Posted on 12/12/2018 7:17:18 AM PST by ETL
Scientists believe that quark-gluon plasma filled the entire Universe during the first few microseconds after the Big Bang when the Universe was still too hot for particles to come together to make atoms.
The PHENIX team used the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC) at Brookhaven National Laboratory to recreate that matter.
In a series of tests, the physicists smashed packets of small projectiles in different combinations (single protons, two-particle deuterons, and three-particle helium-3 nuclei) into much bigger gold nuclei.
“RHIC is the only accelerator in the world where we can perform such a tightly controlled experiment, colliding particles made of one, two, and three components with the same larger nucleus, gold, all at the same energy,” said PHENIX team member Professor Jamie Nagle, a researcher at the University of Colorado, Boulder.
The scientists discovered that, by carefully controlling conditions, they could generate droplets of quark-gluon plasma that expanded to form three different geometric patterns.
“Imagine that you have two droplets that are expanding into a vacuum,” Professor Nagle said.
“If the two droplets are really close together, then as they’re expanding out, they run into each other and push against each other, and that’s what creates this pattern.”
“In other words, if you toss two stones into a pond close together, the ripples from those impacts will flow into each other, forming a pattern that resembles an ellipse.”
“The same could be true if you smashed a proton-neutron pair, called a deuteron, into something bigger.”
“Likewise, a proton-proton-neutron trio, also known as a helium-3 atom, might expand out into something akin to a triangle.”
And that’s exactly what the PHENIX researchers found: collisions of deuterons formed short-lasting ellipses, helium-3 atoms formed triangles and a single proton exploded in the shape of a circle.
(Excerpt) Read more at sci-news.com ...
One of our neighbors had a kindergarten class (the tiny town didn't offer pre-school) which I didn't go to since my mom taught me at home.
But all the kids who attended later talked about eating the Elmer's Bulk version of Glu-on Quark plasma, when possible spiked with Karo Light Syrup.
MMM-mmm Country Livin!
That's something you don't read about every day......
Not on the ABCNNBCBS channels anyways................
Thanks ETL.
“Scientists believe that quark-gluon plasma filled the entire Universe during the first few microseconds after the Big Bang”
OK physics students, please answer me this:
1. How did these particles inhabit 10s of billion of light years, perhaps infinite light years of cubic space, from a single point, in a few microseconds? or...
2. Is the universe bounded by the extent of matter from the big bang, and is expanding as a result of that explosion of matter?
Did Einstein address this?
“What if our knowledge of what happened is what caused it to happen?”
Quantum Relativity with Spooky Linkage.
After the "first few microseconds" the universe was still fairly tiny?
Just the ones that can spell.
“After the “first few microseconds” the universe was still fairly tiny? “
If that was the case then both time and space can be compressed, making both intergalactic and time travel possible.
Or, it does to my simple mind.
Which then raises another question, what’s on the outside of the exploding bubble known as our universe? Is absolute nothing possible?
The universe is defined as "everything". Nothing supposedly exists outside the universe. Is that possible? How the heck should I know???
Well I don’t know either!
But these are questions we should pursue as thinking, rational beings.
Or, bigger minds than mine should pursue them and hopefully, one day, give me an answer:)
I can think of a couple things worth than not being able spell.
Worst than that is.
One is not cell phone screens and another is auto correct.
Worst than that is.
One is A SMALL cell phone screen and another is auto correct.
Only the ones that can spell.
thank you
I sold my quark-gluon plasma droplets to the blood bank.
I wasn’t aware that Acceptance was an important attribute of a scietific mind?
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