PBS Space Time has the same info but more fun than Wikipedia ;-)
The Theory That There Is Only One Electron in the Universe
21–30 of 93 posts
Re: The Theory That There Is Only One Electron in the Universe
#22...and Wheeler stole it from Stueckelberg.
so he stole it from the one and only Baron Ernst Carl Gerlach Stueckelberg von Breidenbach zu Breidenstein und Melsbach
Re: The Theory That There Is Only One Electron in the Universe
#23Are there really electrons? Or does observable phenomena simply fit with the theory of electrons?
If you can explain the difference, maybe you can help me make sense of postmodern philosophy.
It's the usual map / territory or model / reality difference. If you've ever heard or said the Box-ism "All models are wrong, but some are useful" you've been introduced.
Some practice with it may even be a good intro to some veins of actual postmodernism (as opposed to piñata postmodernism which is mostly stuffed with straw by people who like hitting it).
Re: The Theory That There Is Only One Electron in the Universe
#24Earlier quoted context omitted.
I don't think you understood the question. It was about the status of theories, not the status of reality.
It was about the status of theories, not the status of reality. What is the difference?
“In theory, practice and theory are the same. In practice...”
Re: The Theory That There Is Only One Electron in the Universe
#25Re: The Theory That There Is Only One Electron in the Universe
#26This is the basis of one of my favorite jokes about interview questions: "How many electrons are there?" (No, I do not use this question)
Re: The Theory That There Is Only One Electron in the Universe
#27Obviously, Wheeler was much more knowledgeable about physics than the likes of me, so my obvious objection must have occurred to him, but here it is.
Electrons have mass, so the total mass of a multiple electrons must be more than the mass of a single electron. Or is there some other mind-bender that would explain why "the" single electron appears to have a trillion times it real mass when that electron's timeline happens to be considered at a particular slice of space and time?
Also, why wouldn't this logic also apply to every other primitive particle: there is only one muon, one tau, one up quark, one down quark, etc?
Re: The Theory That There Is Only One Electron in the Universe
#28Obviously, Wheeler was much more knowledgeable about physics than the likes of me, so my obvious objection must have occurred to him, but here it is. Electrons have mass, so the total mass of a multiple electrons must be more than the mass of a single electron. Or is there some other mind-bender that would explain why "the" single electron appears to have a trillion times it real mass when that electron's timeline ha…
I never thought I would say this, but... I guess I will recommend you watch the movie Tenet.
Re: The Theory That There Is Only One Electron in the Universe
#29A succinct explanation of this theory and some of its consequences can be found here: https://ia600903.us.archive.org/24/items/dr_watchstop_advent...
Switch the PDF display to single-page and find page 33.
Re: The Theory That There Is Only One Electron in the Universe
#30https://youtu.be/pq-L3VCSnwU?si=tJYaISHHqOJ2O-bz
This is a fun discussion which touches on how deep the matter rabbit hole goes.