Week 4 Post 3

I initially wanted to study the Planck's length because it is presumed that the Planck's length is a measurement alien world might be familiar with as well. In my quest, I realized I had made a huge mistake in my search. The Planck's length tells us that there is a minimum length in nature/limit to the amount space and time can be divided. Even though I had read many times about the issue of singularities and infinities in applied mathematics, I was still under the impression that space could be divided into infinitesimally small amounts. When a theory presents an infinity or singularity, something must be faulty within the mathematics as singularities and infinity cannot be proven.

A good example of others who had dealt with this issue is a paradox from philosopher Zeno of Elea. He said to get from one point to another you must first go halfway, then halfway from that, and halfway from that and on and on and on to an infinitesimally small segment of space. How do we get anywhere then? Not only can space not be divided into tiny tiny impossibly small chunks, if you were to add all of the halves of the halves, the sum would approach the whole. 

Another more complex problem is that certainty is assumed. If someone was racing you and you [theoretically] had the technology to locate their position on this infinitesimal scale you would eventually approach some uncertainty as to where the exact location is if the space of their possible positions could be divided into smaller and smaller pieces. 

So does the moment of now actually occupy space? How does this relate to electron configuration?! How does it make sense that there are an infinite amount of movements a particle could have according to particle physics? 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nyPdIBnWOCM

https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/news/a21490/what-is-plancks-constant/

https://www.physlink.com/education/askexperts/ae281.cf

Comments

  1. Ms. DunleyDecember 10, 2020 at 10:48 AM

    Tell me more about the philosopher Zeno of Elea?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Emmy KroneJanuary 8, 2021 at 7:19 AM

      I don't know much else about his, but I do know he is praised for his paradoxes similar to the one I shared that are thought to be extremely profound.

      Delete

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