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Lee Smolin
am sure I am not the only one in this Over the past few years many have are simultaneously developing new
I year of Einstein who receives calls
from journalists asking, Why is there
expressed concern about the chal-
lenge to US physics from growing in-
ideas and the techniques to explore
them. Hence they often publish fewer
no new Einstein? While we have vestments abroad, from the Euro- papers, and their papers are cited less
ready answers, there is still the dis- pean Union to China. I believe our frequently than those that contribute
quieting worry that perhaps a lesson future success in physics will depend to something hundreds of people are
might be learned from the fact that on how well we can answer a single doing.
this one person, who was initially un- question: Are our universities, insti- To give the advantage to people
able to find an academic job, did more tutes, and foundations doing all they who are unusually creative and inde-
to advance physics than most of the can to identify and promote individu- pendent, we should change the meas-
rest of us put together have since. als who have the creativity and intel- ures we use to judge quality and
Many of Einsteins contemporaries lectual independence that character- promise.
testified that he was not unusually ize those who contribute most to Sometimes it is asserted that more
talented mathematically. Instead, physics? I say that they are not. They independent and creative thinkers
what enabled him to make such are not even doing as well as some of constitute a greater risk in hiring.
tremendous advances was a driving their competitors do to support those But I think an examination of the ca-
need to understand the logic of na- with the most creativity and inde- reers of individual physicists shows
ture, tied to a breathtaking creativity pendence. Simple changes could that on the whole the opposite is true.
and a fierce intellectual independ- greatly improve the extent to which It is the creative and independent
ence. But Einstein does not stand American science is hospitable to thinkers who are more likely to con-
alone. One can cite many examples very talented physicists. tinue to make important contribu-
showing that big advances in physics tions throughout their lifetime. They
come when unusually creative and in- Creativity and independence are driven by their own curiosity and
tellectually independent individuals The mechanisms we have constructed need for understanding, rather than
ask new questions and forge new to ensure fairness and quality have by career motives. Their research is
directions. the unintended side effect of putting not going to fall off when the tech-
It follows that new Einsteins are people of unusual creativity and inde- niques they learn in graduate school
unlikely to be easily characterized in pendence at a disadvantage. run out, for they have the ability to
terms of research programs that have Those who follow large well-sup- invent new ideas and directions and
been well explored for decades. In- ported research programs have lots of learn new techniques.
stead a new Einstein will be develop- powerful senior scientists to promote We also greatly underestimate the
ing his or her own research program their careers. Those who invent their risks of having large numbers of peo-
that, by definition, will be one that no own research programs usually lack ple follow speculative but trendy re-
senior person works on. He or she may such support and hence are often un- search programs, even those led by
even feel the need to focus on the re- dervalued and underappreciated. very accomplished senior people.
ally deep and difficult questions, such People with the uncanny ability to
as the foundations of quantum me- ask new questions or recognize unex- String theory
chanics, that are ignored in leading amined assumptions, or who are able Over the past 20 years, string theory
American research institutes and de- to take ideas from one field and apply has attracted the effort of a large
partments, despite the work of a few them to another, are often at a disad- number of theorists and mathemati-
leading physicists who had estab- vantage when the goal is to hire the cians. Nevertheless it is clear that the
lished their credentials in other topics best person in a given well-estab- program has not progressed as origi-
first. After all, if Einstein himself felt lished area. nally envisioned. Many key conjec-
the deepest problems were in the In the present system, scientists tures remain unproven, including the
foundations of quantum theory, and if feel lots of pressure to follow estab- basic claim that the theory gives finite
those problems remain unsolved half lished research programs led by pow- answers.1 The hope for a unique the-
a century later, why should we expect erful senior scientists. Those who ory and the promise of new falsifiable
a new Einstein to ignore them? choose to follow their own programs predictions have dissolved with the
understand that their career discovery of evidence for vast num-
Lee Smolin, formerly professor of prospects will be harmed. That there bers (greater than 10300) of theories.
physics at the Pennsylvania State Uni- are still those with the courage to go The well-studied versions disagree
versity, moved in 2001 to Perimeter their own way is underappreciated. with experiment, and little is known
Institute for Theoretical Physics in It is easy to write many papers explicitly about the many versions
Waterloo, Ontario. He has worked on when you continue to apply well- that are conjectured to agree with ob-
quantum gravity, string theory, particle understood techniques. People who servation. Despite much effort, no
physics, and foundations of quantum develop their own ideas have to work evidence has been found to confirm
mechanics. harder for each result, because they the key hypotheses, including hidden