In this provocative book (New York Times) a contrarian physicist argues that her field's
modern obsession with beauty has given us wonderful math but bad science.Whether pondering
black holes or predicting discoveries at CERN physicists believe the best theories are
beautiful natural and elegant and this standard separates popular theories from disposable
ones. This is why Sabine Hossenfelder argues we have not seen a major breakthrough in the
foundations of physics for more than four decades. The belief in beauty has become so dogmatic
that it now conflicts with scientific objectivity: observation has been unable to confirm
mindboggling theories like supersymmetry or grand unification invented by physicists based on
aesthetic criteria. Worse these too good to not be true theories are actually untestable and
they have left the field in a cul-de-sac. To escape physicists must rethink their methods.
Only by embracing reality as it is can science discover the truth.
