Abstract
In science, as in life, "surprises" can be adequately appreciated only in the presence of a null model, what we expect a priori. In physics, theories sometimes express the values of dimensionless physical constants as combinations of mathematical constants like π or e. The inverse problem also arises, whereby the measured value of a physical constant admits a "surprisingly" simple approximation in terms of well-known mathematical constants. Can we estimate the probability for this to be a mere coincidence, rather than an inkling of some theory? We answer the question in the most naive form.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 609-612 |
| Number of pages | 4 |
| Journal | American Mathematical Monthly |
| Volume | 123 |
| Issue number | 6 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 2016 |
| Externally published | Yes |
All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes
- General Mathematics