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Futuro Antico. Interview with Sylvester James Gates
9 ago 2022
Marco Bassan
The column curated by Spazio Taverna gives voice to one of the leading theorists of contemporary physics. He is invited to reflect on the present and look toward the future.
What are your references in the world of art?
I'm not sure if you're aware of this, but an important part of the mathematical work I do is aided by art. In 2005, while working with another physicist, Michael Fox, we discovered that there are equations related to superstrings that can be translated into graphical images. This allowed us to study the equations through the properties of the graphs of the images. This is my answer to the question. Art is an incredibly powerful tool that extends into the realm of theoretical physics and mathematics.
What project represents you the most? Can you tell us about its genesis?
The answer is quite simple. Most people, when they are in school, are used to solving problems with more than one variable. For example, “Dane and Jane have 10 dollars together, and Jane has 2 dollars more than Dane. How much money does each one have?” The answer, of course, is that Jane has 6 dollars and Dane has 4. This class of problems has two unknowns.
In 2020, two graduate students and I solved a problem with 4.2 billion unknowns, and we did so by using art: we took the graphical images I developed in 2005 as a foundation and then figured out how to write computer codes based on that foundation to solve the problem.
What importance does the genius loci have in your work?
From my point of view, there are two different aspects. One is that if someone has spent their entire life in one place, they can't experience the multiplicity of the world... let's call them deities (speaking of places). It's nice to have one goddess, but it's wonderful to have multiple goddesses around you. In fact, it's no coincidence that innovation often happens in cities or countries where there are many people talking to each other, communicating, and even though they are physically in the same place, they are still different. If you go back a few thousand years in human history, perhaps to a small city, some foreigners came from the southern part of the area, others from the northern part – their small differences are the origin of innovation. Therefore, localization is not just a physical thing, but also a mental space shaped by what people bring with them.
How important is the past in imagining and building the future? Do you believe that the future can have an ancient heart?
I am a scientist, and I am a theoretical physicist. I work on the type of equations that were developed by Einstein, I work on the Standard Model, a mathematical description of what is explored at the particle accelerator in Switzerland. I also study equations related to the structure of the universe. First of all, the science we practice today in the world was invented in Western Europe. We know that it was invented around 500-600 years ago. Galileo relied on the work of Greek philosophers from about 2,500 years ago, so my field has a direct debt to the ancient discussions that took place in the Mediterranean. So yes, it is true that physics owes a lot to ancient philosophical discussions.
What advice would you give to a young person who wants to follow your path?
This is a question I often receive from young people since I am a university professor, and what I tell them is that it’s not the right question to ask. The question you should ask yourselves is: what life aligns with your heart, with your desire? Because if you can honestly answer this question, you will be led toward something you love. And if you love something, you will always want to be close to the object of your affection, and if you find a subject you love, it’s very likely that you will work very hard because it’s your passion. And when you work very hard at something, you tend to become very good, and if you become good, you tend to succeed. So, it all starts by asking this question: what is the life that aligns with the desire of my heart?
In an era defined by post-truth, does the concept of the sacred still hold importance and strength?
This is the first question you've asked that I don't know how to answer. It depends on the meaning of the word "sacred." I will give the answer that Einstein gave to this question. He is the most famous scientist in our history, and many know that at the age of 12, he lost his religion. He was a devoted reader of the Torah because his parents were Jewish, and he believed strongly in religious traditions. At 12, he learned geometry, and at that point, his belief ended, as he explicitly stated. However, when asked about religion, he tended to respond with very different phrases. He described the universe as a kind of mystery and spoke of an unlimited spirit.
How do you envision the future? Could you give us three ideas that you believe will guide the coming years?
I can express three wishes, but I'm not sure I can give three ideas. My first wish would be that humanity acquires the ability to recognize when emotion and thought replace one another. Because, in my experience, most people do not distinguish between rational discourse and their irrational desires, thinking they are the same, but they are not. Irrational desire will never lead you to science. Rational debate led to science. And science, based on my assessment of the last 500-600 years, has been humanity's greatest contribution. Therefore, I would wish for humanity to understand the difference between what we feel and what we think.
My second wish is that some wonderful genius creates a device that makes fear disappear in people. Because from my point of view, most human actions are driven by fear. I read Dune before all the movies came out, and there’s a line in that book that I’ve always kept in mind: “Fear is the mind killer,” fear is the assassin of ideas, the death of thought.
As for my third wish, many faith traditions, including Christianity, have the golden rule: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” I would like this message to be affirmed and amplified everywhere through our media.