This is one of my favorite documentaries, but I haven’t mentioned it before because the last time I checked it wasn’t available online yet. Now it is.
Physicists explain the large and the small things in our universe with two different theories. General relativity explains the large scales. Quantum mechanics explains the small. The very disturbing problem is: they can’t both be right because they don’t agree. String theory was conceived to reconcile the two and be a theory of everything. The film is hosted by Brian Greene, one of the physicists working on the theory:
Physicists often use the term elegant to describe a solution to a problem that is as powerful as it is simple. It’s a solution which cuts to the heart of an important problem with such clarity that it almost leaves no doubt that the solution is either right or at least on the right track. And string theory is just that kind of solution.
The movie is based on Brian Greene’s book, The Elegant Universe. The movie is excellent, but as usual, the book is better.
