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NOVA
1974
Published on, 9 months ago
NOVA
The Elegant Universe: Einstein's Dream (1) 31 Season 3 Episode
55 min
1974
7.1
Part 1, "Einstein's Dream," introduces string theory and shows how modern physicsโcomposed of two theories that are ferociously incompatibleโreached its schizophrenic impasse: One theory, general relativity, successfully describes big things like stars and galaxies, while another, quantum mechanics, is equally successful at explaining small things like atoms and subatomic particles. Albert Einstein, the inventor of general relativity, dreamed of finding a single theory that would embrace all of nature's laws. But in this quest for the so-called unified theory, Einstein came up empty-handed, and the conflict between general relativity and quantum mechanics has stymied all who've followed. That is, until the discovery of string theory.
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