The 20th century felt the most changes in human history, since it was during this period that all the knowledge we gained so far as a species were made clear of. Specialised fields of knowledge were developed with each concerning with the study of any one or all of the aspects of reality.
Fields like astrophysics, quantum physics, quantum mechanics, evolutionary biology, molecular biology, etc., were developed, and advanced machines and technologies required for their respective researches were designed!
When researches using technologies yielded the answers to the questions of โwhat,โ the questions of โhowโ were answered by theoretical calculations and discussions. Theories explaining events at all levels from subatomic to astronomical and in between were beginning to focus on the questions of how and why reality exists in the way we see it.
With derivations of theories matching the results of observations, it was concluded that all the processes and events that happen across reality were connected at an indescribable level (!). When it was found out that the atoms and subatomic particles make up everything, quantum physics attempted to explain reality from both the micro and macro levels. What intrigues the scientists at large is that the universe which is made up of matter and energy, is controlled by a set of forces acting at different levels.
These forces influence the universe in their own unique ways. The gravitational force acting at macro levels influences matter and time as an attractive agent. Whereas the electromagnetic, strong and weak nuclear forces (interactions) influence subatomic particles as stabilising agents.
Nevertheless, attempts to formulate a theory that can explain every possible event in the universe, right from its beginning till its end, be it the formation of a star or the working of quarks or the end of the universe and time, is under progress among the scientific community.
Such an attempt is the unified Theory of Everything (ToE) โ a theory encompassing the 2 major theories of General Relativity (GR), explaining the working of gravity, and Quantum Field Theory (QFT), explaining the other 3 forces, was proposed to be formulated. Various theories and principles aiming to become the Theory of Everything have been formulated too. The String Theory, the Superstring Theory and the M-theory which includes them both are some theories that have tried to attain the ToE status. For consideration, these theories have replaced the subatomic particles we know, into a one-dimensional structure called strings.
They also propose that the space-time continuum has more than the 4 conventional dimensions we know of. The String Theory proposes the possibility of 11 dimensions in space-time with the known 4 dimensions as macro dimensions and remaining dimensions folded up inside the strings to be micro dimensions.
One interesting idea that catches our attention in these theories is the holographic principle. The principle states that our universe, with us included, is a projection of a five-dimensional image on a four-dimensional plane! Complex as it may sound, in simple words, the universe we see and live through might be a pattern in reality with space and time forming a four-dimensional design with our consciousnesses trapped inside it!
The principle proceeds further, stating that the universe is a fractal hologram, meaning, the pattern of the universe is a geometric design which is capable of repetition. This and other such theories propose the idea of branes or parallel universes that can be similar or different than that of our own. How far are these theories right? Only time holds the answer.
Now, with a fairly accurate picture of reality in our understanding, there arise a few serious questions here and there; questions that have not been answered by the sciences yet.
