Sounds like a theory

摘要

If only intuition could get us where we want to go. In the late 1960s, John Coltrane drew a mandala that connected five musical notes in patterns, including a five-pointed star. Inspired by Einstein's work to unify physics in a single theory, the jazz musician's diagram was an attempt to understand the connections between musical scales. Its form is so beautiful that it is tempting to wonder if there is a link between music and physics stretching all the way to a theory of everything. That is unlikely, however. In his marvellous The Jazz of Physics, physicist and musician Stephon Alexander explains that analogies can seed new insights, but are no substitute for deep understanding of the thing itself. An intuitive analogy between music and physics is "part of the journey", Alexander says, but during this long journey, the scenery will change. Not having an adequate analogy - and needing the clarity of rigorous calculations - is also part of the journey.