Author Archives: woit

Latest from the Stacks Project

Posted on July 30, 2013 by woit

My colleague Johan de Jong for the last few years has been working on an amazing mathematical endeavor he calls the “Stacks Project”. As boring 20th century technology, this is a work-in-progress document (now nearly 4000 pages), available here. But … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 12 Comments

Bankrupting Physics

Posted on July 28, 2013 by woit

I just spent a depressing and tedious few hours reading through Bankrupting Physics, an English translation of Alexander Unzicker’s 2010 Von Urknall zum Durchknall written in German. When I started reading the thing I wasn’t expecting much, but figured it … Continue reading →

Posted in Book Reviews | 34 Comments

Where are we heading?

Posted on July 23, 2013 by woit

Every summer the IAS in Princeton runs a program for graduate students and postdocs called “Prospects in Theoretical Physics”. It’s going on now, with this year’s topic LHC Physics. Much of the program is devoted to the important but complex … Continue reading →

Posted in Multiverse Mania | 52 Comments

News From All Over

Posted on July 20, 2013 by woit

I confess to mostly finding “philosophy of physics” arguments not very helpful for understanding anything, but for those who feel differently, some new things to look at are a Scientific American article Physicists Debate Whether the World is Made of … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 21 Comments

No Joking Matter

Posted on July 8, 2013 by woit

Back now from vacation, and while I was away several people sent me links to point out that string theory promoters definitely aren’t taking a vacation. Links here with a few quick comments, followed by something about the issue of … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 46 Comments

Hiking the Appalachian Trail

Posted on June 28, 2013 by woit

I’ll be heading North tomorrow, ultimately ending up in backwoods Maine, hiking the Appalachian Trail, then back home after a week or so. The comment section here will likely be closed for the duration. Progress is being made on my … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 10 Comments

Strings 2013 etc.

Posted on June 25, 2013 by woit

These days one can just about attend a wide variety of summer conferences from the comfort of one’s home or office, with talks appearing online more or less immediately after they are given. This week some possibilities to consider are: … Continue reading →

Posted in Strings 2XXX | 20 Comments

Kenneth Wilson 1936-2013

Posted on June 18, 2013 by woit

Kenneth Wilson died this past weekend, in Maine at the age of 77. Some obituaries can be found here, here, here, and here. Wilson won the Nobel prize in 1982 for his work on critical phenomena and phase transitions, but … Continue reading →

Posted in Obituaries | 17 Comments

This Week’s Hype

Posted on June 18, 2013 by woit

In recent years universities have taken to issuing press releases when one of their particle theorists gets a paper on some speculative topic published in a journal like Physical Review Letters. Many examples of such things, often involving bogus claims … Continue reading →

Posted in Multiverse Mania, This Week's Hype | 5 Comments

Farewell to Reality

Posted on June 16, 2013 by woit

Jim Baggott has written a very good new book called Farewell to Reality that will soon come out here in the US. It is already out in the UK, where it is stirring up some debate, and perhaps the US … Continue reading →

Posted in Book Reviews | 84 Comments