Is Reality Digital or Analog? by Jarmo Matti Mäkelä

Enormously clever! And I don't just mean the conceit of talking to Isaac Newton (with a nice paradox-saving ending). I mean the journey through algebra, combinatorics, geometry, to the 4-simplex whose edges correspond to the 10 non-redundant points of the Riemann metric tensor. That is literally where "the rubber meets the road," as they say -- where the discrete comes smack up against the continuous, where " ... the causal properties of spacetime ..." imply the existence of " ... a still unknown law of nature ..." that we hope quantizes spacetime.

I'm betting that you're a very popular lecturer. Bravo.

Tom

A temperature for spacetime is an interesting possibility, but one which might have some problems. To assign spacetime an internal structure with a metric means the entropy of spacetime can be very large. This is an enormous number of degrees of freedom. However, the temperature of spacetime might just be confined to horizons, which reduces the numbers of degrees of freedom, and fluctuations or dynamics outside an event horizon has a map or holographic realization on an event horizon.

Cheers LC

Jarmo Matti Mäkelä,

If you think that my point was silly and not worth your time to respond I understand. I don't agree, but I understand that my viewpoint is not the same as a professionally trained physicist. I thought it was important to point out that I think that no one knows what thermodynamic entropy is. I will move on to other essays. We have a very good quantity along with sufficient quality this year.

James

I said that no one knows what thermodynamic entropy is. The point I am making is that Clausius' definition of entropy is the real definition of entropy. The transferrence of Boltzmann's constant onto Boltzmann's entropy was the beginning of losing sight, if we ever had it in sight, of the meaning of Boltzmann's constant. Boltmann's interpretation of entropy was the first step in ignoring Clausius' definition and finding some more simplistic substitute. I think that Newton would have first said: What is thermodynamic entropy? Perhaps there are others here who will clarify the meaning of thermodynamic entropy for me?

James

Hi Mäkelä,

Your article is ingenious because you put in Newton autority mouth, your ideas.

Guessing, I supose that Newton will agree more with an universal gravitation law modified than with Einstein TGR.

If you replace Beta in the partition formula by one divided Boltzmann constant times Temperature, and as Hawking temperature in a Black Hole is proportional to the inverse of Energy the formula doesn´t diverge.

Bests,

JC

Hi,

When you calculate the partition function, you must assume that the inverse temperature Beta is a constant, and therefore independent of the energy. Once after you have calculated the partition function, you will find the relationship between energy and temperature using the formula of Note 6.

Best,

jarmo

Your metric tensor, and your Newton analogy are very clever. I would like to understand how that contributes to the quantum limit as you propose.

Could you elucidate this point more clearly ?

Andy

Dear Jarmo

I am embarrassed to admit I seem to have a confession to make. Some time ago I heard someone fall down some stairs and went to help, he was in a bad way, mumbling is some alien language and delirious. I picked him up with his papers and bits and carried him off to hospital.

I found afterwards I still had his papers and a strange little machine with HG Wells stamped on it.. but the poor fellow had mysteriously disappeared. I read the papers but they had no name or address. They were entitled "The Complete Quantum Theory of Gravitation". I really didn't know what to do with them. If I'd known they were yours I'd have put them in a time capsule...

As it was I thought I must try to put them and the machine to good use. They both rather scared me! I was worried about causality. What I decided to do was pop forward the 300 years the machine was set to and check if all was ok and we'd managed to find the theory.

Imagine my horror when I discovered it was my fault that we hadn't, ..and that science seemed to have gone backwards in time! I didn't have a clue if you were around or where to find you. The world was strange to me but I managed to survive by popping back and making the odd bet and investment, and have had fun directing some great blockbuster films about a land I visited using your... well never mind about that. I spent a few years checking the theory and it seemed spot on so I eventually decided it best to write it up in my own way and give it to the world. - the complete atomic structure of space time, unifying SR, GR and QM.

