Other Sources

G = 6.672x10^-11 m³/(kg s²)

For more information, see the discussion of General Relativity in our Astronomy-Cosmology section. In brief, gravitation was first explained by Newton, who related the gravitational attraction between two masses as a force law. F=G(mM/r^2) states that the force is given by the universal gravitational constant, G, multiplied by the two masses, m and M, and divided by the square of the distance between the masses. Einstein replaced this concept with his General Relativity, which states that masses in space-time will tend to bend their local space-time fabric, thus affecting all other things around it. The two-dimensional picture is of a bowling ball sitting on a stretched sheet. Obviously, the ball leaves a depression in the sheet, and if you rolled a marble across the sheet, its path would curve according to the curvature on the sheet. Likewise, all masses affect and are affected by the curvature of space-time.

The concept of Selective/Intermittent Reinforcement, which is a close cousin of Superstition, goes something like this:

Oh my gosh, the most amazing thing just happened!
What?
I was just about to call you, and, like, the phone rang, and it was you!
Ohmygod!
I know!
I know!

Well, this is not an amazing thing at all if you consider how many other times you picked up the phone and it was NOT the person you were about to call! Our brains have evolved into powerful pattern recognition devices. So powerful, in fact, that sometimes they see a "pattern" where there is none at all.

In fact, this whole phone thing (or perhaps "phone-y" is a better description?) only needs to happen maybe twice in a persons entire life for him or her to be convinced that they are psychic, or have some sort of cosmicy, astrally connection to the other person. The person sees each of these events as a Winning Event, and each Winning Event further strengthens the belief.

In a nutshell, then, Selective/Intermittent Reinforcement is the notion that even very infrequent Winning Events are enough to convince someone that the event is "special" or that they have a "special ability" to perceive or otherwise cause the event to come to pass. Please note that only a few Winning Events are required! People seem remarkably resistant to allowing Losing Events to change their minds! This fact of human nature is relied upon by all Las Vegas casino owners. . . This alone should be enough of an explanation!

The word theory has two definitions: 1) something provisional or not quite real, 2) a systematic framework of concepts that describe a natural phenomenon. Scientists tend to use definition #2 when they use the word theory, whereas lay persons tend to be thinking of definition #1 when they use the word theory. Thus, the jeer, "It's only a theory," applied especially by people trying to undermine Evolutionary Theory. But to the scientist, saying something is a theory implies that the idea is probably pretty darned good, or at least as close as we can come given our current understanding. Some theories are so good they drive new discoveries, forcing us to consider possibilities we previously thought unlikely or even impossible! Theories are powerful stuff.