Essay Abstract

A physical law assumption is based upon a knowledge set extracted using observation and measurement techniques available at the time the assumption was made. An assumption can stifle scientific inquiry if it is allowed to become a protected paradigm, and thus, unchallengeable. Units of measure are a core element of physical law inquiry and an erroneous assumption used in selecting the base units can hinder the inquiry process significantly.

Author Bio

The author has a BS EE (1958) and thought he was retired as an active participant in science issues. A long ignored assumption caught the authors attention, which led to identifying the methodology that allows the base units of measure to be mathematically defined.

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Dear Mr. Makinson,

One real Universe can only have one real number and that real number of the Universe can be symbolized by using a 1U. One real Universe can only have one real dimension and that real number of a dimension can be symbolized by using a 1d. One real Universe can only stay in one real place and that real number of a location can be symbolized by using a 1l. There is only one of me and there is only one of you. There is only one of anything and there is only one of everything. I found your essay engrossing.

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Hello,

I did not follow one aspect of the argument in your paper: If I understood correctly, you are arguing that it is better to redefine our base units in terms of universal fundamental constants, rather than in terms of SI base units of measure. But how do you want to implement this? Would, for example, according to your argument a better set of base units be action, speed and inverse ( density*time squared) , and then use the Planck units to derive the more familiar units of length, time and mass? Or did you have a different way of implementing this in mind? Also, how would this be different from the already relatively common practice among theorists to set hbar=c=G=1? It would have been helpful to share some details on that in your essay.

Thank you,

Armin

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Armin,

Although the concept in my IEEE paper, which I shall refer to as the Methodology, uses very simple mathematics, it presented information that is not in the textbooks. Electrical engineers (EE) are not taught that the inverse relationship between wavelength and frequency can be presented using a pair of right triangles. The Methodology paper was not the place to suggest a specific implementation process. I was able to make a few general suggestions on implementation in the Benefits section, a section that was not in my original submitted paper; it was requested by the IEEE editor-in-charge.

{Armin quote}"If I understood correctly, you are arguing that it is better to redefine our base units in terms of universal fundamental constants, rather than in terms of SI base units of measure."

That is the view of the CCU of the IUPAP which recommended that all the SI base units should be redefined in terms of fundamental physical constants, and the BIPM is attempting to do so.

BIPM New SI

NIST specifically reiterates the position that the SI base units are to be redefined in terms of fundamental constants.

SI Fundamental Constants

{NIST quote}"There is currently interest in redefining some of the SI units in terms of fundamental constants."

The CCU recommended all SI base units be redefined.

Please note that the geometric-mathematical relationship presented in the Methodology results in the speed-of-light (SOL) and its related electromagnetic (EM) frequency having the same numeric value.

A unit of energy can be defined as having a numeric value of 1 at that same numeric value. Read the Konstantin Tomilin article referenced. I quoted the last sentence in that article.

Setting hbar=c=G=1 is a mathematical crutch to avoid the unwieldy numbers. The Methodology defines c in terms of basic mathematical constants, which are not mathematically unwieldy numbers. When hbar, G and Epison0 are properly defined, I suspect they too will be unwieldy.

I have sent emails to individuals in BIPM and NIST referencing the existence of the IEEE Methodology paper. I am familiar with some of the internal machinations of large government bureaucracies, and at the top of their priorities is maintaining the existence of the bureaucracy. As I stated in my essay, I don't expect the BIPM or NIST to take an action that would diminish their influence; they will ignore the IEEE paper.

Hi Frank,

I agree that units should be chosen that pertain to constants. In my work I use the SI system but refer to it as the mks system. That is because I write for the general audience. SI may appear mysterious while mks seems self suggesting as to what its units are.

I found good reason to use the mks system over others. The reason is that it defines important fundamental properties units with empirically based definitions and does not include the practice of setting poportionality constants to unity. I found both of these good points to be required in a good system of units.

In the end though the mks system is not suitable as a univrsal set of units. The reason I say this is because it includes arbitrarily indefinable units such as kilograms and degrees. My own work is based solely upon the variability of the speed of light. Therefore, my attempts to establish a universal set of units comes fully from the properties of light.

I have written two essays elswhere about the problems that are self-inflicted onto theoretical physics by the use of fallible systems of units.

