Physicist John Archibald Wheeler made groundbreaking contributions to physics, and [Amanda Gefter] has a fantastic writeup about the man. He was undeniably brilliant, and if you haven’t heard of him, you have certainly heard of some of his students, not to mention his work.
Ever heard of wormholes? Black holes? How about the phrase “It from Bit”? Then you’ve heard of his work. All of those terms were coined by Wheeler; a knack for naming things being one of his talents. His students included Richard Feynman and Kip Thorne (if you enjoyed The Martian, you at least indirectly know of Kip Thorne) and more. He never won a Nobel prize, but his contributions were lifelong and varied.
One thing that set Wheeler apart was the highly ambitious nature of his research and inquiries. He was known for pushing theories to (and past) their absolute limits, always seeking deeper insights into the nature of reality. The progress of new discoveries in the fields of general relativity (for which his textbook, Gravitation, remains highly relevant), space-time, and quantum mechanics frequently left Wheeler feeling as though more questions were raised than answered. His thirst for a greater understanding of the nature of reality was one he pursued until his death in 2006. He pondered not just the ultimate nature of our universe but also why we seem to have the same basic experience of it. Wheeler saw these questions as having answers that were far from being self-evident.
Wheeler’s relentless curiosity pushed the boundaries, reminding us that the search for knowledge never truly ends. If that inspires you, then take the time to check out the full article and see whether his questions inspire and challenge your own perspective.
Scientists can now make black holes — sort of. You can even make your own wormhole. Sort of.
What prompted this story? Someone tried to pick up a copy of “Gravitation” and is in the hospital?
It’s Sunday, and someone was attending Mass.
I’m pretty sure Kip Thorne is better known for Interstellar than The Martian.
John Wheeler gave a great and funny lecture during celebrations to open our new Physics building. He closed it by discussing the big bang, and lit a firecracker on stage to emphasize the point. It didn’t go off, but he rolled with it, no problem.
oh i was thinking of down periscope myself
Yep, I was coming to mention this as well. His access to some massively impressive computers for rendering the VFX in the movie actually enabled him to make a few discoveries about black holes during production. Mostly about their physical appearance, which tracks.
I’m not sure how Thorne was involved in The Martian at all.
OUTSTANDING more detailed article about Mr. Wheeler. Thx for including that link. His musings on the connection between observation and reality were very thought provoking. I wish he’d solved the mystery.
“Matter tells space time how to curve; space time tells matter how to move.” J.A.W.
I read the article and it’s really good. Thank you for sharing it. I walked around a bit and started drying the dishes and I had a sudden funny thought. “Is anything real if it hasn’t been posted on social media?”