Research starts with PhD students

Chapter 136: A layman speaking? Zhang Shuo: My research is complete!
“Science is about making progress through constant questioning!”

This statement is indeed correct, but it is obviously impossible to convince everyone.

When it comes to a scientific issue, everyone has their own opinion. Science advances through questioning, but not every question is correct, and not every direction can be questioned.

After Zhang Shuo posted the message on Weibo, he received support from many netizens, and more people expressed their opinions.

"Science does advance amidst doubts, but the fermion Hubble model is a one-way mathematical model, not some kind of inherent limitation of thinking. Many people have studied it, and if it can be simplified, it would have been simplified long ago."

"The only feasible method for this type of complex mathematical model is quantum computing."

"There have been a lot of studies internationally, and it's simply impossible to simplify it."

"If you can simplify it, then mathematically the model can be simplified, which is obviously impossible."

"Zhang Shuo is a genius in computational mathematics, but mathematical models and equations are different fields..."

An interesting thing is that those who support Zhang Shuo are basically netizens who do not understand the content of the debate.

Scholars who believe in the fermion Hubbard model or other similar physical models hold neutral or opposing opinions.

In this situation, of course there are more people supporting Zhang Shuo, but the support is directed at Zhang Shuo himself, not the controversial issue.

'Doctor Novelty' Yang Chao certainly stands on the side of 'scholars'. He did this just to prove that he is right, or to vent his anger, so he conducted an exclusive interview with Huang Libo on the content to support his own understanding.

He just wanted to attract some traffic and consolidate his image at the same time.

Both objectives were achieved.

Yang Chao did not expect that things would ferment to such an extent. The main reason is that against the backdrop of a large number of scholars standing up, Zhang Shuo also posted a message saying "Science advances amid questioning."

"Zhang Shuo, you really don't admit defeat!"

"Even if it means going against the whole world, he has to prove that he is right?"

"It's no use trying to deny it. Unless you really simplify this kind of problem, the 'truth' will always be on the side of the majority..."

Many people refer to scholars.

No matter how much support ordinary netizens give, it is useless because they have no understanding of the problem at all, so no matter how much support they give, it is meaningless.

Of course, similar debates will not have any results, and everyone can continue to stick to their own opinions.

While the traffic was still there, Yang Chao quickly sent two more messages to continue to consolidate his image, and also let netizens who had just joined the topic know who started the topic and who was the first to question Zhang Shuo.

The credit cannot be taken away!
“I said from the beginning that the fermion Hubbard model could not be simplified.”

"When I was doing my doctorate, I did some research on this. At that time, quantum technology had not yet developed to the level it is today. Solving the fermion Hubbard model was a big problem. To put it bluntly, there was no solution at all."

"Simplify? If it can be simplified, those scholars who do superconductivity theory research will really go crazy..."

When the issue fermented again in public opinion, some reporters tried to interview Zhang Shuo.

They were all turned away.

Soochow University is also aware of the public opinion problem, and there are security guards at the school gate to prevent reporters from entering and leaving the campus at will.

Even if they could sneak into the campus, they wouldn't be able to see Zhang Shuo.

Zhang Shuo has been staying in his office at the High Court, concentrating on organizing the contents of his thesis. He has refused to accept any interviews from outside. There are even people guarding the entrance of the institute building, so unfamiliar faces cannot get in.

the other side.

A reporter went to Xijing University of Science and Technology and interviewed Professor Huang Libo from the Quantum Computing Laboratory.

The fermentation of public opinion on the Internet made Huang Libo feel very good. He felt that he was being used and was very angry at first, but later he found that the public opinion was directed at Zhang Shuo, and various scholars spoke on his side.

This is also normal.

The calculations of the fermion Hubbard model are certainly not simple, and anyone doing relevant research will be very clear about this.

So when a reporter came to interview him again, and they were very professional media reporters, Huang Libo actively accepted the interview.

When sitting in his office facing reporters, Huang Libo felt like he had become an academic celebrity.

In related fields, Huang Libo is indeed an academic leader, but he is still far from being an academic celebrity. After all, he is working on a very difficult-to-understand research direction, which is not noticeable in the public opinion. Even if his results are published, there is no media coverage.

It feels different now.

Huang Libo smiled as he talked about the new content. He described the difficulty of quantum computing research on the Fermion Hubbard model. "The Fermion Hubbard model is already the simplest model in the superconductivity theory mechanism, but it is still very complicated in terms of mathematical analysis."

"This complexity can be described like this..."

"To simulate the fermion Hubbard model, the amount of computation required, or the number of calculations required, is greater than the sum of all the particles in the universe combined."

"Do you understand this concept? That's a very, very, very large number."

"In the face of such a huge computing demand, ordinary computing methods seem a bit ridiculous. We can only use quantum computing to simulate the fermion Hubbard model..."

Huang Libo became more and more engaged as he spoke, and later he simply said, "Regarding the issue of public opinion, I actually think Professor Zhang Shuo's statement is somewhat amateurish, and can be said to be the remarks of an amateur."

"But I am not criticizing his academic ability. In the field of computational mathematics, Zhang Shuo is the top scholar in China and even in the world."

"However, there is a huge gap in the academic field. The fermion Hubbard model is a mathematical model of the theoretical mechanism of superconductivity. It can be said that it is a study of mathematical physics."

"Computational mathematics and mathematical physics are very different..."

After Huang Libo was interviewed, the report was released quickly.

