Quantum Gravity, Superstrings, Space Warping, and a 10-Dimensional Universe

As we build larger experimental particle accelerators capable of creating matter-energy streams of thousands of gig-electron volts, we will be seeing exotic new forms of matter that exist only at extremely high energy levels. Imagine previously unknown particles that are 100 to 1000 times heavier than entire atoms and behave in strange ways.

According to the Standard Model of particle physics, matter is comprised of quarks and leptons, and bosons carry the elementary forces. However, Superstring theory looks at the universe from a different perspective. It suggests that there are at least 10 dimensions (9 space, 1 time), only 4 of which we experience regularly (3 space, 1 time). The 6 dimensions of space that we don�t see are compacted into an unimaginably small length (about 100 Planck�s Lengths) between the ends of a Superstring, which may in fact be the elementary form of what we have so far perceived of as "particles".

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