Will Mathematics Ultimately Describe Nature?

by James R Johnson^1
1 BS I. E. Retired (Dallas, Texas, USA)
DOI: https://doi.org/10.29202/phil-cosm/23/3
Received: January 3, 2019 / Accepted: February 15, 2019 / Published: October 10, 2019

It has been almost eighty years since Paul Dirac delivered a lecture on the relationship between mathematics and physics and since 1960 that Eugene Wigner wrote about the unreasonable effectiveness of mathematics in the natural sciences. The field of cosmology and efforts to define a more comprehensive theory (String Theory) have changed significantly since the 1960s; thus, it is time to refocus on the issue. This paper expands on ideas addressed by these two great physicists, specifically, the ultimate effectiveness of mathematics to describe nature.

After illustrating how theoretical physic predicted discoveries, the concepts of established theories are summarized. Then, the “world equation” which combines all key physics theories is conceptually described. As the possible last piece of the puzzle, String Theory is briefly defined. And last, a cursory overview of an extreme proposal is presented — the world as a mathematical object. However, there is no fundamental reason to believe that math will allow mankind to completely comprehend nature. If math does not provide a comprehensive theory, nature will retain her secrets.

Keywords: Mathematics effectiveness, Equation predictions, String Theory, World Equation, Dirac, Fundamental Theories

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James R. Johnson (2019) Will Mathematics Ultimately Describe Nature? Philosophy and Cosmology, Volume 23, 2019: 22-29. https://doi.org/10.29202/phil-cosm/23/3