Where have all the Forces gone?

[luckyme]

In an expansion of knowledge that includes more species, more planets, more galaxies, more diseases, more particles ..... - the one thing that seems to be shrinking is 'forces'. For millenia mankind seemed willing to pull out a 'force' as the answer to any question,.

I'd include mystery entiies that operate as a force such as elan vital or phogiston or even 'good' besides referenced forces such as gravity.

Will there come a time when all forces are resolved into something else? Which forces are very likely immune? Is it a bit of a Kuhnian paradigm situation that we're nearing the edge of?

luckyme

[HLMencken]

What isn't resolved into (i.e., explained by) something else? Why do you think the concept of "forces" is somehow unique?

[luckyme]

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Why do you think the concept of "forces" is somehow unique?

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I wasn't particulary concerned with that aspect, just the disappearance of them from our worldview. Now that you ask, the unobservable nature we ascribe to a force, it's the scientific version of 'god of the gaps'... somethings going on, i can't explain it .. hey, there's a Force at work here ( and then over time the gap closes and the force is no longer needed, poof, gone). Rocks don't do that.

Some posters on here have a lot of knowledge that may shed some light on this change of thinking that seems to be going on.

thanks for raising that aspect, luckyme

[HLMencken]

Yeah, and instead of every animal species being unique, evolution shows how they can be "resolved" back to a lesser number of species, possibly all the way back to organic soup. How is this different than what we are learning about the nature of "unique" forces?

[Metric]

I'm not quite clear on exactly what you're asking, since you seem to be lumping the "F=ma" kind of force in with a bunch of other concepts that are vaguely related at best.

[luckyme]

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I'm not quite clear on exactly what you're asking, since you seem to be lumping the "F=ma" kind of force in with a bunch of other concepts that are vaguely related at best.

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Left it vague for a few reasons, mainly because I didn't mind any direction the thread goes as long as I learned something about what others think about the use of 'forces' as an explanation. Or their existance other than just as useful theoretical constructs, or the current treatment of the few that are left ( if there are in fact fewer).

thanks, luckyme