Stupid PUMA Physics!

It shouldn’t surprise anyone that Riverdaughters grasp of physics is about as tenuous as her grasp of politics (among other things). In the middle of another tedious and contrived post, she slipped in this analogy.

Every conservative argument can be reduced to that goal like physics can be reduced to F=ma.

This wouldn’t be so risable if not for two things. First, Riverdaughter is apparently some type of research scientist, and never misses an opportunity to remind her followers that sit at home all day and PUMA-blog for hours on end (cough *Darragh Murphy* cough). Second, I’m a science nerd and they’d revoke my nerd license and electrical engineering degree if I didn’t correct such a stupid statement.

Those with even the most passing familiarity with college level (or high school AP, even) physics should recognize how incorrect it is to state that “like physics can be reduced to F=ma.” F=ma is one expression of Newton’s second law of motion. Beyond the fact that it is not even a comprehensive expression of classical Newtonian dynamics, classical Newtonian dynamics is itself something of a first order approximation of our reality.

Surely any research chemist should be familar with the refinement of our understanding that quantum mechanics brought us. Beyond that, (and this part is beyond my area of expertise), I understand that at high enough temperatures (ie far enough back in time close to the big bang) theoretical physicists have unified the electromagnetic, strong, and weak forces, but gravity still beguiles them.

Anyway, that’s all. Even if physics could be reduced to a single equation, and it can’t right now, it certainly wouldn’t be F=ma.

Perhaps I’m being too nitpicky. Afterall, there is so much stuff she writes that is even more stupid, and perhaps this was a throwaway line she used to make one of her typically vapid comparisons. Fuck it, though. It’s my blog, and I’ll make fun of whatever PUMA stupid I want!