one of the disappointments in M-theory and superstring theories is experimental unverifiability and one of the tragedies is that one of the co-founders, during the early developments, namely Joel Scherk suffered a nervous breakdown and in 1979 committed suicide. This loss is a great setback to the small band of theory crusaders in the early 1980s. Did Scherk foresee the doomsday of superstring? Your guess is as good as mine.
The weakest link in the progressive chains of M-theory is its lack of a physical principle that can put in place the scaffoldings necessary for the growth and development of its mathematical substances.
reference: Leonard Mlodinow, "Euclid's Window," Chap V, The Story of Witten, Touchstone, New York, 2002.


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