mini-post
The Standard Model of Physics dates back to the mid 70s and is far and away the most complete and accurate description of three of the four forces of Nature. Add General Relativity for gravity you have the basis to answer fundamental questions like what we're made of and the forces. That's the bedrock of physics. (the Standard Model with General Relativity tacked on is sometimes called Core Theory) It's something that almost every physicist wants to see fail as there are hints of something deeper.
It's very elegant physics with beautiful mathematics, but good enough non-technical descriptions aren't easy. Here's the best short discussion I've seen.
I should note that while physics can describe all of these interactions, there's a problem with calculation. Our mathematical techniques are often too weak so we have to resort to clever and not so clever approximations. A lot of physics turns out to be applied mathematics.
Steve, this is wonderful. Thanks so much for sharing. I will have to watch it several more times to partially grok it though!
Posted by: Gregg Vesonder | 07/16/2021 at 01:28 PM