XVI(A) Everything in the universe is made of math--including you and I.

XVI (A) : Everything in the universe is made of math- including you and I
        
            [Contd.A Journey to the Wonderland of Math.by Ajay Kumar Chudhuri]

Our physical world is a giant mathematical object. Look meticulously, you will perceive, there is math, math everywhere.

What is the answer to the ultimate question of life, the universe and everything? Math has played a striking role in our growing understanding of the universe including life and everything. The idea that everything is, in some sense, mathematical goes back at least to the Pythagoreans of ancient Greece and has spawned centuries of discussion among physicist and philosophers. In the 17^th century Galileo famously stated that our universe is a grand book written in the language of mathematics.

In physics mathematical equations are the basis of most important descriptions of nature. Not only in physics but also in all other branches of Science like Biology, Chemistry, Microbiology or even Social Sciences etc., math plays a pivotal note in them. We are perpetually applying rules of science and enjoying innumerable fruits of it in our real world everyday life of which a few of us are aware that math is there at their core.

There are innumerable inventions and discoveries through the long history of human race worthy of curiosity and wonder. They have changed our lives incredibly. It is very difficult, if not impossible to name them. The following list is absolutely by no means exhaustive but only a tip of the iceberg. Just to name a few most important among them invented or discovered right from the Old Stone Age about two million years ago till now are: fire, agriculture, wheel, language, writing, paper, printing, mathematics, electricity, nuclear energy, computer, internet, GPS and many more.
       Many nectarous fruits have grown in the marvellous orchard of science nurtured by math.to add flavour and sweetness to our present day living.

Let us see only a few of such astounding contributions of science and of course of math in disguise which has made our present day life so safe, easy, cozy and joyful.

Just for illustrations some fruits of scientific discoveries throughout the long human history culled here are those from the Laws of Thermodynamics as the earliest and Theory of Relatively, Theory of quantum mechanics, and Cosmology as the latest of them.

Thermodynamics is related to fire invented (discovered?) by our distant ancestors about 1.5 million years ago and now a matter of classical physics (dealing with Newtonian Mechanics, Thermodynamics and Maxwell’s Theory of Electromagnetism). On the other hand the Theory of Relativity and Theory of quantum Mechanics are two epoch making discoveries of the 20^th century which opened the door of Modern Physics. Finally, the youngest of all the subjects Cosmology is chosen to know this universe in which we live and also to know ourselves.

After the discoveries of the laws of thermodynamics in the 18^th Century, there were many very important discoveries during the next two centuries. Now we are living, quite literally in the golden age of science in this 21^st century. Undoubtedly the 20^th century is one of the most remarkable in the human history for so many epoch –making scientific discoveries and technological advances,

There were two great discoveries in the early part of this century – the theory of Relativity by Albert Einstein and the theory of Quantum Mechanics advocated by Max Plank. These two great discoveries usher the era of Modern Physics.

The theory of relativity has changed the so far prevailing common idea of time as absolute (or fixed) but relative (or changeable). It has given us the idea that time is interwoven with the very fabric of the Universe, giving the strange idea of “Space time” and finally a quite different interpretation of “gravity”. This theory gave the world the most simple ever conceived equation E=mc² (giving an exact mathematical relation between energy and mass of a material particle) we will see later the great importance as well as grave consequences of it.

The most powerful blow to the idea of classical physics was given in 1920’s by the new Science of Quantum Mechanics. This young subject started its journey with an aim of giving a mathematical description of the physical world at a nanoscale. It unfolds the picture inside an atom and describes the bizarre behavior of the minutest particles of which this universe is made of.

This theory offers a different way of viewing our world where the so far known conventional laws of physics are of no use. Its predictions and statements are almost like a Science fiction. For example, is it possible that you may be present at a number places at the same time? The quantum theory says: matter can essentially be in a number of places at any given time; for, there may be many universes like ours, called multiverse and things disappear and reappear somewhere else, you cannot simultaneously know its exact state or status.

Can you imagine without computer, internet, cell phone, HD television, GPS guide and many other such things today? All of these marvels of Science have come from our deep understanding of the theory of Quantum mechanics. It enabled us to develop the most advanced technologies which have made our lives easier, safe and enjoyable.

      Mankind has long been gazed towards the heaven from the primitive age to unravel the mysteries of the universe around him. By the middle of the 20^th century, a modern branch of science was developed with its origin in the historically related twin subjects – Astronomy and Astrology.  Nowadays, astronomy is revered as science but not the astrology.

What is the importance of cosmology to us? Besides being interesting, adventurous, fun and mind blowing, studying and understanding of cosmology helps us to know the universe in which we live, our relation and relevance to it and our ultimate fate - whether we will survive or extinguish in the distant future.
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