But apparently the world doesn't understand it! As only you will I hope you'll read my essay, gently slipping in that the sub space-time medium condenses into an atomic structure to produce space-time itself. The quantum states are ions, re-polarised by black holes, and distributed as plasma in such a way that the every day notion of time and causality are recovered. Actually I think that wording is yours, I mean Sir Isaac's, not mine!

It's been a difficult time, but a massive relief to have found it's owner. I did tentatively refer to it in last years contest, and touch on it quite lightly in my current essay languishing some way below yours (2020 Vision..) But it's better covered in a number of preprints I can pass to you. Here are some recent ones; http://vixra.org/abs/1001.0010 and http://vixra.org/abs/1102.0016

I hope you're able to finally confirm I'm not totally insane. The only way I've managed to hide from the men in white coats so far is to be secretly the 3rd richest man in the world.

I pass it all to you, in Isaac's name. - Do you think I should withdraw or just give you both credits and citations in the paper currently accepted for review!

With massive relief

Peter Jackson

PS. You have a well earned 10 from me. But please do reply asap.

Dear Jarmo,

I must agree with many of your other readers, in that you have given a very creative presentation. The introduction and conclusion are very well and clearly written and are enjoyable. Unfortunately, not being a physics specialist, I found the middle of the essay too technical to follow. Also as I have limited mathematical skill I can not judge if what you have said is technically correct and rigorously argued. I will have to leave that judgment to others.I can see some lively debate and much interest in your comments thread. It is certainly topical and foundational.I suspect it is far more interesting and goes far deeper than I can appreciate and understand.I wish you good luck, Georgina.

Hi,

Thanks for your interesting post. It would really be wonderful, if the papers written by Sir Isaac still existed! I have been reading your pre-prints. They are interesting, but I am not quite sure, whether they are quite similar to the ones, which I was reading just before that unfortunate fall in Newton's stairs. Maybe you have misunderstood some points in Newton's draft? Do you still have the originals? If you do, please take photocopies of them, and send them to the address mentioned in my essay. Many thanks for taking me to the hospital after my fall in Newton's stairs, although I have no recollection of that.

Best,

Jarmo

Dear FQXi community,

There are three kinds of essays in our contest: 1) the essays with original physics research where all physics' information was created by their authors. Often such papers contain some errors or unclear information because it is very difficult to create a NEW physical theory (information). 2) There are essays-stories about physics which contain physics' information copied from physics textbooks or other published papers (for example authors Jarmo Makela, Singh, Durham, Funakoshi and so on). The author's commentaries like 'this theory is good, or not are neither original physics research nor new physics information. These essays-stories cannot have any errors by definition because all physics' information was copied from the textbooks and other published papers. (However, if these authors have added original physics research information in their articles, I'm sure we'll find physical errors in their papers).3) There are essays of mixed type containing mixed information (original research plus physics' information copied from the textbooks and papers). It is clear that the authors of the essays-stories have advantages because their essays never contain errors since all Physics' information was copied from the textbooks. However, it does not mean these essays-stories are better than essays with original research.

What kind of the essays must FQXi community support? If we support the essays-stories then we'll transform FQXi community into the entertainment community. For example, instead of my ''interpretation of quantum mechanics'' I could send the anecdotes about Bohr, Einstein or stories like Gamov's Mr. Tompkins in paperback. It would be very interesting and fun. Another option is to create essays-discussions with Einstein, Bohr, or Aristotle following the example of Jarmo Makela. In this context, the next logical step is to organize a banquet for the authors of essays where we tell jokes and funny stories about physics. What is Our Purpose?

However, since the goals of the FQXi (the "Contest") are to: ''Encourage and support rigorous, innovative, and influential thinking about foundational questions in physics and cosmology; Identify and reward top thinkers in foundational questions'' therefore I ask readers to vote for essays with original physics research rather than for essays-stories about physics. In this way we'll encourage the fundamental physics research but not entertainment essays.

