| 2013 | Farewell to Reality: fairytale physics |
| 2 'Quantum' | p.60 | 21730 | A 'field' is a property with a magnitude, distributed across all of space and time |
| Full Idea: A 'field' is defined in terms of the magnitude of some physical property distributed over every point in time and space. | |||
| From: Jim Baggott (Farewell to Reality: fairytale physics [2013], 2 'Quantum') | |||
| A reaction: If it involves a 'property', normal usage entails that there is some entity which possesses the property. So what's the entity? Eh? Eh? You don't know! Disappointed... |
| 2 'Quantum' | p.60 | 21731 | Fields can be 'scalar', or 'vector', or 'tensor', or 'spinor' |
| Full Idea: Fields can be 'scalar', with no particular direction (pointing, but not pushing or pulling); or 'vector', with a direction (like magnetism, or Newtonian gravity); or 'tensor' (needing further parameters); or 'spinor' (depending on spin orientation). | |||
| From: Jim Baggott (Farewell to Reality: fairytale physics [2013], 2 'Quantum') | |||
| A reaction: [compressed] So the question is, why do they differ? What is it in the nature of each field the result in a distinctive directional feature? |
| 6 n | p.136 | 21732 | The current standard model requires 61 particles |
| Full Idea: The current model requires 61 particles: three generations of two leptons and two flavours of quark, in three different colours (making 24); the anti-particles of all of these (48); 12 force particles (photon, W1, Z0, 8 gluons), and a Higgs boson. | |||
| From: Jim Baggott (Farewell to Reality: fairytale physics [2013], 6 n) |