Between snowboarding and surfing, a maverick physicist is making waves for coming up with the most promising model yet for uniting the four fundamental forces of nature.. using a Star of David.
About four millennia ago in Mesopotamia, a maverick scientist and philosopher with a spiritual bent came up with history’s first Theory of Everything. His name was Abraham and by observing nature and applying the logic of causal reasoning, he came up with the world’s most popular and persistent theory of why everything is the way it is: G-d.
Over the last century, modern scientists have once again re-engaged over what many view as the ultimate goal of science: To come up with some kind of mathematical model that would unite the four known fundamental forces of nature into a single elegant concept.
Until recently, string theory was thought to be science’s best integrating concept, but string theory is unraveling amidst complaints that it “accurately describes every possible universe except our own.”
Now, a hobby physicist, Garrett Lisi, seems to have cracked the nut by coming up with a model using mathematics that is no more complicated than high school geometry. He uses E8, an eight-dimensional model with 248 points, to precisely account for the behavior of tens of thousands of particle interactions.
Students of Torah may notice another set of matches using Lisi’s model. The number 8 is called Moshiach’s number, symbolic of a unity that transcends yet permeates nature. The Kabbalah says that the fusion of worldly and other-worldly wisdom will herald the coming of Moshiach and will help rectify the world.1 A unified worldview is definitely a step toward recognizing the Ultimate Unity that is the source of worldly unity.
The number 248 is equal to the number of positive commandments of the Torah, as well as the number of organs and limbs in both the human body and the Divine image with which it corresponds. 248 is also the gematria or numerical equivalent of the name Abraham, who was the founder of the first Theory of Everything.
Beyond all this is a geometric parallel between Lisi’s physics and popular Judaism. The graphic image that emerges as central to his theory is identical to the Star of David, the image most commonly used to represent Judaism.
Here is Lisi’s own video representation of how his theory works. Take two minutes and feel your soul resonate with a moving picture of how deep down everything is connected. And not just connected with everything else, but with its ultimate source – the Creator of the world, who is in fact, the G-d of Israel.
Footnote
1 - See Chapter 9 in Mind Over Matter, based on Likutei Sichot Vol. 15 p.42ff.
References:
Here is the Nov. 15/07 New Scientist article that describes the new theory.
Here is the original journal article that Garrett Lisi wrote.
Thanks to Michael Schulman of http://arniegotfryd.com/www.asknoah.org who drew Lisi's research to my attention and also pointed out the curious coincidence that the original article's archive reference number is 770.
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