Re: Why strings are required to halt collapse (was: black holes and singularities)

From: MP (pet.antispam_at_onlinehome.de)
Date: 12/11/04 

Date: Sat, 11 Dec 2004 09:52:56 +0100

"Bill Hobba" <bhobba@rubbish.net.au> wrote in message
news:Rtsud.67862$K7.37671@news-server.bigpond.net.au...
>
> "MP" <pet.antispam@onlinehome.de> wrote in message
> news:cpcljj$bvr$3@online.de...
> >
> > What I find baffling is, when people who believe that the
> > universe is currently accelerating [I don't know if you be-
> > lieve it, but it is the common belief], still insist on telling
> > us that *all* of the assumptions of the singularity theorems
> > [which includes the strong energy condition, clearly
> > violated in an accelerating universe] are perfectly rea-
> > sonable and *must* be realized in the real physical world.
> >
> > This is the point, where I don't know whether I should
> > laugh, or cry.
>
> Having been caught out on this one myself I can say it is because older
> texts like Wald, written prior to the evidence the strong energy condition
> was violated, explain it in such a way that to question it would seem
silly.
> And unless you read the actual literature - like you forced me to - then
> what is going on is not clear. Maybe the time has come for Wald to be
> updated since it, along with MTW, is one of the 'standard' texts.

But you, Bill, were amazingly quick to make progress. And I
didn't even had to spell it all out, you did the necessary research
yourself [eg. read literature on the subject, *yourself* - BTW from
which I benefitted as well, because of the very nice paper you
pointed out :-)]. Usually when I put up the subject, it takes them
much longer to realize, if they realize at all.

I guess the problem with most researchers is, that they don't
wan't to do the thinking theirselves [unless it is along the
very slim topic in which they are experts]. They hold on to
their prejudices as long as they can, often not even being able
to see that they are prejudices. Now I am not arguing about
prejudices. They are a good, because without any prejudices
[or call them by their other name: "reasonable assumptions],
you will never be able to make progress.

But sometimes, in order to make progress, especially in
a situation where progress has stalled for decades, you
might have to reevaluate your prejudices. And in order to
do that, you have to be able to see them as they are:
assumptions, but not physical law.

So in order to learn something new, you have to take
risks. You have to do the job yourself.You will make
mistakes. Many mistakes. But is the good scientist the
one who never makes mistakes? I don't think so. You
have to *quickly realize* your mistakes. And if you have
a strong character, you might even acknowledge them
[everybody with these two qualities, has the greatest
respect from MP - not that MP's respect would mean
much ;-)]

But science has become utterly risk-averse. Researchers,
instead of doing research (i.e. finding out something new),
rather requesting what I call "safe passage through the
wilderness": a referee, an authority, a text-book, or the
majority opinion, which can safely be parroted. I don't
know if it is fear to make mistakes, to make a commit-
ment which might look foolish, or what else it is,
that drives them to assign the job that is *exclusively*
theirs [e.g. checking the truth of a claim for themselves]
to others.

Best MP

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