What Modern Physics Has to Say About Reality

Modern physics reveals a deeply strange universe. Classical certainty has given way to quantum fields, curved spacetime, and a reality that behaves more like computation than matter. Our best theories are powerful yet incomplete—and the true nature of reality remains elusive.

One of humanity’s most fundamental desires is to understand how the reality surrounding us works. For a long time, we were making good progress. The worldview of classical physics in the 19th century was still clear and comprehensible. The Universe resembled a finely tuned machine, governed by elegant laws that could be described using relatively simple mathematics. Only a few phenomena stood out as exceptions—anomalies that classical physics couldn't explain.

According to an often-told anecdote, when Max Planck decided to pursue a career in physics, a mentor advised him against it, claiming that almost everything worth discovering had already ...