Roy
Frieden's information theory model of the universe
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Comment!
I liked a letter in New Scientist, 20 Feb 1999, p53. Russell Oppenheimer commented on Roy Frieden's information theory model of the universe. This had been reported in New Scientist, 30 Jan, p24-28, by Robert Matthews. Frieden’s idea is that all the laws of physics can be derived by minimising the information equivalent of "action". Oppenheimer's letter reads:
I must confess to having been rather baffled by your cover story, despite three readings. I can only offer two explanations for this.
First: in line with Fisher's theory, there was a gap between the amount of information I was able to extract from the article (I), and the full sense of the article (J).
Secondly: my brain refused to allow me to understand Frieden's theory, sensing that if I did I would finally comprehend the illusory nature of reality. My brain feared that such a realisation might endanger my instincts for self-preservation.
Some people would probably argue that I am just too stupid to understand Frieden's approach. Others might be of the opinion that Frieden's theory is utter nonsense, so it is no wonder that I am unable to understand it.
Personally, I prefer my own explanations.
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