Floyd 1

Charmayne Floyd
Mr. Tevel
ESF 9: Chinese Traditions of the Self
24 November 2015
Best of Both Worlds
In the Mahayana Buddhist tradition, nondualism is the mind set one must enter to achieve
enlightenment. While recognizing a dualism involves delineating a distinction between two
separate entities, entering the gate of nondualism does not mean proving that the two entities are
actually identical. It instead means that one must overcome the predilection to distinguish
between entities in the first place and transcending distinctions completely. The Mahayana
Buddhist tradition aims to accept formlessness and emptiness as the true reality of the universe. .
As quoted in the Vimalakitri Sutra, the wise bodhisattva Joyful Seeing reveals that,
Form and emptiness constitute a dualism. But form is none other
than emptiness; emptiness does not represent the extinction of
form. Form itself is empty by natureDwelling in the midst of
these concepts and understanding them thoroughly, one may in this
way enter the gate of nondualism1
Chemistry and physics are often regarded as two separate physical sciences, describing the same
atoms, the same phenomena, and the same observations through different colored lenses. Both
perspectives are rooted deeply in what is accepted to be fact and neither interpretation is
1 Kumarajiva, The Vimalakirti Sutra, trans. Burton Watson (Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass Publishers, 2008),
106-107.

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incorrect, per say, but the physicists perspective is distinctly contrasted to the chemists
perspective through what they study and how they study it. By understanding that the nature of
form is emptiness and impermanence, one can overcome the delineations between chemistry and
physics and reach a new level of understanding and interdisciplinary knowledge. The nondualism
of the intersection of chemistry and physics demonstrates the Buddhist ideal of nondualism
reflecting at the smallest levels of the universe and reveals new ways to solve challenging
problems that face society today, such as the conflicts in the concept of true emptiness and
interdisciplinary science can solve the practical challenges limiting the implementations of
superconductors.
Physics and chemistry have been considered separate sciences since scientific fields were
first given names, and the echoes of this schism have been felt throughout history ever since.
Chemistry evolved from the ancient art of alchemy, the nonscientific belief that regular metals
could be transfigured into gold. Chemistry first became its own bona fide science in the modern
sense of the word with Robert Boyles The Skeptical Chemist, published at the end of the 17th
century2. Boyles work laid out chemistry as a non-mystical, rational science that followed
precise laws, transforming chemistry into the credible science it is today. Physics, on the other
hand, evolved from ancient philosophy and mathematics as the predominant way to explain the
natural world3. Although the Greeks had a distinct fascination with physics (albeit with wrong
explanations), modern physics was born with the publication of Philosophiae Naturalis

2 History of Chemistry, Columbia University, n.d., http://www.columbia.edu/itc/chemistry/chemc2507/navbar/chemhist.html

3 Martyn Shuttleworth, Ancient Physics, Explorable.com, 24 January 2010,
https://explorable.com/ancient-physics

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Principia Mathematica by Isaac Newton4. Newtons book laid out the fundamental laws of the
universe in mathematical terms. These origin differences in chemistry and physics developed
into the defined separations in the fields that exist today. One such distinction lies in the study of
emptiness in the two sciences.
The subject and study of emptiness in physics and chemistry constitutes a dualism. Chemistry
spends very little time focusing on empty space. Chemists recognize that empty space is not truly
empty with the Denseness-Emptiness Principle5. This theory states that there is no denseness
without emptiness and voids are only an approximation of emptiness in other words, empty
space is simply areas where matter is comparatively harder to find comparatively, but that does
not mean it is not there, as evidenced by random quantum fluctuations and vacuum energy. In
short, chemists see emptiness as relative, like the concept of absolute zero. Absolute zero is the
absence of all heat and energy in an atom, and it is impossible to achieve naturally or artificially
in nature due to the laws of thermodynamics. It is the baseline upon which temperature is built,
but is a completely theoretical concept. In this way, chemists see matter in the same light as
energy there is theoretically an absence of it, but that is unachievable, and therefore there is no
empty space. Discussion of empty space, however, is typically ignored in chemistry discussions
to focus on the denseness of space namely, the matter. Chemists tend to ignore the empty
space in and between atoms and look at what disrupts that empty space, therefore choosing to
focus on the objects they can analyze.

4 Isaac Newton Biography, A&E Television Networks, n.d., http://www.biography.com/people/isaacnewton-9422656

5 Peter Baofu, The Future of Post-Human Chemistry: A Preface to a New Theory of Substances and
Their Changes (Newcastle, United Kingdom: Cambridge Scholars, 2011), page 326.