James

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James,

My technical education, electrical engineering, preceded the 1960s, thus I was exposed to pre-SI units extensively, such as British, cgs and mks units. Depending upon who I was interfacing with, I used the units they were familiar with. Regardless of the system of units, I found the method of selecting their sizes basically arbitrary, being based upon some issue that was deemed important at the time the size was selected, which definitely was not related to fundamental physical constants.

The concept presented in the Methodology indicates that scientific basic units of measure can be established mathematically, and this includes the duration for a unit of time. The key to the Methodology was selecting the proper unit values for the wavelength and frequency triangles, but the physical size of these unit values did not have to be known.

Note that the speed of light is a key parameter of the Methodology, but its value and the units by which it is defined did not have to be known beforehand. The term "speed of light" (SOL) applies to the propagation velocity of all electromagnetic (EM) waves. When the term SOL was first used it was not known that light was an EM phenomenon. Visible light is the most obvious of the EM emissions that constantly bathe the universe.

The Methodology reveals that the emission frequency of neutral hydrogen, often referred to as the 21 cm line, is a fundamental parameter of the physical law relationship between wavelength and frequency. I would have liked to have stated, "the 21 cm emission frequency is the most important EM frequency value in the universe," but that would not have passed peer review.

Your statement, "My own work is based solely upon the variability of the speed of light. Therefore, my attempts to establish a universal set of units comes fully from the properties of light.", essentially agrees with the approach used in identifying the Methodology. Changing "properties of light" to "properties of electromagnetic emissions" would completely match the approach used in identifying the Methodology.

I have replicated the John Merryman posts in essay topic 1316 to this topic, as the posts concern issues relevant to this essay.

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John Merryman replied on Jul. 6, 2012 @ 23:19 GMT

Frank,

Temperature is also a defined unit of measure. Why is it ok to conflate the measure of rate of change/time, with the measure of space, but no one conflates the scalar measure of activity/temperature with that of space? Considering there is no space without some degree of temperature and if we used ideal gas laws, it would be as easy to correlate temperature with volume, as it is to use the velocity of light to correlate duration and distance.

Time is a measure of change. Distance, area and volume are measures of space.



Frank Makinson wrote on Jul. 7, 2012 @ 00:40 GMT

John,

I addressed the issue of the unit of time in the essay, temperature is not mentioned anywhere within it.

The current SI definition for temperature, the Kelvin, is not based upon any physical constants, it is based upon the characteristics of a particular molecular compound. "The kelvin, unit of thermodynamic temperature, is the fraction 1/273.16 of the thermodynamic temperature of the triple point of water."

Kelvin

It is my opinion that the scientific unit for temperature should be defined as an energy level, but SI does not have a base unit of energy to even consider a starting point.



John Merryman replied on Jul. 7, 2012 @ 03:33 GMT

Frank,

Sorry for not reading your paper yet, due to a lack of personal time.

Yes, temperature is generally thought of in terms of molecular activity, but it's only institutional bias that radioactive processes are not normally included. Step in a pool of radioactive water and while you may not immediately sense the burn, you will still be definitely burned.

What is the base unit of time? Some cycle or vibration of a cesium atom? So a particular duration of this atomic activity is a constant, but a scalar measure of its action wouldn't also be a constant?

The point I keep making is that while we think of duration as a kind of temporal distance from one event to another, along which the present moves, logically it is the changing configuration of what is present, so that it is the events going from being future to being past. Time then being a measure of actions occurring within the present, not external to it. Duration is a bit like the moonwalk; action without actually moving forward.

........

Frank

Interesting. Can you provide a link to the IEEE paper you mention.

I've only 'speed read' your essay so far, but will read again.

Perhaps in the interim, considering a 21 cm line time datum, or whatever you propose. Can you answer this;

Consider an emitted signal or sequence using this period emitted. Perhaps even just the light based time signals from a clock.

If this sequence then came across the refractive plane of a dielectric medium (body) of say n = 1.4, but in motion towards the source (i.e. in a different inertial frame) at v, would the apparent 'wavelength' or period of the signal be Doppler shifted to an observer at rest with the new medium?

And at what velocity would it propagate wrt that observer within the new frame / medium? (I'm not concerned about higher orders/gamma)

I hope those answers will help me achieve a fuller understanding of your proposition.

Many Thanks

Peter

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Dear Frank Makinson,

Of course the function of the establishment is to suppress ideas outside the paradigm (with both good and bad results). FQXi is probably the only serious effort to actually deal with this.

