Strings are basically dead, as many could have predicted decades ago. Us mathematical modelers have been saying as much for a long time. There's always some damned set of equations that model reality. But it's a great leap from the model to a statement that the mathematical model describes reality.
I know this gets into the perilous demarcation argument of whether the universe is governed by mathematics. However, when an equation has a certain beauty, an elegance, a simplicity that goes beyond description and makes predictions because that's the only fucking way that it works then you've possibly found something new about the universe.
We've seen this happen time and time again, from Archimedes to Einstein and beyond.
The universe is discoverable using mathematics because both are organized principles of logic. The universe, whatever it is, obeys the same universal rules. It is what it is. But mathematics is a logical way to approach a modeling of such a universe if that modeling is driven by the evidence and is predictive.
Unfortunately, those doing Strings have not yet made a testable prediction and field theory is still doing all the heavy lifting.
Interesting stuff, eh?
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