Then it is not physics or even science, and there’s nothing to discuss.
Between which lines was it stated in the OP? :rolleyes:
Um, this assumes you know enough information about where you are and the forces acting on it. The laws are supposed to be the same, but that assume you have enough information. For example, if you watch water drain in Auckland or Oakland, you will see it swirl in different directions. If you know enough about your location, you can figure out why this is happening according to the laws of physics. That’s why they call them laws of physics, not “suggestions of physics”.
Wait…isn’t physics the science of discovery and not the sum total of knowledge gained to this point?
I think I need a definition of physics. Or better yet, science. Otherwise, saying physics works everywhere seems like a tautology, like saying “physics is physics”.
Doesn’t work that way, there is no such thing as a m^1.99993. The good thing about the fine structure constant is that it is dimensionless. It has the same value whether you are using microns, pounds and days or tons, micrograms and fortnights.
All the units cancel out in the end.
I should add, I am not a physics guy. I got the beginners mind.
Geez, I was half-joking, and half point out that at that point, you could just attribute it to the strange nature of the universe and go on about your business.
Reread my post – I used to examples, one referring to the fine structure constant, and one to gravitation, you are mixing the two.
Ah, that would be the lines I apparently snorted before making snotty little posts. :smack:
What I was getting at … The OP asked “How do we know?” We don’t and we can’t. For all we know, The Almighty has erected a miraculous barrier a light year out. Inside the barrier (us), he arranges it so we sense stuff that seems consistent with our laws of physics, but outside, it is really Heaven. Or Hell, or non-existent, or whatever.
I guess it was sort of nitpicky to point this out…
In the interests of stamping out ignorance, I should point out that you won’t observe any consistant difference in draining water-swirl directions between Auckland and Oakland. The coriolis effect (which I assume you are alluding to) is not strong enough to make water drain in any particular direction.
No, what I was saying is that once you add the supernatural (which is what muttrox was doing by factoring in magic and/or God), he takes the discussion outside of science’s ability to analyze or predict. Magic isn’t science.
Sorry, AtomicDog, I didn’t mean your post specifically. I guess I’m just saying that I don’t understand the original statement by the german scientist in the OP when he says “physics is the same everywhere”. I was thinking that physics is the tool physicists use to make observations about the universe, and not the universe itself. Sort of like saying, “you can’t defeat logic, because you have to use logic to do it.”
But I’m a layman and probably sticking my neck out too far, or publicly displaying my ignorance.
Wait…I think I see. The same physics that works in the laboratory is in effect across the universe? If that’s what’s meant, :smack: I’m going to be quiet now.
Um, why the pileup on smiling bandit? Urban Ranger pointed out that if, say, the speed of light changed in different places, that would violate the conservation of energy. smiling bandit just pointed out that that’s not a problem, since we’re considering the laws of physics changing anyway. That’s a perfectly reasonable reply, and it stands on its own. How is a person supposed to find a cite for what the laws of physics would be if they weren’t what they are?
Not if the law of conservation of energy is part of what’s different.
I mean, you start out by saying, “If physics are not the same everywhere”, and then you conclude with “energy must be removed and added accordingly.” But that conclusion is only valid under currently accepted laws of physics. “If physics are not the same everywhere” then the law of conservation of energy might not hold, and therefore light might be able to change speed “at will”, so to speak.
To Pravnik:
I saw this in a science lab at a college:
If it stinks, it’s chemistry.
If it’s green, it’s biology.
If it doesn’t work, it’s physics.
Hope that helps.
~VOW