What is matter? Are time and space illusory?

is deduced from the theory of relativity. Not only time is an illusion, space and all physical entities are also illusions.

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Few formulas are as famous as E=mc2. But most people probably don’t know it. When Einstein first proposed the mass-energy equation , it was not in the form of E=mc2, but the seemingly equivalent m=E/ c2. However, they are not as completely equivalent as they appear on the surface. On the contrary, the original m=E/c2 is much deeper than the well-known E=mc2 of all ages. Why?

Because E=mc2 is fundamental, it is still within the scope of traditional cosmology. It uses the mass of an object to define its energy, which continues the basic assumption of the ancient Greek atom theory: objects are made of atoms-note The atom here is not an atom that can be further decomposed into protons, neutrons, electrons, mesons, neutrinos and even quarks in the sense of modern physics, but refers to a kind of smallest, non-resolvable matter set by rational thinking. Component-constituted, and atoms are endowed with some basic properties, such as mass, extension, shape, etc. The reason why E=mc2 is particularly famous among ordinary people is largely because of the power of the atomic bomb, which intuitively shows a huge amount of energy, and the value of this energy is well understood from the product of the mass and the square of the speed of light—— Once the insignificant mass of a substance as small as an atom's nucleus is multiplied by the square of the speed of light, it will get a very large value, which matches the terrible power of the atomic bomb.

and m=E/c2, but it shows Einstein's genius ten times more than E=mc2. In m=E/c2, 2500 years-from Leucib, Democritus , Epicurus, Lucretius, all the way to Galileo , Newton ,Even Thomson, Rutherford -the quality that has always been regarded as the basic properties of matter has lost its essentiality. On the contrary, it has to be defined by energy. Furthermore, all the so-called " elementary particles " are no longer physical entities with basic characteristics such as mass, but the vibration or fluctuation of the energy field, which is the manifestation of the invisible quantum field interaction. As Einstein published in 1905 on the short appendix of the special theory of relativity -it is in this appendix that he derived m=E/c2-wrote: "The mass of an object is determined by it. A measure of energy." In other words, mass is only a physical representation of energy, not the other way around. The true modern scientific worldview is contained in the inversion of these two apparently equivalent equations.

Let’s take another angle and look at the so-called modern scientific worldview here. What does it mean?

In fact, in the world that involves m=E/c2, it is not only the mass that has been dispelled, but also the extension of another fundamental characteristic that has long been regarded as a material entity-more accurate In other words, it is the three-dimensional spatiality (of course, the temporality must also be dispelled at the same time, we will not involve this point for the time being, see Carlo Rovelli's "Order of Time" and Roger Penrose "Time's "Circulation"-the Chinese translation was inappropriately renamed "The Reincarnation of the Universe"). Space is now not only relative (rather than a Newtonian big box), but also curved. The flat two-dimensional and three-dimensional spaces that we perceive daily are, on the contrary, special cases and approximations of undulating spaces. The curved space represents its geometry. Of course, it is no longer Euclidean geometry, but surface geometry, such as Roche geometry, Riemann geometry, etc., and further open the way to more Possibility of high dimensions.They take the high-dimensional space as a perspective, "dimensionality reduction strikes" some important settings of Euclidean geometry -such as parallel postulates. This corresponds to the concept of " dimensionality reduction strike " from the perspective of energy field. "Space can wander around, space can be bent freely, and space can be whatever you want." Qiu Chengtong sums it up. When talking about the influence of high-dimensional mathematics on physics, he made a more vivid analogy: “It’s like a general standing on a hill or tower, thanks to the newly added vertical The situation on the battlefield can be seen more clearly. When viewed from a higher-dimensional perspective, our laws of physics may become clearer and therefore easier to understand." ("The Form of Daewoo")

"Order of Time"
[Italian] Carlo Rovelli
Hunan Science and Technology Press June 2019 Edition

"The Beauty of Daewoo"
]Qiu Chengtong and Steve Nadis,
Hunan Science and Technology Press, January 2018

It is precisely because of the proof of the "Karabi Conjecture" that Qiu Chengtong has been involved in contemporary mathematics and theoretical physics

It also occupies an important position in span5span. The "Karabi Conjecture" in geometry corresponds to a somewhat shocking question in physics: If our universe is completely free of any matter/mass, will it still have gravity? Calabi said, yes, just the curvature can make the empty space still have gravity.

Now, mass is only a sign of energy,Energy is determined by the curvature of space, and the curvature of space, as demonstrated by Riemann, changes with the position of the point in the space. So how do we locate points in space? Geometry and topology.

