Talk:Physics

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 A Wikipedian removed Physics from the good article list. There are suggestions below for improving areas to satisfy the good article criteria. Once the objections are addressed, renominate the article as a good article. If you disagree with the objections, you can seek a review.

Removal date: 8/15/2006
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[edit] New "Category:Thermodynamicists" started

I collected all of the famous thermodynamicists I could think of (~15 so far) and grouped them here: Category:Thermodynamicists. If you know of more please add them. Thanks:--Sadi Carnot 15:34, 29 August 2006 (UTC)

[edit] The review of Physics continues at Talk:Physics/wip

Concrete proposals have now been put forward, arising from recent discussion aimed at producing a stable and consensual lead section for the Physics article. We have set up a straw poll, for comments on the proposals. Why not drop in at Talk:Physics/wip, and have your say? The more the better! --MichaelMaggs 22:37, 13 November 2006 (UTC) (adopting wording used elsewhere by Noetica)

[edit] In the categories of Physics

I think some physicists would be offended that there is no non-linear physics in there. Fields like biophysics seem to be gone. These are major fields of study into chaos. Yes it does blend with other field s such as AMO but it should probably still be there. maybe im the only one --Blckavnger 18:58, 17 November 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Uhhh

Why were all the images removed and never restored? http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Physics&diff=86470595&oldid=86468622 this is why i hate wiki sometimes, how can you not notice something like this for months? can you revert changes made on a edit previous edit to the last without loosing intervening edits? --Deglr6328 23:06, 18 November 2006 (UTC)

I looked back at the history, and a HUGE number of pictures and photos were removed. Surely they were not all in violation? What is going on?--ReasonIsBest 18:06, 23 November 2006 (UTC)
I agree to this.
--Meno25 23:13, 23 November 2006 (UTC)

Why haven't they been added back? --68.224.247.53 04:27, 24 November 2006 (UTC)

I have added back the images that were removed a month ago by this edit. --MichaelMaggs 15:04, 6 December 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Discredited theories

I suggest these theories be listed in chronological order rather than the roughly reverse chronological order they are in at present. --Wfaxon 21:51, 19 November 2006 (UTC)

[edit] lead

"Physics is a study of the inorganic, physical world..." This statement in the lead is incorrect, IMO. The laws of physics apply to both organic and inorganic matter. Yeah, I know there's a citation ot the Encyclopedia Britannica, but, sorry, they're wrong too :-) There are also a lot of mistakes in grammar and punctuation in the lead. I'm going to go ahead and do a rewrite of the lead.--24.52.254.62 18:43, 25 November 2006 (UTC)

In the opening, the second translation, of the word, phusiké from greek does not mean "knowledge of," the -iké suffix was very common, it just meant "pertaining to" or "in the manner of".

The main problem is trying to give a quick definition of the original word, phúsis. In its Greek definition it was usually defined in contradistinction to "nomos", which meant customs, laws, usage etc. Now if it is defined as being that "which is different to law," then giving a definition of it as "discovering the fundamental laws" of nature is problematic outside of theology.

Also the word nature is just a translation of phúsis, so the definition would be circular. Nor is a link to the page on nature any better, since it assumes phusis means mainly plants and trees. (as one might expect from a page on "nature").

As a 21st century science, it is not so much based upon the early modern faith in "eternal and immutable laws," as much as, giving a consensus and creating or discovering models, usually mathematical models, of the physical world. Of course, this is within the ideal of finding and assuring the more stable models (or, if you are a pragmatist, the more useful, or powerful, models).

On whether or not the models of physics apply to organic systems I am not so sure. As far as I know, the models used in organic chemistry cannot be built, all the way up, from physics, even though the parts of organic systems are subject to the same physics as everything else. This is the problem of reduction, and it might be good to place a "health warning" in the article on where physics cannot be applied.

In the history section it misses the fact that medicine was a part of physics until the middle of the Christian era. Also I think it is not very generous to call historical physics, "wrong", since it is not beyond one's imagination to see that, in the distant future, we too could be written off as "wrong."

I'm not editing the article myself since I see it is under review, contentious etc. it is just my two cents. Lucas

[edit] Addition of Roger Bacon to early part of History

I would like the editors to consider adding a reference to Roger Bacon, due to his emphasis on the so-called scientific method in the 13th century, and the impact of his treatises on later 16th and 17th century minds. Add to the para:

"As the influence of the Arab Empire expanded to Europe, the works of Aristotle preserved by the Arabs, and the works of the Indians and Persians, became known in Europe by the 12th and 13th centuries."

Tony 05:26, 12 December 2006 (UTC)

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