Feature

Strung together

Is there a theory of everything?

By Matt Crenson

- More than 2 years ago

Physics is really two sciences. There’s quantum mechanics, the weird tumultuous world where particles pop into and out of nothingness and cats can be simultaneously living and dead. And there’s general relativity, Einstein’s majestic vision of massive objects bending space and time.

Caption (opener, p26): Superstring theory attempts to unify gravity with quantum mechanics by describing particles and forces as tiny vibrating strands and loops.