Theory predicts parallel universes
Saturday, July 10, 2010 at 11:24AM By Amanda Phipps
Winthrop does not have a physics major, but access to scientific theories such as the String Theory may provide students with opportunities, a physics professor says.
“Physics is the most fundamental of the sciences, but there isn’t a degree program (here at Winthrop),” physics professor Mesgun Sebhatu said. “(This) should be something Winthrop should consider for the future.”
Even though there is no physics degree available yet at Winthrop, Sebhatu stressed that the university does a good job teaching science in the courses offered.
“The introductory physics courses are wonderful,” he said. “(Winthrop) does a good job giving the students the basics.”
However, undergraduate students do not have the opportunity to learn the String Theory because it is too difficult to learn before the graduate school level, Sebhatu said.
“A tremendous background in math and physics is needed (to understand the theory),” he said. The theory is so complicated that only MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) offers it as a program to undergraduate students.
The four fundamental forces of nature are gravity, electromagnetism, weak nuclear forces and strong nuclear forces, Sebhatu said. The String Theory unifies the quantum theory of physics, which includes all forces of nature except gravity, with the General Theory of Relativity, which encompasses gravity.
Sebhatu said the String Theory is a way for scientists to figure out how the world started. It studies string vibrations and predicts parallel universes.
The string vibrations represent particles that carry the gravitational force and have zero mass and two units of spin, or rotations of the string, according to the string theory Web site.
This is the same as a graviton, or the theorized particle. The String Theory is a theory of quantum gravity, which would mean each string would have to be so small that present physics technology cannot see it, according to the string theory Web site.
The Web site stated that String theorists then use real world strings to test the theory.
The String Theory states that as the strings vibrate, they create membranes that collide continuously and eventually create a universe, Sebhatu said. The theory predicts that there are parallel universes and dimensions not yet known to present society.
Sebhatu said String Theory “requires ten dimensions for space and one for time.” He said scientists know of three demensions for space and one for time, but the theory says that the extra seven are too small to see.
Previously thought of as five different theories in 1985, a string theorist at Princeton University showed the five theories were actually branched from a single theory. String Theory came together as a complete and unified theory, but is still in progress, Sebhatu said.
Sebhatu studies the quantum theory but worked on the String Theory for three summers at the University of California in Santa Barbara. He said he had a mentor and interacted with physicists to learn more about String Theory.
The theory is still speculative, Sebhatu said. “The dream of physicists is to come up with a unified theory,” he said. “The String Theory is a work in progress.”
Even though the theory is too complicated to teach at the undergraduate level, Sebhatu said he thinks there should be a physics degree program at Winthrop.
“I don’t know why physics is de-emphasized (at Winthrop),” he said. “It is unfortunate.”
Sebhatu stressed that the budget constraints make it hard for Winthrop to incorporate a physics major, but said the university should if given the opportunity.
“(Students can) branch out into other fields and have many opportunities with a degree in physics,” he said. “I haven’t seen anyone with a physics degree suffer from not being in demand.”