I enjoyed your quotes, such as Keynes', and also your observation concerning the definition of the meter to the effect that: "the location of the vacuum is never specified." Interesting.

Best,

Edwin Eugene Klingman

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Frank,

An interesting essay.

"Even though it is now possible to mutually define the size of the base units of measure mathematically,it doesn’t mean the core scientific disciplines that should be using them will adopt the new units voluntarily."

How do you think new units could be established and what would prompt them to change?

Jim

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James,

One of my mentors, a retired professor of electrical engineer, former editor of one of the IEEE journals, and active reviewer of IEEE article submissions up to three months preceding his death (Jan 2011), told me what had to happen first, and I quote, "To get recognition by engineers-physicists-mathematicians, your paper has to be referred to by a "Big Shot" in one of the papers he/she writes."

I have sent emails to individuals that I thought had significant influence in theoretical and mathematical physics, such as Lee Smolin, John Baez and others, hoping they would read my email and access the paper. This has not happened.

Garrett Lisi visited conferences where the significant players congregated and discussed his E8 theory with specific individuals, plus he could present his theory in the language that they understood.

Until one of the significant players learns that there is a mathematical method to define base units of measure, nothing will happen. I would have liked to have made the following statement in my paper:

"Every intelligent species in the universe, after identifying the methodology to define the base units of measure, created a set of scientific units of measure based upon the concepts in the methodology."

I knew I couldn't get such a statement through peer review.

Everyone assumes that SI units are an acceptable way to define a set of units. Even though the CCU recommends that all base units be defined in terms of physical constants, they know of no other way to define the core base units, a length and unit of time, that is, define the size of a length, and use the Earth second as the basis for the size of a "duration of time."

Frank

It's solved! The other media frame causes the perturbations and consequential absorption. If I turn the bubbles off and just have the water jet's on, I can read the papers without them going soggy. I then turn the bubbles back on while contemplating (sometimes mid paper). It seems understanding hot tubs is a prerequisite for assimilating all the excellent viewpoints here.

Have you thought about how we might measure the spin of a soliton? I've proposed that when we give it 4 dimensions we find at least 3 main axis of spin plus handedness. But it needs a translating complex soliton taper structure not just a cylinder. I would not know how to start with the maths for that! Is computability the problem?

Perhaps I should think it over in the hot tub.

Peter

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The research method that you expound (correlation between numerical constants and physical constants) is perfectly functional regarding the holistic theory (see The Origin of Quarks, From the Number Alpha to the Materiality of the Universe) and so I can only wish your theory every success, even if it seems rather difficult to overcome old prejudices that hinder the development of science. Gabriele D'Annunzio (the Italian poet and hero of the First World War) always urged others to "dare the undareable" (Memento audere sempre: Always remember to dare).

Best wishes

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Mark

We belong the same confession http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pythagore

See http://vixra.org/abs/0907.0012

http://vixra.org/abs/0907.0014


fqxi.org/community/forum/topic/1413

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To Frank

1) The terminology, that we using, is imperfect actually. What we can do? We are going from known to unknown areas (exactly, which we believe as known to us). Thus, we trying bringing with us our usual old concepts, and to use these somewhat on new subjects, whereas, it is necessary to establish and use new concepts, which are a big technical problem first. Thus, it is natural some disagreements on this matter. For example, there isn not common and strong definition on =elementary particle= even, but we using it, hoping that everybody will understood it in right meaning! (i.e. as we understood it!)

2) You says, =the standing wave is a stationary= I call it =pseudo static=. The essence easy to see just from animation of wave interference (I hope you will find it in I-net. The field oscillated in the same place, without propagation. It is the localized particle or elm particle, which has its components - main and secondary maximums, i.e. mass & charges)

3) You would like to involve me in gravity problem, Thank you; it is very interesting theme for me. Now I can say only that I am sharing your approach about electromagnetic nature of gravity, hoping I can complete mine work on the subject and publish it.

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Hi Frank,

I enjoyed your essay and your arguments. Yes, sadly, the scientific paradigm is carved into granite.  The only way to change a paradigm is to present irrefutable evidence that contradicts it, or so we thought...

With today's communication freedom scientific change can be swifter than traditionally experienced. What happened in politics can happen in science. 

The popular wind can blow the house of cards away, if and only if it carries the correct arguments.

