We are survival machines – robot vehicles blindly programmed to preserve the selfish molecules known as genes. This is a truth which still fills me with astonishment.
Richard DawkinsRead
The revolution which began with the creation of quantum theory and relativity theory can only be finished with their unification into a single theory that can give us a single, comprehensive picture of nature.
Interpretation
This quote emphasizes the importance of unifying theories in physics to achieve a complete understanding of nature.
Lee Smolin emphasizes the revolutionary shift in physics initiated by quantum theory and relativity, suggesting that the true completion of this scientific revolution lies in unifying these theories into a singular framework. This unification would allow for a comprehensive understanding of the natural world, reflecting the ongoing pursuit of knowledge in science and the interconnectivity of different theories.
In practice
In a lecture on the future of physics, one might quote this to inspire students about the importance of theoretical integration.
We are survival machines – robot vehicles blindly programmed to preserve the selfish molecules known as genes. This is a truth which still fills me with astonishment.
There are no black holes in the sense of regimes from which light can't escape to infinity.
One lesson astronomy tells us is that we're a tiny mote in a hostile void, and help is too far away.
If our local, observable universe is embedded in a larger structure, a multiverse, then there's other places in this larger structure that have denizens in them that call their local environs the universe. And conditions in those other places could be very different. Or they could be pretty similar to what we have here.
A physicist is just an atom's way of looking at itself.
Innovation is everyones responsibility, not just R&Ds.
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