The Strange Magic of 1/137

What is the Mystery Behind this Number?

There’s a number that keeps showing up in the most unexpected corners of physics. A number so important that without it, atoms wouldn’t hold together, stars wouldn’t burn, and life would never have a chance.

That number is 1/137.

On the surface, it looks like a boring fraction. But this number is the fine-structure constant, denoted by the Greek letter α (alpha). Physicists whisper about it with equal parts awe and frustration. They can measure it with astonishing precision, they know what it does, but they don’t know why it is what it is. It’s one of the universe’s most tightly held secrets.

The fine-structure constant, α, is a dimensionless number that controls how charged particles interact with light. In equations, it shows up as:

Individually, these constants all have units. But when you combine them just right, you get a pure ratio, free of units. A naked number. A number that governs how nature works.

Source: Unknown

It tells us how strongly matter interacts with light, how tightly electrons cling to atoms, how stable the building blocks of chemistry are. Without it, the periodic table wouldn’t exist.

So why is this number so famous? Because it’s not arbitrary. If α were even slightly different:

• If it were larger (stronger coupling): Electrons would bind too tightly, atoms would collapse, and chemistry as we know it wouldn’t exist.
• If it were smaller (weaker coupling): Atoms wouldn’t hold together, molecules couldn’t form, and again — no chemistry, no stars, no life.

In other words: the universe balances delicately on the edge of 1/137.

It’s not just a number. It’s a cosmic tuning knob.

Richard Feynman, Nobel Prize–winning physicist and world-class troublemaker, famously called 1/137:

“One of the greatest damn mysteries of physics: a magic number that comes to us with no understanding by man.”

He urged young physicists to keep the number taped to their wall, as a reminder that nature still guards her secrets. Why 137? Why not 136 or 138? Why that exact value? We don’t know.

Physicists can measure α to better than a part in a billion. But they can’t derive it from first principles. It simply is. Because 137 feels so uncanny, it has attracted more than just physicists:

• In Kabbalah, the Jewish mystical tradition, 137 is connected with the word Kabbalah itself.
• In some interpretations of gematria (numerical values assigned to words), 137 holds spiritual weight as a symbol of unity between science and mysticism.
• Even Wolfgang Pauli, Nobel-winning physicist, was obsessed with 137. He died in a hospital room numbered 137, which his colleagues later joked about as cosmic irony.

Of course, physics doesn’t need mysticism to be fascinating. But there’s something irresistible about a number that’s both scientifically critical and culturally magnetic. Physicists have spent decades trying to explain 137:

• Quantum Electrodynamics (QED): The theory describes how light and matter interact, and α is at its heart. But QED doesn’t predict α — it just assumes it.
• Grand Unified Theories (GUTs): Some attempts to unify the forces of nature suggest α isn’t fixed, but runs with energy. At ultra-high energies, it changes value. But again: why this starting point?
• String Theory: In principle, string theory could derive α from deeper symmetries. In practice, it hasn’t yet.
• Anthropic Principle: Some argue α is simply what it is because if it weren’t, we wouldn’t be here to ask the question. This explanation feels unsatisfying, but it’s on the table.

In short: 1/137 remains unexplained.

Why You Should Care

This isn’t just a number for physicists to argue over. It’s a reminder that our universe isn’t random chaos — it’s finely structured.

Every star, every chemical bond, every spark of life rests on a ratio buried deep in the fabric of reality. A number we can write on a napkin, but not fully explain. We live inside a universe that shouldn’t have to be this exact — and yet, it is.

If you want to feel humbled by the universe, forget black holes or the size of galaxies. Just look at this:

1/137

A fraction so small it fits in your pocket, yet so powerful it holds together the very possibility of existence. We may never know why it is what it is. But maybe that’s the point: some mysteries exist to remind us how much is left to learn.

Yes, I am back. But not as a financial blogger, rather now I post about general and science stuff that’s relatable to everyone. I am still on Substack for the Finance stuff Here.