My toes are fine but I'm not sure where you're trying to go here.

The TOE is about unification of the fundamental forces. Gravity is now the odd force out, the one not unified with the other 3.

Semi-lay explanation I'll try and expand on if asked: http://physics.about.com/od/physics101thebasics/f/fund_forces.htm

Fromz, again thank you so much for your patience in explaining things to me. The fundamental forces of physics (4) was not at all what I was led the TOE meant, so hence the vagueness in my post. The article you gave me clarified that to a point or was my misunderstanding in the TOE a culmination of the fundamental forces of physics? This is what I was led to believe the TOE meant.

The Theory Of Everything is what Scientists hope to discover in a few years. If they do discover it, it would be one of the greatest scientific breakthroughs in history. Scientists around the world are diligently searching for a single formula that would explain the mysteries of the universe. No one can be sure that there is such a thing, but if it exists, it would be the DNA of our creation: a simple little code that governs everything from galaxies to sub-atomic matter. source: Chip Brogden

Such ideas have been around since the Roman "Atomists", the preSocratics and Pythagoras. I suspect that there is some kind of "code" analogous to "the perfect chord" or combinations of basic particles to create different matter according to a "code". We might even be close to understanding it. But, the code itself would be WAY beyond my comprehension.

I see where the idea came from. I'm afraid it's Chip's attempt to tell us how important a TOE might be that causes it.

A complete TOE would be more important than the discovery of DNA. With that knowledge it shold be possible to trace the universe back to its birth and understand everything since.

BTW, you may also see references to the G.U.T., Grand Unified Theory. Same thing and a more accurate description but not nearly as attention getting.

Nicely put, Fromz. That did clarify for me, and then I did look up GUT also.

whitemanitou, anything scientific or mathematical is almost beyond my comprehension, and yet here I talk to two gents, one scientifically minded and one mathematically minded. Go figure.

Science and math are not beyond your understanding.

I have never discovered anything in either arena that could not be explained at least well enough for people to understand what it is about. (Details are often beyond even scientists in unrelated fields.)

The problem is with our science education. Even the science writers sometimes don't seem to inderstand what they are writing about.

I'll make an offer here: If you find some area you'd like to know ore about, ask. I will do my best to explain it at an elementary level so everyoen can understand (And if TBD =, the magazine or whatever decides they want a science geek, maybe they'll remember me.)

In fact, let me go start a discussion just for that kind of thing.

I am quite capable of understanding science and math. But, I lack the understanding of the "detail" of (for example) DNA coding. Any kind of TOE explanation would certainly be beyond that. It would take quite a while for me to study and understand DNA coding much less anything beyond that. I certainly understand "concepts". But, the detail takes quite a while to comprehend. Example GatorGal: It is obvious she has quite a bit of formal and self taught education on a very detailed level. No way would I try to trump her facts or knowledge. It might even take a few weeks for HER to understand the concept of an "ultimate coding" :-)