Posted on 09/06/2001 4:07:20 PM PDT by blam
Thursday, 6 September, 2001, 10:39 GMT 11:39 UK
Universe 'could condense into jelly'
By BBC News Online's Helen Briggs
The Universe may be in a state where matter could disintegrate at any moment, a scientist has warned.
But the probability is less than that of buying two lottery tickets in the same week that both win the lottery, said Dr Benjamin Allanach of the European laboratory for particle physics, CERN, in Geneva.
"The fact that the Universe has existed for 15 billion years should tell you it's not likely to happen tomorrow," he told the British Association Festival of Science in Glasgow. "The probability of it happening is tiny."
The idea behind such a catastrophic possibility is supersymmetry. This theory of the Universe states that every particle that makes up matter has a heavier ghostly partner that has similar but not identical properties.
If true, current data implies that the Universe must be perched on an unstable vacuum and "could suddenly condense into jelly and cause this catastrophe", said Dr Allanach.
Ghostly particle
The danger is that a jelly of the ghostly partner of the quark could form spontaneously at any moment, changing the laws of physics of the whole Universe.
Light would stop shining, electricity would no longer work and the matter that makes up us, the Earth and the stars would disintegrate to form a different kind of matter, said Dr Allanach.
This disaster scenario caused some initial nightmares, he said. But further calculations showed that the probability of it actually happening was miniscule, even in a time as long as the age of our Universe.
The actual probability is one in 13 million squared, he said.
If true, current data implies that the Universe must be perched on an unstable vacuum and "could suddenly condense into jelly and cause this catastrophe", said Dr Allanach.
There's your answer! We all have to walk on tip-toes. Don't to anything that would upset the universe.
...The danger is that a jelly of the ghostly partner of the quark could form spontaneously at any moment, changing the laws of physics of the whole Universe.
Ever hear what competent physicists call dark matter, "wimps", "machos", and all the rest of this "ghostly" bullshit?
Try this: Fabricated Ad hoc Inventions Repeatedly Invoked in Efforts to Defend Untenable Scientific Theories, i.e.
FAIRIE DUST
You might want to add that to your collection of acronyms. I mean, if "dark matter(TM)" were 90% of the mass in the universe, you'd be having to vacuum it up off your carpets three times a day.
But how do you do that after everything's turned to jelly? I mean, your time machine doesn't work! The Enterprise wouldn't work even if it hadn't gone down in a blaze in whichever movie! When you're Smucked, you're . . . (No, I won't go there!)
Don't dis the Shat. He's where it's at.
I remember that line. Quite jarring. I've always blamed it on some unknown leftie Hollywood writer. Totally out of sync with the original Trek concept. May the jelly consume him!
After they brought back Spock with the Genesis device, they should have had Spock and Kirk try to stop Kahn and Kevin Curry from destroying all of the world'd homosexuals, pork eaters, and people who mix milk and meat... with (cue scary music)... The Leviticus Device.
Ah, Dr. Strangelove was way ahead of you on this one..... ("of course, zis vil require ze abandonment of ze so-called 'monogamous relationship' and every male vil be required to participate in PRODIGIOUS BR-E-E-E-D-ING PROGRAM! Mein Fuhrer! ... er, I mean Mr. President, I khan valk again!")
And you call yourself an engineer. Scotty spits on thee. I mock thee.
Now let's get serious. The jellification of the universe will take place at the speed of light. We're going to see it with our telescopes. "Hmmmm, the Andromeda Galaxy just turned to fizz ... " So we'll have warning. We'll know the end is nigh. Plenty of time to hit the ATM machine and live it up.
I suppose G3K will seize upon this as evidence proof that the Universe is a bird......
Correction: Universe 'could condense into Polaner's All-Fruit.
Please don't call it jelly.
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