string theory
nounDefinition of string theory
: a theory in physics: all elementary particles are manifestations of the vibrations of one-dimensional strings
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Separately, string theory, which proposes that forces and particles all arise from the vibrations of tiny stringlike units, gave monopoles yet another thumbs-up. — Adam Hadhazy, Discover Magazine, "Scientists Hunt for A Seeming Paradox: A Magnet With Only One Pole," 13 Nov. 2018 Mathur argued that black holes are not empty pits but packed full of strings (the fundamental units of string theory), with an actual surface like a star or planet. — Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, "Stephen Hawking’s final paper published, tackles famous paradox," 11 Oct. 2018 Even the most ardent Trump supporter doesn’t challenge his oncologist’s cancer diagnosis, or walk into a physics conference and question the validity of string theory. — Sean Illing, Vox, "A philosopher explains America’s “post-truth” problem," 14 Aug. 2018 Even more disappointing for her is string theory, the most popular candidate for a unified theory of all the basic forces of nature. — Graham Farmelo, WSJ, "‘Lost in Math’ Review: The Beauty Myth," 22 June 2018 This suggests string theory constitutes at least a step towards a theory of quantum gravity. — Alexander Hellemans, Scientific American, "A Conversation with Thomas Hertog, One of Stephen Hawking’s Final Collaborators," 24 May 2018 The second argument for the existence of a multiverse arises from string theory, which holds that matter is ultimately composed not of particles but of unimaginably small, vibrating strings or loops of energy. — Dan Falk /, NBC News, "What is the multiverse?," 22 May 2018 And unlike the standard theory of gravity, string theory can describe its interactions mathematically without getting strange infinities. — Lorenzo Bianchi, Newsweek, "Was This Stephen Hawking's Theory of Everything?," 19 Mar. 2018 To date, there is no evidence that either string theory, inflation or the landscape is correct. — Dennis Overbye, New York Times, "Joseph Polchinski, 63, Leading Theorist on Multiple Universes, Dies," 7 Feb. 2018These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'string theory.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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