Free Web NovelChapter 513: Chapter 305 The Significance of Theoretical Existence
On the way back to Yanhua University, the conversation amongst the members of the research institute had shifted to the physics research that Zhao Yi had conducted.
Though they were all medical researchers, they all held doctorate degrees and were reasonably competent in their fields. They had a smattering of understanding about physics and could hold a discussion about it on a superficial level.
Zhao Yi was sitting in the back seat of the car. A few people turned to look at him, asking with interest about the research he had just published. frёewebnoѵel.ƈo๓
He explained it simply for their understanding.
The gist of the content revolved around ’particle energy’, ’boundaries’, ’temporarily unverifiable theories’, and so forth.
When these terms were put together, they sounded very high-level. Many words of admiration were then spontaneously spilled--
"Incredible!"
"This research is really profound!"
"I believe it’s going to be the biggest achievement in the field of physics this year!"
"..."
Zhao Yi was quite comfortable hearing all this.
Although he knew that others were merely admiring out of ’courtesy’ because they ’didn’t understand’, and perhaps even flattering a bit, everyone does enjoy hearing compliments.
Liu Chengjie, sitting beside Zhao Yi, asked with interest, "Can this research bag a Nobel Prize?"
Everyone’s gaze simultaneously shifted to Zhao Yi.
Zhao Yi felt a sudden pain in his heart and asserted strongly, "No!"
"Oh~"
Liu Chengjie felt he might have said something inappropriate, but he didn’t know where he had gone wrong.
Zhao Yi didn’t want to consider the question of the Nobel Prize in Physics. His primary goal was just that prize.
But, it was too difficult.
The current research wasn’t even aimed at the Nobel Prize. It was merely a theoretical aspect he thought of while considering waveforms and spatial boundaries. It definitely wasn’t going to win the Nobel Prize in Physics. Even if it had a significant impact, it was all futile.
The Nobel Prize tends to focus on practical study. No matter how good your theory is in physics, it must be scientifically validated to have any chance of winning it.
A few decades ago, issues like the Higgs particle and the Higgs field were already raised. Even though they remain unverified to this day, many physicists do not doubt their existence.
But then, so what?
No researcher working on the Higgs field or Higgs particle has ever won the Nobel Prize in Physics because of it.
After Zhao Yi discovered a new particle signal, the opinion in the physics world shifted. They believed that this signal represented two and a half Nobel Prizes in Physics.
It went from no Nobel Prize to two and a half Nobel Prizes almost overnight.
Therefore, validation is the key.
A new theory merely provides a direction for theoretical physics. No matter how many physicists believe in the new theory, it won’t garner them a Nobel Prize.
Except if one day, the theory could be scientifically validated.
...
After returning to the staff dormitory, Zhao Yi became interested in checking out related news on his computer.
Yanhua University’s response was fast.
After discovering that Zhao Yi had published research in "Classics and Quantum Gravity", Yanhua University immediately released an official congratulatory announcement, "Congratulations to our university’s Professor Zhao Yi on his ’Particle Boundary Theory’ research being published in the international top-tier journal ’Classics and Quantum Gravity’!"
Although the impact of the paper was uncertain at the time, being able to publish in a world-class journal was considered an achievement worth celebrating.
This is standard recognition for published papers within our country.
It can’t be said that international top-tier journals are better than domestic ones, but the difficulty in getting a paper published in an international top-tier journal is indeed higher.
For a manuscript to be published in a typical international top-tier academic journal, it usually needs to be reviewed by top scholars in the field.
It’s often difficult to determine the impact and overall significance of a piece of research shortly after it’s published. The prestige of the publishing journal, however, can reveal something about the work. For example, compared to papers in international top-tier journals, a paper in a domestic academic journal has limited influence internationally, and begins at a disadvantage.
Other people might wonder....
If your research is impressive, why not publish it in a top-tier journal? Therefore, the prestige of the journal is one of the criteria for evaluation.
This is also why domestic scholars strive to publish their academic achievements in international top-tier journals.
If it were just a matter of getting a research paper published in a top-tier journal, there wouldn’t be much to fuss about. Many scholars can accomplish that.
The explosive response to Zhao Yi’s paper was due to two factors. First, he himself was a hotly discussed figure in academic circles, with a public profile comparable to a B-list celebrity.
The second reason was George Smute’s review.
A Nobel laureate in Physics is already an influential figure. When they review a paper, it inevitably draws attention, especially when they give it such high praise.
The internet was all abuzz with discussion.
"If only a Nobel laureate would review my paper."
"I don’t need a review, I would be happy if they only showed interest."
"A Physics achievement endorsed by a Nobel laureate, hailed as something that could establish an academic school, becoming a branch of theoretical physics. Does that mean, many physicists are now going to specifically research particle boundary issues?"