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We have stepped from physics to geometry. This involves the secrets of the relationship between mathematics, which has always been regarded as "abstract", and various specific sciences, especially physics-why a series of mathematical conclusions that seem to be calculated purely according to the "rules of the game" are often later proved to be related to physics. The experimental data and its theoretical interpretation are completely consistent? Roger Penrose said-

"In fact, the deeper we understand nature, the more we can deeply feel the importance of , Plato, and the world of mathematical ideas in our understanding of the physical world. Why is this? Right now we can only regard it as an unsolved mystery." (" The Road to Reality")

"The Road to Reality: The Completeness of the Law of the Universe" Guide"
[English] Roger Penrose,
Hunan Science and Technology Press, January 2014 edition

You might as well try to "touch" this "mystery".

MF Sir Atiyah pointed out in "The Unity of Mathematics": "If people want to discuss the most important difference between mathematics in the 19th century and mathematics in the 20th century, then I think it is the study of multivariate functions in the 20th century. It is becoming more and more important."

"The Unity of Mathematics"
[English] MF Atiyah
Dalian University of Technology Press May 2014 edition_span5pspan _p7

The so-called multi-variable function ,Refers to a function f(X1,...,Xn) with n variables X1,...,Xn. Conventional algebra is nothing more than the solution of equations in one, two, and three variables, and the roots of these equations can be expressed as one-dimensional, two-dimensional or three-dimensional points, lines, surfaces and bodies in the Cartesian coordinate system. As the number of variables increases, the relationship between them becomes intricate, and you often can’t find one or a set of solutions. The task of mathematics has evolved from determining the value of one or several unknown quantities to the possibility of each variable. The study of the mutual interaction relationship, and the corresponding geometric figures are high-dimensional topological manifolds. Groups, rings, domains, modules, layers, etc. modern mathematics 's important concepts are all descriptions of various types of multivariable interaction relationships. Generally speaking, it is the development from "linear" to "non-linear". Its manifestation in the "physical world" we are more familiar with is the rise of the so-called "complexity science" that studies self-feedback and self-organization mechanisms.

Carlo Rovelli said when analyzing the "order of time": "Time is a measure of change; different variables can be selected to measure this change, but no variable has the time we experience. All characteristics." The same is true for space and any so-called "material entity." The essence of the modern scientific worldview is to realize that everything depends on countless variables, the interaction between these variables, loop feedback. When we try to build a model for understanding things and the world, we must realize that this model should be sufficiently open and flexible for the introduction of variables.

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So far, we are from the perspective of the history of modern mathematics/science to see the inevitability of its transformation. If we jump out, or look at the evolution of these concepts upside-down, or if we adopt a certain "Copernician revolution" perspective, the question is no longer such as what kind of function can be expressed as What kind of geometric figure is our perception of things-starting from the most basic points, lines and surfaces-especially the "positioning" of their time and space. With the help of the multi-variable mathematical language ,What kind of descriptions can be made that are much more abundant than daily perception.

For example, a cup. It can be expressed in mathematical language: "To describe its various possible positions in three-dimensional space, an infinite number of parameters are required. We can use three functions x(t), y(t), z(t) (where t is A parameter about this cup, such as the distance measured from an end point) to describe its position. The'space' composed of all the positions of this cup is an infinite dimensional space."

Therefore, the high-dimensional problem is not On the basis of "real" three-dimensional objects, we superimpose other dimensions that are virtual and cannot be directly perceived; on the contrary, from the perspective of the "Copernician revolution", perhaps things inherently possess infinity, or more precisely, "infinity". “Definite” dimension, you can think that other dimensions that have not been perceived are “curled up” and will only expand under suitable conditions like string theory. However, whether the physical facts are ultimately as conceived by string theory is not important here; it is important for us to realize that high dimensions are not mechanically superimposed on three-dimensional physical entities, but rather, things themselves It is an open structure full of possibilities, which will show different dimensional forms under different conditions, and these conditions are directly related to our observations and operations. The "curl" of space is just a substantive naming of its potential possibilities. The three-dimensional "physical world" and the "material entities" in it, which we are familiar with and default to being taken for granted, are just three-dimensional projections of the high-dimensional possibilities of things (of course, it can also have four-dimensional, , five-dimensional , and n-dimensional forms. Projection) is the limit value of its three-dimensional expression, that is, a special case (as the relationship between Hilbert space and Euclidean space).

It’s just that our sense organs, under social discipline, take the expression of this special case as a matter of course/inevitability, and build the “world” that we are most familiar with and considered to be the most “natural”. Picture". In the process, other possible dimensions are forced to curl and hide,Therefore, it is often assumed to be "non-existent". Only when modern pure mathematics is paradoxically in the process of becoming more and more abstract, filtering out almost all attributes related to "physics" and confining itself to modeling the complex interaction between multivariate elements, those The possibility of self-concealment was liberated from the realist ideological despotism of the three-dimensional physical world.

(In fact, one of the most important cornerstones of modern physics is so great that the theory of relativity is so great that its "invention" has almost nothing to do with the observations and experiments that are the basis of modern science-there was nothing at all at that time The experimental results need to be explained by new theories. It was Einstein who created this need and fulfilled this need. In Qiu Chengtong’s words: “Einstein was purely through thinking, only through mathematics without resorting to external The reminder of the world is his theory of gravitation.” I am afraid that even Einstein himself did not fully realize this. Complex physical phenomena are regarded as high-dimensional non-trivial geometric phenomena. In this regard, Einstein’s general theory of relativity is a realization of Riemann’s vision , although he himself did not want to be thorough Subverting the realist worldview.)