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Physics, in clear contrast, is comparatively obsessed with empty space. Topics of emptiness
range from space itself to vacuums, fields, the subatomic zoo, dark matter, and more. Physicists
delve deeper into the question of emptiness and ask what is truly empty, whereas chemists accept
a space as a vacuum, but not truly empty, and move on to focus on the matter occupying the
space. To accept truly empty space would be too mundane for the physicist instead, they
choose to qualify what empty truly means and to make nothing into something. Empty space is
anything but, according to quantum mechanics, states Adrian Cho, writer at Science Magazine6.
It roils with quantum particles flitting in and out of existence, he claims, discarding the idea7
that empty is truly vacuous. As physicists continue to look into the night sky for dark matter, the
unobservable something that exists scattered throughout the universe to explain observable
gravitational pulls8, the vacuum of space becomes packed with thoughts and theories about what
occupies so-called emptiness. Albert Einstein originally postulated that empty space in the
universe is not truly empty,9 and the concept of dark matter was created to fill this void. If
physicists can even explain the vacuum of space to be full of pulsating, unobservable matter,
then emptiness is a truly hard concept to find in the world of quantum and theoretical physics, as

6 Adrian Cho, Physicists Observe Weird Quantum Fluctuations of Empty Space Maybe, Science
Magazine, 1 October 2015, http://news.sciencemag.org/physics/2015/10/physicists-observe-weirdquantum-fluctuations-empty-space-maybe
7 In general chemistry, chemists simply ignore the presence of anything in emptiness, since those quantum particles
lie outside of their scope and depth of knowledge and have little, if any, observable effect on the matter itself. When
chemists discuss vacuums, for example, they do so out of the assumption that there is no matter in the vacuum, as
the matter is so dense less that it is practically not there at all, for practical intents and purposes. The matter that
chemists analyze is comparatively so dense and so large that the smaller, less dense particles do not affect the
outcome of the experiments.

8 Dark Energy, Dark Matter, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, n.d.,
http://science.nasa.gov/astrophysics/focus-areas/what-is-dark-energy/
9 Ibid.

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contrasted to the accepted emptiness in chemistry. These contrasting acceptances and denials
of emptiness create a dualism between the two sciences.
The purpose and practicality of empty space is also debated between chemists and physicists. For
physicists, empty space is a research field in and of itself it brims with possibilities of energy
analysis, subatomic particles, and the concept of existence itself. Empty space provides a place
for physicists to learn about minute particles and energy without the interference of observable10
matter. For example, one current unanswered question about the nature of emptiness that
physicists are researching is the meaning of vacuum energy. A vacuum in space has a certain
amount of energy in its emptiness, which contrasts with the definition of a vacuum and leads to
the question about what creates this energy in nothingness11. Chemists, comparatively, focuses on
the matter outside of the emptiness. Vacuums are often used in chemistry experiments so as to
isolate matter from an outside system, but little time is devoted to the dense less areas where
matter is rare.
Furthermore, chemists and physicists accept different levels of emptiness. For chemists, the
concept of empty can be attained on a daily basis. Vacuums are commonly used in experiments
in order to achieve some sort of desired effect on the observable matter in the system, even if this
emptiness is nowhere near empty. For physicists, the emptiness that they seek to analyze is
harder to access. Large particle accelerators and hadron colliders are miles long and meticulously
maintained in order to achieve optimal empty conditions necessary to analyze subatomic
10 Observable in this sense refers to the more dense matter that chemists study.
11 It is interesting to note that physicists are basically opposing Buddhist theory in their research.
Buddhism preaches that form is empty, while physicists are searching for form in emptiness. Regardless,
physicists have yet to find permanence that opposes the principle that everything gives way to emptiness,
and in fact they have found much evidence supporting this Buddhist belief.

