Woit: Yes, but that's not the main problem with them. Horgan: Are multiverse theories not even wrong? Like many prominent string theorists, for a long time now he no longer actively has worked on such models but, absent a convincing alternative, he is unlikely to give up on the hope that the vision of this period points the way forward, even as progress has stalled.

Woit: I think the conjectural picture of how string theory would unite gravity and the standard model that Witten came up with in 1984-5 (in collaboration with others) had a huge influence on him, and he's reluctant to accept the idea that the models developed back then were a red herring.

Horgan: Why do you think Edward Witten told me in 2014 that string theory is вЂњon the right trackвЂќ? These include the complexity, ugliness and lack of explanatory power of models designed to connect string theory with known phenomena, as well as the continuing failure to come up with a consistent formulation of the theory. The internal problems of the theory are even more serious after another decade of research. Experimental results from the Large Hadron Collider show no evidence of the extra dimensions or supersymmetry that string theorists had argued for as 'predictions' of string theory. My book on the subject was written in 2003-4 and I think that its point of view about string theory has been vindicated by what has happened since then. Horgan: Do you still think string theory is вЂњnot even wrongвЂќ? Journalists need to be skeptical about what they're being told by scientists, but often they're more or less accurately reporting impressive sounding claims being made by physicists with impeccable credentials, and not in a good position to evaluate these. Those most to blame for this are the physicists involved, who should know better and be aware that the way they are promoting their work is going to mislead people. Woit: By 'fake physics' I mean pseudo-scientific claims about physics that share some of the characteristics of 'fake news', in particular misleading, overhyped stories about fundamental physics promoting empty or unsuccessful theoretical ideas, with a clickbait headline. Horgan: You've recently denouncedВ вЂњ fake physics.вЂќ What is it? Are journalists mostly to blame for it? When a blog entry attracts a discussion involving well-informed people with something interesting to say who appreciate what I'm trying to do, that's a great pleasure. Sometimes this has been a meeting in person, sometimes I've heard from someone by email, and sometimes via a comment on the blog. Woit: The most rewarding experiences I've had because of the blog have been occasions on which it has put me in contact with people I greatly respect who have found the blog useful or interesting. Horgan: WhatвЂ™s the biggest pleasure you get from blogging? Woit and I recently had the following email exchange.

The next time the media tout an alleged breakthrough in physics or mathematics, check out Not Even Wrong to get the real scoop. He can be blunt, but he is always fair, and he does not indulge in cheap shots, snark or grandstanding. Woit, whom IвЂ™ve known for more than a dozen years, is a goodВ guy. But he provides plenty of clear, non-technical explanations for non-experts like me. Woit, who has degrees in physics from Harvard and Princeton and has taught mathematics at Columbia since 1989, tracks mathematics as well as physics on his blog, and some of his riffs (like a recent one on the difference between Lie groups and Lie algebras ) are strictly for experts. вЂќ That phrase (credited to Wolfgang Pauli) is the title of WoitвЂ™s widely discussed 2006 book (see my review here ) and of his popular blog, which he launched in 2004. He is renowned for asserting that string theory, which for decades has been the leading candidate for a unified theory of physics, is so flawed that it is вЂњ not even wrong. To keep physics honest, we need watchdogs like Peter Woit. At its best, physics is the most potent and precise of all scientific fields, and yet it surpasses even psychology in its capacity for bullshit.

Meme not even wrong