String Theory first poked its
sinewy head into the world of theoretical physics when it tried
unsuccessfully to pose as an explanation for the observed relationship
between mass and spin in hadrons (which include the proton and neutron). When Quantum Chromodynamics stepped in
to fill the gap, String Theory lingered on the minds of dissatisfied
theorists until the idea of the graviton arose. The graviton, a
hypothetical particle with zero mass and two units of spin, was necessary
to build a cohesive theory of quantum gravity, but seemed to elude
prediction by standard techniques of the time…that is, until String Theory
stepped into the scene. The problematic graviton was neatly predicted
within its circumference, which was all that early String theorists needed
to latch onto the idea that all particles are comprised of tiny strings
that oscillate, vibrate and wiggle in every combination necessary to build
the universe. It had answered the graviton problem, and later it was used
to sidestep the “interaction at zero distance” dilemma that had plagued
mathematical physicists attempting to solve for particle interactions that
occurred at a single point of spacetime, an event needed to combine quantum
mechanics and gravity. Beyond its
seemingly practical aspects, the idea of a little string about the size of
the Planck length, 10-33cm, oscillating in every which way
(including numerous dimensions) just thrilled theoretical physicists who
found the idea of a point particle distasteful. Over the last several decades,
String Theory has evolved into a beast that is sometimes the bounty and
sometimes the bane of theoretical physicists worldwide.