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particles. Space, the largest vacuum known, is also expensive to access and inhospitable for
research. Additionally, it is not possible to physically analyze deep space beyond observations.
Theories to explain certain observations and phenomena millions of lightyears away are only
tools in the physicists arsenal to combat the so-called void of space.
The dualism between the viewpoints of chemists and physics on the subject of emptiness
can be overcome with the Mahayana tradition of the acceptance of void and emptiness, so as to
collide philosophy with science and reach new heights in interdisciplinary studies. Buddhism
accepts that form itself is made of emptiness, as any consistent structure or defined form
inevitably gives way to emptiness. In this way, structure itself is empty of permanent form, and
impermanence ultimately gives way to emptiness. The impermanence of an atom is a perfect
example of the empty nature of structure and how this emptiness can be related to physics and
chemistry. The actual amount of matter in an atom is miniscule; empty space occupies over
99.9999% of the atom. Even so, one could consider the matter that is present to be well
structured, but this structure is impermanent and eventually gives way to emptiness. The
repelling charges in the nucleus of an atom the protons struggling to break free of the like
charges near them eventually leads to the natural decay of the atom. The atom breaks apart and
is no longer structured, and emptiness overcomes form. In this sense, even the form of the most
basic structure in nature is consumed by the massive emptiness that surrounds it and eventually
gives way to chaos and formlessness.
This impermanence of any type of structure allows scientists to overcome delineations
between chemistry and physics. In this view of structure as emptiness, chemistry and physics
form a nondualism. Even the structure that chemistry seeks to study is empty and
impermanent, the same way that physicists study emptiness itself to understand formlessness at

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its most basic level. The space and structures that both chemistry and physics study are formless
and impermanent ultimately giving way to the emptiness that unites them. In this sense, both
chemistry and physics are studying the change of matter or energy as it gives way to chaos and
emptiness, uniting the two subject into a single study of impermanence and emptiness, even if
they appear to disagree with their interpretations of what emptiness truly is.
The unity of chemistry and physics through Buddhist philosophy on structure and
emptiness transcends the scientific separations created by humanitys desire for order in a chaotic
world. In fact, the interface where chemistry and physics collide is a flourishing field of research
and possibilities. Interdisciplinary science is the future of both chemistry and physics, as this
field allows for members to combine the chemistry aspect of the study of matter and bonds with
the physics aspect of the study of energy, forces, subatomic phenomena, and motion to discover
and solve the worlds most pressing problems.
For example, the field of superconductors technically falls into chemistrys domain, but
knowledge of physics will be critical to solving its unanswered questions. Current research12
involves uncovering the electronic structures of superconductors at high temperatures, so that
superconductors can possibly replicated out of other materials, and how transition temperatures
of superconductors can be brought to room temperature and therefore have every day, real-world
applicability. It will be impossible for scientists to study electronic structures of superconductors
without knowledge of both the chemical processes that affect and create superconductors and a
physical understanding of the electronic forces and energy at work. Likewise, both physics and
chemistry will be needed to understand how to make superconductors viable at room

12 Peter Baofu, The Future of Post-Human Chemistry: A Preface to a New Theory of Substances and
Their Changes (Newcastle, United Kingdom: Cambridge Scholars, 2011), page 285.

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temperature. Chemistry may be able to explain the molecular structure, but it is unable to explain
the forces and energy interactions that make superconductors so powerful. This is where an
interdisciplinary approach to this problem is important. Physics can explain the electronic
structures and forces at work, but not how the molecules are interacting. Using knowledge from
both sciences will allow researchers to make superconductors more viable for commercial use
outside of the laboratory. Superconductors have high potential to increase human standards of
living exponentially, making the research in the field very well-funded and relevant to modern
humanity.
An example of the critical nature of interdisciplinary approaches is the failed superconductor
La1.875Ba0.125CuO4 experiment.13 The nature of the pseudogap14 and its relationship with
superconductivity was approached from a strictly physics perspective by analyzing energy
distribution curves, and the results left much to be desired. The origin of the pseudogap still
remains unknown, and perhaps approaching the problem with a chemistry interdisciplinary view
could solve the questions that physics failed to answer sufficiently. The physics approach to
superconductors failed to consider how the molecule actually is functioning and instead chose to
simply observe the fluctuations in the pseudogap, which did not lead to any conclusions about
the pseudogaps existence, so the researchers could not answer why the energy gap exists. By
combining both a chemical and physical approach to this problem, however, the researchers
could look at the bonds and chemistry of the superconductor molecule and analyze how those
13 Rui-Hua He, et.al, Energy Gaps in the Failed High Tc Superconductor La 1.875Ba0.125CuO4,
Nature.com, 21 December 2008, http://www.nature.com/nphys/journal/v5/n2/full/nphys1159.html
14 A pseudogap, put simply, is a place where there is an energy gap between what is expected of the
resistance of the superconductor and what the resistance actually is. It begins to occur at extremely low
temperatures and ceases to exist once the superconductor reaches a high critical temperature.
Understanding why the pseudogap occurs could lead to the development of superconductors at room
temperatures.

