Not Even Wresearched

The data in the following table was obtained by identifying the areas of research currently being pursued by major universities and research institutes (as indicated on their respective web sites). All of the institutes surveyed are known for their contributions to physics. Specifically surveyed were the programs being pursued under such categories as “theoretical physics” and “high-energy physics.” In the abstracts provided by the universities’ respective physics departments and the research groups dedicated to the above specific categories, I looked for any mention of the following:

1) “String theory”
2) “Quantum gravity”
3) Any explicit mention of a string theory alternative.

(Note: “Quantum gravity” is a term that encompasses string theory and its alternatives.)

For a major university to be devoting resources to some form of “quantum gravity” program is expected. What is interesting, however, is that most universities do not use this general term, instead referring to their research simply as “string theory.” This underscores the notion that other theories of quantum gravity are largely ignored, and that often only string theory is pursued.

Note also that the final five universities are select institutes outside of the United States, offering a brief survey of the diversity of research programs on an international level.

(Click image to enlarge.)

Observations

Universities with no X marks currently focus exclusively on experimental physics.

The University of California system is very one-sided. Only their Irvine campus even acknowledges that the field of “quantum gravity” is not simply string theory.

Only one institute, the Perimeter Institute of Theoretical Physics, explicitly supports the development of alternatives to string theory, mentioning them by name in their current research abstracts.

All other universities which claim to study “quantum gravity” mention string theory by name but do not mention any other theories by name. This suggests that they either do not pursue other areas of research, or do not publicly stand behind the alternative research being conducted.

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There is an alarming lack of diversity in theoretical physics research in the academic community.