That assessment is downright rosy in comparison to the critique offered by Columbia University mathematician Peter Woit in Not Even Wrong: The Failure of String Theory and the Search for Unity in Physical Law. His book's subtitle, The Rise of String Theory, the Fall of a Science, and What Comes Next, describes his central argument: It is time to start asking critical questions about whether too many people are putting too much effort following ideas in string theory that seem promising at first but inevitably lead down blind alleys. Smolin hasn't completely given up on string theory, but he is clearly pessimistic. That is The Trouble with Physics, according to the title of a new book by Lee Smolin, a one-time physics wunderkind who in mid-career has founded the Perimeter Institute of Theoretical Institute in Waterloo, Ontario. To many physicists, it appeared to be the path to their science's holy grail, the "grand unification" of all known forces and fundamental particles into a single theory.īut instead of continuing the advance of theoretical physics, the rise of string theory began a period filled with tantalizing near-miss formulations that continues until today. Then a multidimensional mathematical approach called string theory caught fire. For the first three quarters of the century, progress in both theoretical and experimental physics steadily transformed our fundamental understanding of the physical universe. I expected to find some scientific surprises to share with my readers, but the biggest surprise turned out to be historical. Researching the manuscript was a great opportunity to catch up on developments in the field in which I earned my doctorate in 1971. I recently completed writing a high school/college-level history of physics in the 20th century. For permission to publish or print multiple copies of any of the materials on this site, please contact the author by e-mail. Individuals may print single copies of reviews or columns for their own use. Note: Except where noted, all materials on this site are the copyrighted property of Alfred B. Comparative Review: The Trouble With Physics Not Even Wrong Review of The Trouble With Physics: The Rise of String Theory The Fall of a Science and What Comes Nextīy Lee Smolin (Houghton Mifflin, 416 pages, $26.00, September, 2006) and Not Even Wrong String Theory and the Search for Unity in Physical Lawīy Peter Woit (Basic Books, 304 pages, $26.00, September, 2006)
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