realms, one group working with numbers and the other studying the physical world. But in the peculiar case of string theory, their fields converge. They also converged last week at Snowbird, when researchers in both areas Read more
	Caught up in string The Independent - London; 3/18/1997; 1101 words ; Just as the world of fashion cycles around various vogues, so in science theories come and go in terms of their popularity. Just as flared trousers have come in, gone out and come back, so string theory has ebbed and, now, flowed back in to the mainstream. Many people have heard of string theory, Read more
	RESISTING THE SUPREMACY OF STRING THEORY The Boston Globe; 9/17/2006; Anthony Doerr; 788 words ; Quick, explain string theory! Well, OK, string theory postulates that the tiniest, most elementary particles, the fundamental ingredients of all matter and energy, are not zero-dimensional points, as they had previously been imagined, but one-dimensional filaments that vibrate like rubber bands. Read more
	Strings and mirrors. (string theory) Science News; 2/27/1993; Peterson, Ivars; 2273 words ; Burrowing into the crumpled-up heart of string theory In the 1920s, two powerful ideas took hold in physics. Quantum theory held that electrons in atoms could have only certain energies. The special theory of relativity insisted that no particles could travel faster than the speed of light. But Read more
	String theory Columbia Daily Tribune; 4/26/2008; NICK KING; 2 words ; Caption text only. Read more
	UNUNIFIED THEORY; Expert quest to prove strings bind universe.(LIFE - SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY) The Washington Times; 3/8/2007; 993 words ; Byline: Jen Waters, THE WASHINGTON TIMES The universe just might be hanging together by strings. Many scientists think that string theory, a unified theory of the universe, could unite quantum mechanics and general relativity. Albert Einstein worked for many years to find such a theory but came up Read more

See all related premium articles

Related entries from encyclopedias, dictionaries, and thesauruses

	string theory Britannica Concise Encyclopedia ... points in space-time . Different vibrations of the strings correspond to different particles. Introduced ... 1970s in attempts to describe the strong force , string theories became popular in the 1980s when it was ... provide a fully self-consistent quantum field theory that could describe gravitation as ... Read more
	The Domino Theory Encyclopedia of American Foreign Policy ... forces to Vietnam, and the fact that the domino theory said this commitment was necessary was an important ... expanded during the following years, belief in the theory faded. People endorsed the theory only if they were willing to endorse the commitment ... dramatically. There were still believers in the ... Read more
	string variable A Dictionary of Psychology string variable n. In statistics and measurement theory, any variable whose values contain letters or other characters instead of or in addition to numbers. Also called an alphanumeric variable. Compare numeric variable . Read more
	Development Doctrine and Modernization Theory Encyclopedia of American Foreign Policy ... United States and the world. Rostow's theory redefined the Cold War as a contest fought ... presented his doctrine as a universal theory of history. Rostow's syntheses standardized ... Marxist doctrine it responded to, Rostovian theory achieved its plausibility and explanatory ... Read more
	information theory The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition or communication theory, mathematical theory formulated principally by the American ... information and communication. While the theory is not specific in all respects ... limitations of such systems. In information theory, the term information is used in ... since it is entirely possible for a ... Read more