Scales of science

09Apr08

I’m bogged down at the moment writing up, so hopefully a picture will be worth \mathcal{O}(10^3) words. The above comes from a set of physics outreach lectures I gave a few years ago (a “masterclass” in UK parlance). Every child should see a diagram like this at least once. It puts the different sciences in context to one another.

For more advanced students one can say words like “effective theory.” For even more advanced students one can say words like “renormalisation group.”


Filed under: Physics   |  3 Comments

3 Responses to “Scales of science”  

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  1. 1 theoreticalminimum on April 9, 2008 said:

    This is a very nice pic Flip! One could easily find other not-so-relevant scales to include, but it conveys a very appealing message of how vast our understanding is.
    Your drawing skills are as good as, if not better than, those of Penrose! ;-)
    Good luck with the write-up!

  2. 2 Simon on April 9, 2008 said:

    I’m yet to see renormalisation group methods used in biology…
    Maybe we should get Ken Wilson to go show them how its done, he can team up with his brother: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kenneth_G._Wilson
    btw. Note that physics looks at the three most extremes on both ends of your scale!


  1. 1 Is cosmology theology? at Freedom of Science

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