There is nothing wrong with what Huang Libo said before, which is an introduction to the calculations of the fermion Hubbard model. However, the following sentences are controversial.

The media reporters also saw the controversial point and created a topic of public opinion:

#Zhang Shuo's amateur speech#
These six simple words immediately sparked a heated discussion.

"Zhang Shuo is an outsider? How can you say such a thing?"

"Looking at what Huang Libo said in the video, it seems to be true. In terms of mathematics and physics, Zhang Shuo should be considered an outsider, right?"

"In physics, Zhang Shuo is an outsider? How did he come up with the algorithm for high-energy physics?"

"High-energy physics and superconductivity are different, right? The Fermion Hubbard model of superconductivity is a layman for Zhang Shuo, right?" "Even if there is nothing wrong with what he said, it is a bit rude to say it out loud. So, we can also say that Huang Libo is a layman in computational mathematics?"

When heated discussions were sparked again on the Internet, Sun Xingli was in Zhang Shuo's office, assisting Zhang Shuo in organizing the contents of the paper.

With great excitement, he kept saying, "Let's give them a big one this time!"

"Look at what is said online, it's infuriating. That Huang Libo actually said you are an amateur? Let's see if he can still laugh after a while!"

He talked for a long time and asked to confirm, "There is nothing wrong with your research, right?"

"of course."

Zhang Shuo nodded very affirmatively, "I have been researching for a long time. Aren't you helping me organize the content? You can take a look yourself."

“…I don’t quite understand.”

Sun Xingli rolled his eyes. "I only know the general process. I'm glad I can help you sort it out. Do you still want me to understand everything?"

"These are all physics and computational mathematics. I am a researcher of Diophantine equations. It's hard for me to do this..."

"But, it's okay."

After he said that, he stared at his phone and laughed.

Zhang Shuo was a little confused, and asked doubtfully, "What's wrong?"

Sun Xingli smiled and said, "I have a group of colleagues who came to the school at the same time, and they are also talking about this issue online."

"I told them very confidently that the fermion Hubbard model can definitely be simplified. Others can't do it, but you can definitely do it."

"There was a female teacher from the School of Physics who argued with me for a long time, saying 'impossible'. She just said that if the fermion Hubbard model could be simplified, she would marry me!"

The more Sun Xingli talked and laughed, the happier she became.

Zhang Shuo asked doubtfully, "Is she pretty?"

Sun Xingli thought for a moment and commented, "An average person, a little chubby."

"how old?"

"One year older than me, I think..."

Zhang Shuo nodded after thinking about it. "I have something to say to you. A good hunter often appears as prey."

Sun Xingli stopped smiling, looked at the conversation on his phone again, and suddenly fell into deep thought.

……

By the time dinner time came around that day, the paper had been almost finished.

Suddenly, several people came to the second floor.

Qiu Zhichao walked in the front, and Wang Hui, Qi Zhixiang, and Zhong Jingfen formed a triangle to frame him.

Qiu Zhichao explained with a wry smile, "I just came to ask Zhang Shuo. There's no need to be like this. Zhang Shuo and I are so familiar with each other..."

Wang Hui smiled and said, "We just came here to take a look."

They were really worried that Qiu Zhichao would cause trouble.

Online public opinion is talking about the computational simulation problem of the fermion Hubbard model, and Qiu Zhichao's research group is doing related research.

Therefore, people in the School of Physics at Sudong University should also be "warned" about it.

This is the consensus of the Supreme Court.

Under the supervision of the three people, Qiu Zhichao knocked on the door of Zhang Shuo's office.

Zhang Shuo saw Qiu Zhichao was stunned for a moment, so he immediately said, "Professor Qiu, are you here to ask about the fermion Hubbard model?"

"correct."

Qiu Zhichao looked around and smiled bitterly, "I just want to ask, do you really think the calculation of this model can be simplified?"

Zhang Shuo nodded affirmatively.

"Why?" Qiu Zhichao was a little confused. It was very abnormal to express such an affirmative attitude towards a problem of simplifying a mathematical model.

Zhang Shuo did not answer directly, but asked, "Professor Qiu, on this issue, do you hope to simplify it or not?"

Without even thinking, Qiu Zhichao gave an answer that others did not understand: "Of course I hope it can be simplified, and it would be best if it can be simplified immediately!"

"Why?" Sun Xingli, Wang Hui and Qi Zhixiang asked in unison.

Everyone looked at Qiu Zhichao.

Qiu Zhichao calmly explained, "You don't know much about the research on the fermion Hubbard model, right?"

"There are many quantum computing research groups in China and even internationally that specialize in studying physical models. This is a very important direction for the academic application of quantum computing."

"There are several groups doing quantum computing research on the fermion Hubbard model. We are just one of them, and the one ranked the lowest. Our research progress can be said to be... no progress. This is not a problem of level. It's just that we applied for the project relatively late, and the funding is not much."

Qiu Zhichao gave a bitter smile and then said, "If the model is simplified, that would be great. All previous research would become meaningless, and we would be back on the same starting line with other research groups."

"Do you think I would support computational simplification?"

"..."

A group of people in the office looked at each other.

Zhang Shuo pursed his lips and nodded vigorously, "Professor Qiu, your dream has come true!"

He pulled out a manuscript and handed it over. "Take a look. This is the research summary."

"I have completed this research and am ready to publish a paper, but I don't know what impact it will have on your experiment..."

(End of this chapter)