Chapter 37: Chapter 35: The Aftermath of the War of the Gods
Any mention of Niels Bohr inevitably brought to mind the 1927 Solvay Conference.
It was the fiercest, most star-studded battle of the gods in the history of physics.
The brightest minds on the planet had gathered to wage an earth-shattering war over the interpretation of quantum mechanics.
And the aftershocks of that conference were now playing out in the Cyan Dragon Study Group.
[Niels Bohr]: @Albert Einstein, my point is perfectly clear. The measurement results of the microscopic world follow the laws of probability and statistics! Quantum leaps are random.
So accept reality, Albert. Classical mechanical determinism has failed at the quantum scale!
[Albert Einstein]: Absurd! Bohr, your Copenhagen interpretation is a blasphemy against the rigor of physics! God does not play dice! There must be hidden variables that we have yet to discover!
[Werner Heisenberg]: Mr. Einstein, please respect the mathematics.
My matrix mechanics and uncertainty principle have already provided mathematically unassailable conclusions.
[Erwin Schrödinger]: Don’t get too arrogant, Heisenberg.
Although my wave mechanics and your matrix mechanics are mathematically equivalent, I still support Einstein’s view.
This so-called quantum leap is nothing but metaphysics that violates the continuity of Classical Mechanics! It’s the greatest absurdity in the history of physics!
The group chat had erupted into chaos, with all sorts of profound concepts and equations flying around.
Watching the chat, Li Dong felt these titans were terrifyingly brilliant.
’Who would dare interrupt an argument between them?’
’But as the Group Leader, how can I let them form cliques in the group?’
’Besides, if I don’t fleece them now, when will I get another chance?’
Li Dong bit his finger, his mind racing.
’Join their discussion?’
’You’ve got to be kidding me.’
He had to remember, these were the titans who laid the cornerstones of modern physics—relativity and quantum mechanics—back in 1927. In the nearly 100 years since, the field of fundamental physics hadn’t seen a single breakthrough on par with their work, nothing that could overturn the entire foundational framework.
Modern physicists were essentially just patching and mending the framework these men had built 100 years ago.
’What did his meager knowledge amount to in front of them? Was he a paramecium?’
But Li Dong had an advantage: he stood on the shoulders of the future.
’Since I can’t resolve their dispute, I’ll just give them a theory that’ll blow both their minds!’
He needed a theory that could explain the randomness of quantum mechanics, satisfy Einstein’s yearning for a unified field theory, and, at the same time, be so abstruse that they couldn’t work through the calculations anytime soon.
’String Theory.’
’A theory that couldn’t be proven.’
Li Dong didn’t need to provide a rigorous mathematical proof—not that he could. He just needed to toss out a concept.
After a moment’s deliberation...
[Senior Year Grind]: Gentlemen, regardless of whether you speak of particles or waves, determinism or randomness, have you ever considered that perhaps you’re only seeing the surface of things?
As he typed that sentence, Li Dong’s hands were shaking.
He was telling Einstein and Bohr, ’You’re looking at things too superficially...’
[Senior Year Grind]: Think about it. If we shrink our perspective down to the Planck scale, a hundred quintillion times smaller than an atomic nucleus, would electrons and photons still exist as we know them?
At that scale, might there not be something else entirely? Something I call a ’string.’
Different vibrational frequencies and patterns would correspond to different particles.
An electron is one type of vibration, a photon is another, and gravity itself could come from the vibrational pattern of a closed string.
[Senior Year Grind]: God doesn’t play dice, indeed, but what if He plays the violin?
Li Dong had just transformed a problem of particle physics into one of pure geometry and topology.
However, after a brief silence, the group erupted with even fiercer denunciations.
These titans weren’t so easily fooled.
[Wolfgang Pauli]: Utter nonsense! This isn’t even wrong! To base physics on such a vacuous hypothesis, with no observational foundation and no complete Mathematical Model, is a regression to ancient Greek metaphysics! This ’string’ you speak of—where is its Lagrangian? Its equation of motion? In how many dimensions does it vibrate?
[Niels Bohr]: An interesting exercise in imagination, but it lacks any observational basis.
If what you say is true, how many dimensions would we need to accommodate these vibrations?
[Albert Einstein]: While this approach to unification is alluring, and quite reminiscent of Spinoza’s God, that is precisely why it is merely poetry, not physics.
Seeing the titans’ rebuttals, Li Dong knew they had taken the bait.
Because these proud, brilliant men would never stop at mere verbal rebuttals.
They would undoubtedly try to run the calculations on their own, attempting to use mathematics to humiliate this "fallacy."
Just then, a new name popped up in the chat.
[John von Neumann]: Putting aside the question of observability, the mathematical structure of this theory is actually quite interesting.
Seeing the name, Li Dong froze. He never expected to draw out Von Neumann.
John von Neumann, the father of the modern computer and one of the 20th century’s greatest polymaths!
[Von Neumann]: I just tried constructing a simple topological model in my head. If we consider it in a 5-dimensional spacetime, like the one Mr. Kaluza proposed last year, or even in higher dimensions, the vibrational equations for these strings can be made self-consistent.
[Von Neumann]: But the problem is... verifying the theory’s self-consistency would require calculating the topological structures and compactification of high-dimensional manifolds. The sheer volume of computation would be astronomical.
Relying on pen and paper alone, even if you gathered every mathematician in Europe, it would be impossible to complete the full verification within a lifetime.
’Yes, yes, yes! He’s absolutely right!’ Li Dong was so excited he slapped his thigh.
