Freedom of Science

Not Even Wrong writes

Blah, blah, more pseudo-science on hep-th, blah, blah, blah…

The post brought to mind the most famous Prof. Pangloss, the progenitor of all familes of anthropic principles. Prof. Pangloss was a doctor of metaphysico-theologico-cosmolonigology. Anthropic Principle was a major branch of metaphysico-theologico-cosmolonigology (MTC) thought by Prof. Pangloss to Candide. Today’s version of MTC identified as pseudo-science by Not Even Wrong but championed by the likes of Prof. Brandon Carter differs from Pangloss’ version by a minor detail that can be normalized by a simple substitution: replace Leibnitz with Newton.

Looking at the referenced paper we see that Leibnitz is not mentioned implicitly or explicitly but Newton is its central character. Newtonian gravitation is called “the earliest satisfactory physical theory” and the ubiquitous G appears in one of its many guises as the “coupling constant.”  

Once the substitution Leibnitz –> Newton is made we see that

Panglossian Principle = Anthropic Principle.

For instance, as Candide, his friend Jacques the Anabaptist and Prof. Pangloss are sailing to Lisbon, a storm hits and Jacques is washed overboard. Pangloss stops Candide from leaping into the sea in an attempt to save him, claiming that

the bay of Lisbon had been formed expressly for Jacques to drown in.

Similarly, according to Anthropic Principle God created the universe expressly for Newton to reveal its mysteries to humanity.

Since any physics principle must have its anti-principle advocated by a rival sect, in this case too, another group of physicists viciously deny Anthropic Principle. They say that G is not the Newtonian coupling constant, but G is the Newtonian dormitive virtue. Therefore, masses attract masses ’cause each mass is endowed with gravitational virtue. This school of physicists hate Prof. Pangloss and revere Prof. Moliere.

We applaud Not Even Wrong for exposing the pseudo-science of our time. 

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