Regards

Anton @  (  /topic/1458  )

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Dear

Very interesting to see your essay.

Perhaps all of us are convinced that: the choice of yourself is right!That of course is reasonable.

So may be we should work together to let's the consider clearly defined for the basis foundations theoretical as the most challenging with intellectual of all of us.

Why we do not try to start with a real challenge is very close and are the focus of interest of the human science: it is a matter of mass and grain Higg boson of the standard model.

Knowledge and belief reasoning of you will to express an opinion on this matter:

You have think that: the Mass is the expression of the impact force to material - so no impact force, we do not feel the Higg boson - similar to the case of no weight outside the Earth's atmosphere.

Does there need to be a particle with mass for everything have volume? If so, then why the mass of everything change when moving from the Earth to the Moon? Higg boson is lighter by the Moon's gravity is weaker than of Earth?

The LHC particle accelerator used to "Smashed" until "Ejected" Higg boson, but why only when the "Smashed" can see it,and when off then not see it ?

Can be "locked" Higg particles? so when "released" if we do not force to it by any the Force, how to know that it is "out" or not?

You are should be boldly to give a definition of weight that you think is right for us to enjoy, or oppose my opinion.

Because in the process of research, the value of "failure" or "success" is the similar with science. The purpose of a correct theory be must is without any a wrong point ?

Glad to see from you comments soon,because still have too many of the same problems.

Regards !

Hải.Caohoàng of THE INCORRECT ASSUMPTIONS AND A CORRECT THEORY

August 23, 2012 - 11:51 GMT on this essay contest.

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Dear Uncle Frank

"An assumption can stifle scientific inquiry if it is allowed to become a protected paradigm, and thus, unchallengeable."

That is the reason make mistakes.

A review can not be more precise!

Hopefully Uncle struggling to remove for that nonsense.

Regards !

Hải.Caohoàng of THE INCORRECT ASSUMPTIONS AND A CORRECT THEORY

August 23, 2012 - 11:51 GMT on this essay contest.

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Frank,

For this contest, I decided to go through and comment on essays of interest and see what responses I got to my own essay. There are over 250 entries, so I narrowed down my evaluations. For only those who responded, I decided to reread and provide my evaluations before time expired, not making it a popularity contest but keeping in mind that I entered for an exchange of interesting ideas, whether I agree or not. Some concepts are superior and more persuasively supported.

I think yours comes under that guideline.

Jim

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Hello Frank. This is group message to you and the writers of some 80 contest essays that I have already read, rated and probably commented on.

This year I feel proud that the following old and new online friends have accepted my suggestion that they submit their ideas to this contest. Please feel free to read, comment on and rate these essays (including mine) if you have not already done so, thanks:

Why We Still Don't Have Quantum Nucleodynamics by Norman D. Cook a summary of his Springer book on the subject.

A Challenge to Quantized Absorption by Experiment and Theory by Eric Stanley Reiter Very important experiments based on Planck's loading theory, proving that Einstein's idea that the photon is a particle is wrong.

An Artist's Modest Proposal by Kenneth Snelson The world-famous inventor of Tensegrity applies his ideas of structure to de Broglie's atom.

Notes on Relativity by Edward Hoerdt Questioning how the Michelson-Morely experiment is analyzed in the context of Special Relativity

Vladimir Tamari's essay Fix Physics! Is Physics like a badly-designed building? A humorous illustrate take. Plus: Seven foundational questions suggest a new beginning.

Thank you and good luck.

Vladimir

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If you do not understand why your rating dropped down. As I found ratings in the contest are calculated in the next way. Suppose your rating is and was the quantity of people which gave you ratings. Then you have of points. After it anyone give you of points so you have of points and is the common quantity of the people which gave you ratings. At the same time you will have of points. From here, if you want to be R2 > R1 there must be: or or In other words if you want to increase rating of anyone you must give him more points then the participant`s rating was at the moment you rated him. From here it is seen that in the contest are special rules for ratings. And from here there are misunderstanding of some participants what is happened with their ratings. Moreover since community ratings are hided some participants do not sure how increase ratings of others and gives them maximum 10 points. But in the case the scale from 1 to 10 of points do not work, and some essays are overestimated and some essays are drop down. In my opinion it is a bad problem with this Contest rating process. I hope the FQXI community will change the rating process.

Sergey Fedosin

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