WordNet
n. (physics) parity is conserved in a universe in which the laws of physics are the same in a right-handed system of coordinates as in a left-handed system [syn: parity, conservation of parity, space-reflection symmetry]
Wikipedia
In algebraic geometry and theoretical physics, mirror symmetry is a relationship between geometric objects called Calabi–Yau manifolds. The term refers to a situation where two Calabi–Yau manifolds look very different geometrically but are nevertheless equivalent when employed as extra dimensions of string theory.
Mirror symmetry was originally discovered by physicists. Mathematicians became interested in this relationship around 1990 when Philip Candelas, Xenia de la Ossa, Paul Green, and Linda Parkes showed that it could be used as a tool in enumerative geometry, a branch of mathematics concerned with counting the number of solutions to geometric questions. Candelas and his collaborators showed that mirror symmetry could be used to count rational curves on a Calabi–Yau manifold, thus solving a longstanding problem. Although the original approach to mirror symmetry was based on physical ideas that were not understood in a mathematically precise way, some of its mathematical predictions have since been proven rigorously.
Today mirror symmetry is a major research topic in pure mathematics, and mathematicians are working to develop a mathematical understanding of the relationship based on physicists' intuition. Mirror symmetry is also a fundamental tool for doing calculations in string theory, and it has been used to understand aspects of quantum field theory, the formalism that physicists use to describe elementary particles. Major approaches to mirror symmetry include the homological mirror symmetry program of Maxim Kontsevich and the SYZ conjecture of Andrew Strominger, Shing-Tung Yau, and Eric Zaslow.
Mirror symmetry may refer to:
- Mirror symmetry (string theory), a relation between two Calabi–Yau manifolds in string theory
- Homological mirror symmetry, a mathematical conjecture about Calabi–Yau manifolds made by Maxim Kontsevich
- P-symmetry, symmetry under parity inversion
- Reflection symmetry, a geometrical symmetry with respect to reflection
Usage examples of "mirror symmetry".
However, the real question this observation raised for us was this: Were we pushing mirror symmetry beyond the bounds of its applicability?
Then mathematical considerations had shown that of all the possibilities, only two of them, SO(32) and E8xE8, exhibited handedness rather than mirror symmetry.