’That’s why we need computers.’
[Senior Year Grind]: Mr. Von Neumann, you’re right.
[Senior Year Grind]: That’s why we need a new kind of tool.
[Von Neumann]: A tool? You mean something like the hand-cranked calculators made by Pascal or Leibniz? Those are far too slow and can only perform simple arithmetic.
[Senior Year Grind]: No, not a mechanical device like that.
[Senior Year Grind]: I have an architecture in mind.
Li Dong began to shamelessly "plagiarize" Von Neumann’s future work.
[Senior Year Grind]: This machine should consist of five main components:
1. An arithmetic logic unit: to handle logical and arithmetic operations.
2. A control unit: to direct the execution of programs.
3. A memory unit: This is the crucial part! It must store not only data but also the program instructions! This allows the program itself to be treated like data—it can be read and modified.
4. Input devices.
5. Output devices.
[Senior Year Grind]: And it should use a binary system. The ’on’ and ’off’ states of electronic components would represent 0 and 1. This way, its operating speed could be on an electronic level!
After Li Dong sent that message, there was a long silence from Von Neumann’s end.
A full three minutes passed.
[Von Neumann]: !!!
’Electronic components controlling the switches?’
’My God! This is an absolutely genius concept!’
[Von Neumann]: Sir! Your idea aligns perfectly with my own recent thoughts on mathematical logic and universal computation, only yours is far more concrete and actionable!
’If such a machine could be built, it seems it could be used to calculate all sorts of other things, too.’
[Von Neumann]: I must go and write this down immediately!
Just as Von Neumann went to write it all down, a system announcement appeared at the top of the chat screen.
[System Announcement: Inspired by you, group member "John von Neumann" has established the "Modern Electronic Computer Architecture" 20 years ahead of schedule.]
[The early introduction of the "String Theory" concept has been detected. The Quantum Physics School and the Relativity School have begun attempting mathematical unification in higher dimensions.]
[New technology branch "Information Engineering" has been activated.]
[The technology tree of Universe #1927 in a parallel timeline is undergoing a drastic shift...]
Immediately after, two large red packets appeared.
[A Joint Gift from the 1927 Physics All-Star Team]
Li Dong’s hand trembled as he tapped it open.
[You have claimed the gift from the Stars of Physics.]
[Attribute Gained: Logic +0.1 (Permanent)]
[Description: While they do not fully accept your "String Theory," the grand, self-consistent mathematical conjecture you proposed has forced them to engage their highest level of logical thinking to refute you. This is a token of respect from your adversaries.]
’Only Logic +0.1?’
Li Dong was a little disappointed.
He had been fantasizing he might get a high-end skill like "Quantum Intuition" or "Eye of Spacetime."
It seemed that because the titans hadn’t genuinely accepted String Theory, merely treating it as a mathematical game, the reward had been reduced.
But on second thought, the Logic attribute was the cornerstone of all sciences. A +0.1 boost was a tangible improvement.
Then he tapped open the second red packet.
[John von Neumann has sent an exclusive red packet.]
[You have claimed John von Neumann’s thanks.]
[Attribute Gained: Memory +0.1 (Permanent)]
[Description: The core of a computer is "storage."]
[Von Neumann believes that an excellent brain, first and foremost, must be like a computer’s hard drive, capable of losslessly storing vast amounts of information.]
Li Dong’s current attribute panel now read:
[Concentration: 0.2]
[Logic: 0.2]
[Memory: 0.2]
[Skills: Physical Perception (Basic), Orbital Calculation (Basic), Chemical Intuition (Basic)]
Although he hadn’t obtained any new skills, Li Dong could clearly feel his mind had become much sharper.
’I should be happy with what I got. Happy with what I got,’
Li Dong consoled himself.
’Once Von Neumann actually builds a computer, there’s bound to be another huge red packet waiting for me.’
Li Dong figured he would sleep well tonight. After all, his ’idling’ in this group was proving to be incredibly valuable.
However, just as he was about to close the group chat, he suddenly realized something wasn’t right.
’The system notification just now said...’
[The technology tree of Universe #1927 in a parallel timeline...]
’Number 1927?’
Li Dong’s fingers flew across the screen, scrolling through the chat history.
He found it!
[The technology tree of Universe #1666 in a parallel timeline is undergoing a shift...]
Li Dong’s pupils contracted.
’Newton is in Universe #1666.’
’Von Neumann and Einstein are in Universe #1927.’
’They aren’t on the same timeline at all!’
’No wonder the argument about relativity and quantum mechanics got so heated, yet Newton didn’t say a single word.’
’Logically, with Newton’s explosive temper, he would’ve jumped in and started cussing everyone out the moment they discussed overthrowing his Classical Mechanics.’
’Could it be the group’s rules...?’
’Are they blocking information interference between different parallel universes?’
Li Dong felt as if he had just brushed against some deep, underlying mechanic of the chat group.
This wasn’t just a group that transcended time; it was a hub connecting countless parallel universes.
Each titan represented a unique, independently developing technology tree.
’Then what about Gauss? And Mendeleev?’
’What universes are they in?’
Li Dong looked at the "Cyan Dragon Study Group" on his phone and was suddenly struck with a sense of awe.
’I’m not going to think about it. Not going to think about it.’
Li Dong shook his head.
’If the sky falls, let the tall guys hold it up. My job right now is to use these resources to get into a good university and win that twenty thousand in prize money.’
’As for everything else... I’ll worry about that when I can actually hold a real conversation with these titans.’
