The Mysterious Connection between Physics and Mathematics by Syed Muhammad Ahmad Tirmazi

Dear Mr. Tirmazi,

I enjoyed reading your essay, which presents a number of clear insights into the relation between mathematics and physics. If you had not stated that you were a freshman, I would have suspected someone with far more education and experience.

Your final sentence paraphrases a comment by Feynman, for which the quotation is: "I think it's much more interesting to live not knowing than to have answers which might be wrong."

In my own essay, I argue that the established mathematical formalism for Quantum Mechanics, the Hilbert-Space Model, may be incorrect. "Remove the Blinders: How Mathematics Distorted the Development of Quantum Theory" presents a simple realistic picture that makes directly testable experimental predictions, based on little more than Stern-Gerlach measurements. Remarkably, these simple experiments have never been done.

The accepted view of QM is that the physics (and mathematics) of the microworld are fundamentally different from those of the macroworld, which of course creates an inevitable boundary problem. I take the radical (and heretical) view that the fundamental organization is the same on both scales, so that the boundary problem immediately disappears. Quantum indeterminacy, superposition, and entanglement are artifacts of the inappropriate mathematical formalism. QM is not a universal theory of matter; it is rather a mechanism for distributed vector fields to self-organize into spin-quantized coherent domains similar to solitons. This requires nonlinear mathematics that is not present in the standard formalism.

So while mathematics provides essential insights into physics, an incorrect mathematical model that becomes established may be seen as virtually religious dogma which is not to be questioned. That prevents further progress.

Best Wishes,

Alan Kadin

Syed - Thanks for an excellent essay. You employ Occam's razor to great effect in keeping your arguments simple. May your studies be fruitful and your career fulfilling!

I agree with your distinction between math as abstract form and physics as empirical studies using math as a tool. They are different. However in my view (The Hole at the Center of Creation), neither is capable of explaining itself, nor is either one capable of explaining the other. This should not dissuade us from pursuing both vigorously --- but it should, I hope, keep us humble. Life is deeper than math and/or physics alone.

Sincere regards - George Gantz

Dear Syed,

Congratulations on a well-written essay. I enjoyed reading it, especially the connection between mathematics and economics. Also your explanation for the effectiveness of mathematics in describing patterns is similar to that in my essay.

Good luck in the contest.

Best,

Mohammed

Dear Syed,

Looking again at your essay I found it worth adding to my list of best essays in my review of essays in this contest. Indeed at your own level you give honor to the beauty and remarkable relevance of mathematics in physics, including its spiritual aspects, which so many other participants in this contest are trying to deny or minimize.

On my review page I provided a list of other essays I found interesting, especially those contributing to the report or the understanding of this remarkable role of mathematics, as well as its limits which I found relevant. I also commented on the difficulties for the best essays to be properly recognized in a community dominated by wrong biases. I think, by sharing our reports between like-minded people we may help each other to find the best essays to explore in the difficult context we are in.

Also you rightly point out the importance of mathematics in economics. I am interested in economics too, and I even found mathematical concepts that can help to build a better economic system.