The Edge of Knowledge Part Two

String Theory: The Basic Idea 

     String theory is a term that will be used throughout these blogs. But the key word to focus on is string, so what are strings. Matter itself is composed of many different microscopic things that you've learned about in your biology, chemistry and physics. Matter is composed of atoms, atoms are made up of smaller things like electrons. But for a long time the edge of our knowledge stopped at this level. We thought that these were the smallest pieces of matter that were in our universe, until quarks. Quarks are divided into six different varieties; up quarks, down quarks, charm quarks, strange quarks, top quarks bottom quarks. Quarks are fascinating in it of itself but I won't take to much time on it. What encompasses the quarks are what we call strings, which are vibrating and looping and shaping matter. Although not clear at this vary moment string actually resolves the problem of general relativity and quantum mechanics being incompatible with each other. How, will be a discussion piece a little further down the line. I've enclosed below a diagram that shows the inner workings of matter:

String Theory as the Unified Theory of Everything

String theory provides an explanation that is capable of bringing together all forces and all matter. According to string theory the vibration of the strings then shape the very things we see around us. A proton is in its simplest form a string oscillating one way, just as a quarks strings vibrating another way. Instead of a chaotic collection of physical experimental facts, in string theory the properties of particles are all just the pattern of vibration, the loops of string. This is one of the most quintessential pieces of string theory, it is for the first time a framework for physics that doesn't just relate to two theories; quantum mechanics and general relativity. No, it will give us an explanation to every, fundamental feature down to the most microscopic feature on which our very universe is based and built upon. This is why string theory is named at times the "theory of everything" or the "ultimate" or "final" theory. The discovery of the theory of everything, the greatest explanation of the universe, in which it does not need any deeper type of explanation. This theory will not mean that all scientific fields have been solved, it actually means the opposite. It means that for once will have an unshakable, absolute foundation in which we can build our understanding of the world and of, the universe. 

Sidenote: This was all just the tip of the iceberg, the upcoming blog posts are going to slowly get deeper into string theory and the universe in which string theory would suggest we live in. They will become more complicated as we go along so feel free to ask questions and if I cannot give you one right away, know that I'll be diving into the book to find one.