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bonds are affected by nearby molecules and the vacuum it is placed in to see if the chemical
structure explains the pseudogap. With this interdisciplinary approach, the mystery of the
pseudogap could possibly be solved and superconductors could be made to work at room
temperatures.
Physics and chemistry have benefitted from being separate, but the future of science stands to
gain more with an interdisciplinary approach to its challenges. With separate studies for physics
and chemists, scientists have become specialists in their field, gathering stronger depths of
knowledge than if original studies had been broader. This age old argument against
interdisciplinarity has its merits. As professor Thomas C. Benson argues, it is useless for people
to spend time in interdisciplinary learning projects when the student lacks a mature base in any
of the contributing disciplines.15 Although there are valid concerns regarding the lack of depth
in interdisciplinary studies, now it is time for the field to move towards developing
interdisciplinary, well-rounded scientists who have the tools of chemistry and physics in their
arsenal, ready to solve practical problems that require knowledge of both chemistry and physics.
Professor Casey Jones correctly asserts that the interdisciplinary approach continues to
synthesize the characteristics and methods of multiple disciplines while developing lifelong
learning skills.16 Modern problems, such as that of the superconductor, are not able to be solved
with information from just one discipline. A practical knowledge of chemistry and physics and
how they intertwine is necessary to create superconductors that can work at room temperature.
15 Thomas C. Benson, Five Arguments Against Interdisciplinary Studies, University of Maryland,
Baltimore County, 1982, http://www.oakland.edu/upload/docs/AIS/Issues%20in%20Interdisciplinary
%20Studies/1982%20Volume%2001/02_Vol_1_pp_3848_Five_Arguments_Against_Interdisciplinary_Studies_(Thomas_C._Benson).pdf
16 Casey Jones, Interdisciplinary Approach, College of Dupage, 1 April 2010,
http://dc.cod.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1121&context=essai

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Likewise, the different interpretations of emptiness each have their usefulness; one perspective is
practical and useful for experiments and one perspective is theoretical and highlights interesting
revelations about the fundamentals of energy and subatomic matter. However, overcoming this
dualism has allowed the fields to use both of their separate interpretations of subjects to be
synthesized into a single scientific understanding of the nature of the universe itself.
Chemistry and physics may be opposite sides of a coin, but it is still one coin (scientific
endeavor, by metaphorical extension). By using Buddhist philosophy to transcend minutiae
distinctions and look at the scientific field as a unified knowledge base, humanity can progress to
new frontiers and chemistry and physics can unite to solve new, challenging problems that will
push our standard of living forward.

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Works Cited
Administration, National Aeronatuics and Space. n.d. Dark Energy, Dark Matter.
http://science.nasa.gov/astrophysics/focus-areas/what-is-dark-energy/.
Baofu, Peter. 2011. The Future of Post-Human Chemistry: A Preface to a New Theory of
Substances and Their Changes. Newcastle, United Kingdom: Cambridge Scholars.
Benson, Thomas C. Five Arguments Against Interdisciplinary Studies, University of
Maryland, Baltimore County, 1982,
______http://www.oakland.edu/upload/docs/AIS/Issues%20in%20Interdisciplinary
%20Studies/1 ______982%20Volume%2001/02_Vol_1_pp_38______48_Five_Arguments_Against_Interdisciplinary_Studies_(Thomas_C._Benson).pdf

Chi, Adrian. 2015. Physicists Observe Weird Quantum Fluctutations of Empty Space - Maybe.
October 1. http://news.sciencemag.org/physics/2015/10/physicists-observe-weirdquantum-fluctuations-empty-space-maybe.
He, Rui-Hua, et.al, Energy Gaps in the Failed High Tc Superconductor La1.875Ba0.125CuO4,
______Nature.com, 21 December 2008,
______http://www.nature.com/nphys/journal/v5/n2/full/nphys1159.html

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History of Chemistry, Columbia University, n.d.,
http://www.columbia.edu/itc/chemistry/chem-c2507/navbar/chemhist.html
Isaac Newton Biography, A&E Television Networks, n.d.,
http://www.biography.com/people/isaac-newton-9422656
Jones, Casey. Interdisciplinary Approach, College of Dupage, 1 April 2010,
http://dc.cod.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1121&context=essai
Kumarajiva. 2008. The Vimalakirti Sutra. Translated by Burton Watson. Delhi: Motilal
Banarsidass Publishers.
Shuttleworth, Martin. Ancient Physics, Explorable.com, 24 January 2010,
https://explorable.com/ancient-physics
Smetham, Graham. 2010. Quantum Buddhism: Dancing in Emptiness Reality Revealed at the
Interface of Quantum Physics & Buddhist Philosophy . Brighton, Sussex: Shunyata Press.