"Zhao Yi is truly amazing, it seems like he’s proficient in everything, mathematics, computer science, biology, and now physics..."
"Physics has been around forever, hasn’t it? He’s the one who discovered the new particle!"
"..."
Under the waves of admiration and praises, many started to study what exactly Zhao Yi’s accomplishments were.
Many physics professionals also came forward to complain, "I don’t understand it!"
"I have no idea, especially the mathematical content. I’m a PhD in mathematics, but I feel like I’m reading the sky book."
"What in the world is this anyways!"
"Is this the difference between people? The physics research Zhao Yi is doing now, especially the mathematical calculations, are no longer things we mortals can comprehend."
Many people sighed, ’Zhao Yi seems to have leveled up’.
In the past, the research Zhao Yi had done, including the proof of the Collatz Conjecture and the content of the screening method, even the proof of the Goldbach Conjecture, all used ordinary knowledge to produce astonishing results. The content of the papers he wrote was also very ’friendly’. Individuals with a certain understanding of professional knowledge could understand some of the content.
Although the current research content is not much, it is really hard to understand.
Luckily, the internet never lacks experts. It wasn’t long before someone offered a simple explanation of Zhao Yi’s research, "Zhao Yi’s research is an explanation of particle boundary energy distribution."
"It’s a theory, not a real research discovery."
"The content of those mathematical structures is the description of the boundary energy distribution."
This explanation made things much clearer.
While domestic discussions were abundant, there were also many professional discussions abroad.
Physics was the most heavily debated of all.
The first physicists to comment weren’t very polite, almost all of them were absolutely opposed to the idea.
"It’s just a layman’s fantasy about particle composition."
"It’s absurd!"
"It can’t even be called research, it should be categorized as garbage piled up by mathematics."
"This research has no meaning at all, it can never be proved because it’s fake in itself."
The views expressed by foreign physicists also influenced domestic opinion, and many media outlets simply stopped reporting on it.
What if...
As several top physicists have said, the research content is false, unprovable, and fabricated — praising and promoting it would be rather awkward.
Two days later.
There was a reversal in foreign public opinion.
First off was the recent Nobel laureate in physics, George Smute, who publicly stated in an interview, "Particle Boundary Theory is a very worthwhile and potentially high-yielding new theory!"
"I believe that it, like string theory, has many avenues for research and will become a sub-discipline of theoretical physics in the future."
This view was supported by several top physicists.
Edward Witten, who had collaborated with Zhao Yi in research, also spoke out, "I am currently working with Zhao Yi on the boundary issues of multi-dimensional space in string theory, but I have found no results. I can’t believe he beat me to it."
"I’m starting to wonder whether I’m a physicist or he is. Right, he was originally in charge of the math part."
"Now I can confidently say that his mathematical content is completed very well."
"The Particle Boundary Theory and string theory do not conflict. They can be said to be moving forward together, and might even complement each other."
"It helps to improve the linear calculation problem of string theory."
"My colleague and I share the same opinion that Particle Boundary Theory has the potential to become a branch of theoretical physics."
"Perhaps it will be like string theory; in the future years, or even decades, more physicists will be involved in this research."
Edward Witten’s statement, which linked to the development of string theory, revealed that all initial physical theories stemmed from mathematical calculations.
The embryonic form of string theory was discovered in 1968 by Venetziano.
He originally wanted to find a mathematical formula that could describe the strong force inside the atomic nucleus, then found the Euler Formula in an old math book, which had been around for 200 years. This formula successfully described the strong force he wanted to solve.
However, interpreting this formula as a small, elastic "segment" that can be twisted and shaken like a rubber band was soon discovered by Leonat-Sutchcan, which later developed into "string theory".
Now, Particle Boundary Theory is similar. The mathematical structure and formula are the foundation of theory support. The particle boundary energy and analyses of various particle boundaries mentioned above are secondary contents.
There are a lot of extensions that can be made from research based on mathematical structures.
That’s why George Smute and Edward Witten both believe that Particle Boundary Theory has the potential to become a branch of theoretical physics and even coexist with string theory. Many physicists will be involved in the research.
The fact that two Nobel laureates have come forward to support Particle Boundary Theory has had a major impact.
The reaction in the domestic academic community was fierce. Many academic media outlets stepped forward to analyze and popularize Particle Boundary Theory.
The domestic public reaction wasn’t about the theory itself, but the significance of its existence--
Up to this point, all the theories in the physics community were proposed by foreign scientists. We have many physicists domestically who are following foreign theories for research.
It’s only now that a physics theory has been proposed by a domestic scholar, and it has received the support and recognition of two Nobel laureates, and the significance is naturally quite different.
Academic issues quickly escalated into matters of honor and politics.