At present, the main "revolutionary field" is concentrated in the most abstract algebraic geometry , topology, functional analysis, category theory and other fields. It was obviously crucial to the latest development of quantum field theory that it was gradually introduced into a series of latest physics ideas such as superstring theory. At this time, the top theoretical physicists are often extremely surprised to find that their most ingenious ideas have been proposed by mathematicians in abstract ways many years ago.And a large part of it has been solved. For example, the famous "Klein representation", that is, a straight line in three-dimensional space can be parameterized with a quadric point in five-dimensional projective space; it was later used by Roger Penrose in his theoretical physics research and play a fundamental role. The reason is that, as mentioned above, those possibilities that are firmly suppressed by the stereotypes of three-dimensional entities are accidentally unintentionally suppressed in the modern abstract mathematics, which regards three-dimensionality as awkward and constructs various high-dimensional possible worlds in an extremely free form. Open completely.

Atiyah summed up very brilliantly: "The mathematics of this century (referring to the 20th century) has largely fought against such difficulties, and their essential characteristics are geometric. To be precise, these difficulties It arises from the study of high-dimensional problems.” The high-dimensional problems actually involve how we face (to be more precise, "construct and present through manipulation/measurement") the fundamental problem of the nature of things. , It is the core of modern mathematics (although mathematicians themselves may be ignorant of this), and it is also the latest development in theoretical physics—whether you prefer strings (superstring theory) or loops (loop quantum gravity theory)— -Core.

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Einstein once said: “For those of us who believe in physics, the distinction between past, present and future is just an illusion, although it is a stubborn illusion.” Facts Above, although this passage is radical enough for ordinary people, it is still said carefully. Because deduced from his own theory of relativity, not only time is an illusion, but space and all material entities are also illusions.

The illusion of whirlpool motion

The illusion does not mean that it does not exist, but does not necessarily exist in the way we perceive, experience, and be taught to be "true". For example, an apple falls from a tree, which is our perceptual experience, and according to Newtonian mechanics ,What the description of "falling down" expresses is actually a kind of "illusion". The real situation is: it is under the action of gravity; when Einstein came to Einstein, he further pointed out that "gravity" is nothing but a certain amount of space-time bending. This kind of illusion, in fact, there is no gravity at all. "Gravity is geometry"...

We simplify the indefinite and infinite possibilities of existence, just for the convenience of survival confined to the here and now, not because of this simplification. Out of the "truth". Any simplified expression that is widely accepted has its reasons, that is, a certain historical inevitability, but nothing more. Three-dimensionality is a special case of indefinite dimensions, just as particles are a special case of energy field, if we sit and observe the world and regard the special case as a whole (this whole itself is not a ready-made thing, but as we explore it, it is revealed or more precise Speaking of the basic principle of composing itself), that is illusion. It should be the other way around: the eternally generated and unfolding whole presents us with a close and easy-to-understand special case, which guides us into the complex field of interaction. The whole is not formed by stacking up individual material entities, just as society is not formed by atomized individuals in accordance with some basic principles (such as morality or belief); the whole is a complex and even chaotic force field with countless variables. The entity is just a "physical image" formed by coupling with of some variables in a specific state, expressed in modern physics terms, that is: in an interacting system, the probability cloud of quantum state occurs" "Collapse", thereby transforming from uncertainty to certainty, and things materialize. But the materialization is only a short transition, as Carlo Rovelli said:

"The hardest rock... is actually the complex vibration of the quantum field, the momentary action of force, the smashing The process of maintaining the original state and maintaining balance for a short time before returning to the dust is a short chapter in the history of the interaction between planetary elements... It is an ontological metaphor, and it is also a part of the world that is divided—the world is not so much dependent on being The object of perception depends on the structure of the body through which we perceive."But illusion does not exist, but does not necessarily exist in the way of this object image, and its existence is not tied to this particular object image. There is no doubt that the object exists, but the manifestation of this existence is probable, which is why , quantum physics and abstract mathematics will eventually move towards a statistical distribution, rather than one or a set of definite solutions.

Today, the true scientific worldview (rather than the rigid "scientism" worldview) has reached this point. To use Carlo Roveri's "manifesto", that is: "A simple The fact is that no objects exist, but events occur." "The world is not a collection of objects, but a collection of events."

"What is matter: from ancient Greek atomic theory to quantum mechanics" A Journey of Material Exploration"
[English] Jim Bagot,
CITIC Publishing Group·Nautilus May 2020 Edition

"Oxford General Reader: Mathematics"
[English] Timothy Goles,
, Yilin Publishing House, March 2014 edition

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