Timeline for Has physics ever given a physical significance to a mathematically abstract idea?
Current License: CC BY-SA 4.0
9 events
| when toggle format | what | by | license | comment | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 11, 2021 at 1:06 | comment | added | Nick Lothian | Cryptography most certainly does have relevance to physical systems. Number theory was crucial to the design of the Enigma machine used by the Axis powers in WW2 (see en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enigma_machine#Mathematical_analysis) and to the design of the electro-mechanical "bombe" device Alan Turing designed to crack it (see en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bombe#The_principle_of_the_bombe) | |
| Jun 10, 2021 at 16:49 | history | edited | Peter - Reinstate Monica | CC BY-SA 4.0 |
added 40 characters in body
|
| Jun 10, 2021 at 1:03 | comment | added | Peter Cordes | Cryptography doesn't have physical reality in terms of describing physical systems. Information theory in general has connections to thermodynamics, but your answer is going to need to be more specific to work as an answer to the question of "physical significance". That's different from "practical applications". | |
| Jun 8, 2021 at 21:37 | comment | added | paul garrett | Yes, crypto is a thing. But/and the modern (post 1945?) significance of representation theory and functional analysis in the theory of automorphic forms, etc., has been intertwined-with, and both motivated by and motivating, various parts of physics. A big story... | |
| Jun 8, 2021 at 21:31 | comment | added | markvs | Physicists would disagree. Antient astronomers would be insulted too. You are safe insulting them now: they are long dead. | |
| Jun 8, 2021 at 20:50 | comment | added | Peter - Reinstate Monica | @MarkSapir You mean "Thank God that number theory is unsullied by any application"? OK; that changed in the middle of the 20th century, so maybe before cryptography but with the advent of computers. And computer based cryptography is still one of the main applications. | |
| Jun 8, 2021 at 17:33 | comment | added | markvs | That is not true, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Number_theory#Applications | |
| Jun 8, 2021 at 16:53 | review | First posts | |||
| Jun 9, 2021 at 6:19 | |||||
| Jun 8, 2021 at 16:49 | history | answered | Peter - Reinstate Monica | CC BY-SA 4.0 |