Causal Dynamical Triangulation - Advantages and Disadvantages

Advantages and Disadvantages

By far the greatest advantage of this theory is that it derives the observed nature and properties of spacetime from a minimal set of assumptions, and needs no adjusting factors. The idea of deriving what is observed from first principles is very attractive to physicists, as it often indicates a concept that is close to the truth, or offers powerful tools for investigating the nature of reality. Since it allows us to probe the character of spacetime both in the ultra-microscopic realm near the Planck scale, and at the scale of the cosmos, CDT can give us many insights into the nature of reality. This is its strength.

The disadvantageous aspect of this theory is that it relies heavily on computer simulations to generate results by Monte Carlo simulation. Some feel that this makes CDT a less "elegant" solution to the problem of creating a completely successful quantum gravity theory. Also, it has been argued that discrete time-slicing may not accurately reproduce all possible modes of a dynamical system. However, research by Markopoulou and Smolin demonstrates that the cause for those concerns may be limited. Therefore, many physicists still regard this line of reasoning as promising.