Sincerely,

Constantin

Hi,

Thanks for your message. I you want a really technical account on how metric tensor arises from the quantum states of the constituents of spacetime, (I suppose that was your question?) I advice you to have a look on my paper in arXiv:0805.3952 (Ch. 5). When expressed in very broad, non-technical terms the basic idea is that when a sufficiently large aggregate of the constituents of spacetime is considered, it becomes possible to talk meaningfully about four-simplices. The areas of the triangles of those four-simplices depend on the quantum states of their constituents, and we may express the components of the metric tensor in terms of those triangle areas.

Best,

Jarmo

I really like this discrete geometric treatment of a continuous area. Unless I've missed something in the literature that I shouldn't have, it's nonstandard -- however, I don't think it's a stretch to compare it to Euler's geometric interpretation of the complex plane (e^ipi = - 1) in principle, because it provides a straightforward way to convert a continuous metric into an algebraicaly manageable object.

Tom

Dear Jarmo

You ask; "Maybe you have misunderstood some points in Newton's draft?" I can absolutely reassure you that after many years of study I have in no way fully understood almost all the points of Newtons draft. Indeed using your Wells machine I've searched back and forth for the solution. I've met many interesting people, Florin who made a copy of the machine, Dr Cosmic Ray who told me of the 32 different dimensions, and Albert, who told me of the "infinitely many spaces in relative motion", but we all still have our own perspective, and I learnt that that's a strength not a weakness of humankind.

I disagree with Constantin, content is different to presentation. If you are a top Oxford maths professor and disagree with unreal abstract maths it does no good complaining, you should write a satire about the ridiculous 'Wonderland' it creates so thousands buy the book... ..and .. well.. you can at least retire rich! ..Hmmm. Anyway, I think some have been distracted from the important scientific point!

I'll try to find those papers. But you'll have seen my own exploration of nature is based on nature itself not abstraction. I've interpreted the papers differently, but still seem to have unified SR, GR and QM, and derived quantum gravity, with rigorous logic alone. I'd be eternally grateful if you could either tell me where I've gone wrong, or confirm they're consistent, or where they're not. In return I'll see if I can pop back a bit earlier to see if I can find them on the mantlepiece.

I await your conclusions with the utmost excitement and trepidation.

Your obedient servant.

Peter

Dear Peter,

I read again Jarmo Mäkelä's essay and I can say that this essay has artistic value only. All PHYSICS' information used by Jarmo is generally known information, copied from the textbooks and published papers. The dialogue with Newton is the only contribution of the author Jarmo Mäkelä. Therefore this essay has ARTISTIC VALUE ONLY, and is not scientifically important.

Sincerely,

Constantin

Ok. I assume you strongly disagree.

James

The divergence of the partition function and the microscopic origin of black hole entropy are long-standing, fundamental problems of black hole physics. The "Newton Model" (to give a name to the model) may be regarded as a suggestion for a simple solution to both of these problems, using an assumption that the event horizon of a black hole consists of a finite number of discrete constituents as a starting point. The success of the model is then used as an argument for a discrete nature of spacetime, and the reduction of the metric and the causal properties of spacetime to the quantum states of its contsituents is outlined. Technically, the key point of the model is Eq. (9), which gives an expression for the partition function of the Schwarzschild black hole. According to my best knowledge Eq. (9) has never been published anywhere. The reduction of the metric and the causal properties of spacetime to the quantum states of its cosntituents in a manner described in the model has been considered in some of my earlier works, but nowhere else.

Jarmo

Jarmo,

What a novel way of approaching the topic. When encountered with the brilliance of Newton, I now think of the revelation regarding his first passion of alchemy. I wonder if this has been sensationalized of late.

Jim Hoover

Jarmo,

OK, I'm glad you found some original information in your essay. I wish you success in the contest.

Dear Readers, about 70 percents of all theoretical papers in Physics published in the World are wrong, the Standard Model is a mathematical model only that can compute only but explain nothing. The SM theory will fall in nearest future if you support my theory. This theory is a revolution in physics; Nobody found errors in my theory ever. We need the true Science, without powerful science our civilization may die. Science is our only hope to survive.

Please vote for the FUTURE physics , for teleportation and for life.

Constantin