Reply to: Happy Birthday Euler

[OwlHoot]

There is a school of thought among physicists that the equations are the reality.

Many physicists have a formalism fetish. But that's taking it to ridiculous extremes.

In principle, equations are only a codified and abbreviated form of prose or conversation.

[NotAllThere]

Physicists don't agree there are more than 3 physical dimensions. They (mostly) agree that the maths to explain observed behaviour seem to require extra dimensions. They are concerned with what makes things add up, not what actually IS (and many say the latter isn't really important).

There is a school of thought among physicists that the equations are the reality.

[istvan]

Physicists don't agree there are more than 3 physical dimensions. They (mostly) agree that the maths to explain observed behaviour seem to require extra dimensions. They are concerned with what makes things add up, not what actually IS (and many say the latter isn't really important).

A decade or more and we will live mostly in a virtual reality, holodeck etc...

[d000hg]

Physicists don't agree there are more than 3 physical dimensions. They (mostly) agree that the maths to explain observed behaviour seem to require extra dimensions. They are concerned with what makes things add up, not what actually IS (and many say the latter isn't really important).

[NotAllThere]

There is no real world. It's all an AndyW illusion.

[istvan]

Physicists often use many more dimensions than this - e.g. when considering phase space.Hilbert spaces are (countably) infinite dimensional, and they're used in physics as well.

It is still a model, albeit helpful in science, engineering, etc. We do not know how many dimensions are in real world. Think of it, I am starting to be puzzled, what is real world...

[NotAllThere]

...Well, scientist agree that there are more then 3, some go all the way to 11. Mathematics can however describe umpteen million dimensions. It is an abstraction. ...

Physicists often use many more dimensions than this - e.g. when considering phase space.Hilbert spaces are (countably) infinite dimensional, and they're used in physics as well.

[d000hg]

I'm fairly sure early cultures didn't just have 1,2, many. How would you know a fair dowry for your daughter, or how many cabbages a chicken was worth?

[istvan]

Nope integers are man made, most early civilizations only had numbers for 1 and 2 with others being many. Also God does not exist.

Proggy will not exist in 100 years, the only thing we can prove by deductive reasoning...

By the way, mathematics is a "language" describing abstract ideas invented by humans. It describes more then just the real world. Integers are part of this "language" they exist in real world as we understand it. Complex numbers also exist in real life as it describes physical behavior of electricity in electric circuits. However mathematics can describe n-number of dimensions. How many dimensions exist in the real world? Well, scientist agree that there are more then 3, some go all the way to 11. Mathematics can however describe umpteen million dimensions. It is an abstraction. Why do we mix God into this? One man believes in him, another does not. There was no one yet to prove or disprove his existence. It is like telling a spider about the world 100 miles away. A spider can only see about 6-18 inches into its surrounding. A spider in London will either believe or disbelieve about the existence of the Moon. No spider will be able to prove or disprove the existence of the Moon for it, even if a spider will tell about its "encounter" with the Moon (tide, etc.).

[minestrone]

I can remember the joys of beam theory.

[proggy]

Georg Cantor was also a religious man. The remarks may have been couched in religious terms, but the argument was at a mathematical/philosophical level, not religious.

Fair enough, I guess he was arguing everything could be derived from integers, but they were the starting point for all mathematics.

[NotAllThere]

I understand the Einstein quote not being taken literally, but this Kronecker was a religious man so he probably believed it...

Georg Cantor was also a religious man. The remarks may have been couched in religious terms, but the argument was at a mathematical/philosophical level, not religious.

[d000hg]

Oh it does. Calling someone a clot because they're in the opposite camp in a centuries-old debate is indicative of deep ignorance.

I didn't call him a clot because he's in the opposite camp in a centuries-old debate.

Although even here your hypocrisy is incredible. You call people a clot all the time because they're in the opposite camp in a millennia-old debate about the existance of God.

[proggy]

It was in the context of a saying by Kronecker - its not meant to be taken so literally FFS.
Its similar to the atheist Einsten saying "God does not play dice".

I understand the Einstein quote not being taken literally, but this Kronecker was a religious man so he probably believed it. It's all academic though as we can all agree......I won!

[NotAllThere]

... So it God created the world in 7 days not religious either?

No. It's "creationism" which isn't terribly far from "cretinism".