Lisi's "Exceptionally Simple Theory of Everything"

A comment by one of our Anonymous readers last week invited me to read the Wikipedia article called "An Exceptionally Simple Theory of Everything," which concerns a physical theory of everything (TOE) recently proposed by Garrett Lisi et. al. Naturally, the similarity between the title of that theory and the Simple Explanation's title piqued my curiosity. I have now read the Wiki article and have also followed and read various html links leading out from that article. While I don't pretend to understand all of the physics, from what I can tell so far, their theory is possibly compatible with the Simple Explanation's toroidal model.

Look at these images from the wiki article.  Here we see Lisi's breakdown of the hierarchical levels of matter.

Levels of magnification:
1. Macroscopic level - Matter
2. Molecular level
3. Atomic level - Protons, neutrons, and electrons
4. Subatomic level - Electron
5. Subatomic level - Quarks
6. E8

[Click here to read this blog's Simple Explanation article on hierarchies of matter and their relationship to consciousness.]

At the smallest level of instantiation, Lisi proposes this "most beautiful" geometric figure, called E8.

Diagram of E8

Interesting how this view of E8 so resembles a topside view of our Simple Explanation's familiar wireframe torus. Beyond the similarity in names, both Simple theories propose a single mechanism that unites the four fundamental forces into one singular protoforce.

 The figure below is another view of E8. Click on the caption to see a most amazing dynamic view of E8 in rotation, hosted at wikipedia commons.





Rotation of the E8 root system in eight dimensions, with particle assignments corresponding to gravitational, electroweak, and strong charges



 Later, when I have more time, I may attempt a Simple Explanation of "An Exceptionally Simple Theory of Everything."  In the meantime, this Scientific American article where Lisi defends his Theory is an interesting read.