Questioning the Big Bang

MSNBC.com ^ | 4/25/02 | By Alan Boyle

[Bloody Sam Roberts]

How did the universe begin, and how will it end? Among cosmologists, the mainstream belief is that the universe began with a bang billions of years ago, and will fizzle out billions of years from now. But two theorists have just fired their latest volley at that belief, saying there could be a timeless cycle of expansion and contraction. It’s an idea as old as Hinduism, updated for the 21st century.

THE “CYCLIC MODEL,” developed by Princeton University’s Paul Steinhardt and Cambridge University’s Neil Turok, made its highest-profile appearance yet Thursday on Science Express, the Web site for the journal Science. But past incarnations of the idea have been hotly debated within the cosmological community for the past year — and Steinhardt acknowledges that he has an uphill battle on his hands.
       “It will take people a while to get used to it,” he told MSNBC.com. “This introduces a number of concepts that are quite unfamiliar, even to a cosmologist.”
       
TINKERING WITH THE COSMOS
       Years ago, Steinhardt played a prominent role in formulating what is now the most widely accepted scientific picture of the universe’s beginnings, known as inflationary Big Bang theory: that a vanishingly small quantum fluctuation gave rise in an instant to an inflated region of space-time, kicking off an expansion that is now picking up speed.
       The model has weathered repeated experimental tests, including studies of patterns in the microwave “afterglow” of the Big Bang.
       “All the competing models were knocked off,” Steinhardt said. “So we had a situation where it looked as if we had converged on a single idea. But I was always disturbed by the idea that there were no competitors around.”

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[Bloody Sam Roberts]

An interesting idea.

[RightWhale]

The ekpyrotic model is testable. It predicts a gravitational blue-shift. There are some old threads on FR discussing the ekpyrotic model.

[onedoug]

Big names of the field. Reminds me of the ideas of another cosmologist, Andre Linde, with his, "Eternally existing, self-reproducing, inflationary universe."

To reach into the mind of God....

[stlrocket]

Here's an interesting picture.

BIG BANG OR CREATED?

[Lucas1]

Yeah but someone had to cause the big bang to begin with no? Hehe..this is the age old question. Who made God. If there was a big bang who cares...there had to be something before the bang,,,,,right :)

fun fun

[Ferris]

that a vanishingly small quantum fluctuation gave rise in an instant to an inflated region of space-time, kicking off an expansion that is now picking up speed.

Existence Exists as Gravity Units

Gravity Units are the fundamental units of existence. They are indivisible, windowless units of submicroscopic, quantized geometries from which nothing can enter or exit. Yet, those geometries exist continuously -- as a quantum-blended whole through wave-like dynamics and smeared-out resonances. Also, manifestations of certain Gravity Units could form the weakly interacting dark material that accounts for the missing mass in modern cosmological theories. And finally, each Gravity Unit can flux into a universe of gravity, mass, energy, and consciousness.

All wealth arises from conscious-controlled Gravity Units.

www.neo-tech.com

[Bloody Sam Roberts]

"Yeah but someone had to cause the big bang to begin with no? "

It has always been my belief that the Big Bang theory is fact. The phenomenon is easily reproducible.

Simply get a sufficiently omnipotent entity to utter the words, "Let there be light!" and vóila! The process has been initiated.

[<1/1,000,000th%]

I thought Neil Turok was a Vulcan time traveller from the future??

[Bloody Sam Roberts]

I thought Neil Turok was a Vulcan time traveller from the future??

Nah, that's Neil Tuvok.   =;^)

[Cameron]

Gravity Units are the fundamental units of existence. They are indivisible, windowless units of submicroscopic, quantized geometries from which nothing can enter or exit.

Intrigued ... What do you mean by "windowless units" and "quantized geometries"? Aren't they mutally exclusive?

[RightWhale]

there had to be something before the bang

First there was Nothing,
Which exploded.

[RipSawyer]

I am surely glad that you made that perfectly clear.

[PatrickHenry]

Cosmology bump. Here are more links on the same subject:

Universe in 'endless cycle' .
Universe Reborn Endlessly in New Model of the Cosmos.
'Endless universe driven by dark forces'.

[RipSawyer]

Perhaps you are the person who can shed light on the two great mysteries that drive me crazy. 1. Why is it that people will laugh at the creation myths of other religions while insisting that their own religious creation myth is literal truth? 2. Why is it that some people will laugh at all religious creation myths while at the same time they consider the big bang theory to be scientifically proven truth? Is there really any difference in God speaking the universe into existence and a quantam fluctuation that continues forever or whatever the theory is? I don't pretend to understand the big bang theory, it just sounds like so much gibberish to me. I sometimes wonder if the people with the doctorate in physics understand it any better than I do or are they just spouting mumbo jumbo like some witch doctor so that they can make the villagers think they know something.

[Sabertooth]

First there was Nothing,
Which exploded.

I'm sorry, but that's a theological position.

[RightWhale]

Those are mysteries. Whether they are great mysteries, who knows. I'll just have to agree with those who say there are some things we will never know intellectually. It is likely that the stress of modern life, all the traffic and noise causes almost everyone to have to take their answers in soundbites. Who has time to sit under a tree for 40 days eating nothing and not sleeping the whole time just to clear the mind so they can figure some of these things out? It's like the Falun Gong, meditation for the businessman on the run. Pre-packaged, instant microwaved understanding.

[medved]

I claim nobody needs to be Albert Einstein to figure this one out. Having all the mass of the universe collapsed to a point would be the mother of all black holes. How the hell is anything supposed to "big-bang" its way out of that??

[longshadow]

"if it's Thursday, it must be TimeCube time" placemarker

[VadeRetro]

'endless cycle'

We're stuck in 'rinse?'