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2、/Program%20Files/Shareaza/Downloads/brian_greene_-_the_elegant_universe.txtTheElegantUniverseTheElegantUniverse:Superstrings,HiddenDimensions,andtheQuestfortheUltimateTheoryBrianGreenePrefaceDuringthelastthirtyyearsofhislife,AlbertEinsteinsoughtrelentlessl
3、yforaso-calledunifiedfieldtheory—atheorycapableofdescribingnature'sforceswithinasingle,all-encompassing,coherentframework.Einsteinwasnotmotivatedbythethingsweoftenassociatewithscientificundertakings,suchastryingtoexplainthisorthatpieceofexperimentaldata.Instead,hewa
4、sdrivenbyapassionatebeliefthatthedeepestunderstandingoftheuniversewouldrevealitstruestwonder:thesimplicityandpoweroftheprinciplesonwhichitisbased.Einsteinwantedtoilluminatetheworkingsoftheuniversewithaclarityneverbeforeachieved,allowingusalltostandinaweofitssheerbea
5、utyandelegance.Einsteinneverrealizedthisdream,inlargepartbecausethedeckwasstackedagainsthim:Inhisday,anumberofessentialfeaturesofmatterandtheforcesofnaturewereeitherunknownor,atbest,poorlyunderstood.Butduringthepasthalf-century,physicistsofeachnewgeneration—throughf
6、itsandstarts,anddiversionsdownblindalleys—havebeenbuildingsteadilyonthediscoveriesoftheirpredecessorstopiecetogetheraneverfullerunderstandingofhowtheuniverseworks.Andnow,longafterEinsteinarticulatedhisquestforaunifiedtheorybutcameupempty-handed,physicistsbelievethey
7、havefinallyfoundaframeworkforstitchingtheseinsightstogetherintoaseamlesswhole—asingletheorythat,inprinciple,iscapableofdescribingallphysicalphenomena.Thetheory,superstringtheory,isthesubjectofthisbook.IwroteTheElegantUniverseinanattempttomaketheremarkableinsightseme
8、rgingfromtheforefrontofphysicsresearchaccessibletoabroadspectrumofreaders,especiallythosewithnotraininginmathematicsorphysics.ThroughpubliclecturesonsuperstringtheoryIhavegivenoverthepastfewyears,Ihavewitnessedawidespreadyearningtounderstandwhatcurrentresearchsaysab
9、outthefundamentallawsoftheuniverse,howtheselawsrequireamonumentalrestructuringofourconceptionofthecosmos,andwhatchallengeslieaheadintheong