Posted on 03/10/2009 3:45:41 PM PDT by TaraP
Scientists have determined the mass of the largest things that could possibly exist in our universe. New results have placed an upper limit on the current size of black holes - and at fifty billion suns it's pretty damn big. That's a hundred thousand tredagrams, and you'll never get the chance to use that word in relation to anything else.
Black holes are regions of space where matter is so dense that regular physics just breaks down. You might think physical laws are immutable - you can't get out of gravitational attraction the same way you can get out of a speeding ticket - but beyond a certain level laws which determine how matter is regulated are simply overloaded and material is crushed down into something that's less an object and more a region of altered space.
While there's theoretically no upper limit on how big a black hole can be, there are hard limits on how big they could have become by now. The universe has only existed for a finite amount of time, and even the most voracious black hole can only suck in matter at a certain rate. The bigger the black hole, the bigger the gravitational field and the faster it can pull in matter - but that same huge gravitational gradient means that the same matter can release huge amounts of radiation as it falls, blasting other matter further away.
Based on this self-regulating maximum rate, scientists at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, Massachusetts, and the European Southern Observatory, Chile, have calculated an upper limit for these mega-mammoth masses. Fifty billion suns, that's 100 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 kg, otherwise known as "ridiculously stupidly big" and triple the size of the largest observed black hole, OJ 287.
There are potential problems with this calculation. Based as it is on the radiation outflow from a black hole, new discoveries could change this estimate - though only from "insanely massive" to "ridiculously ginormous."
Only one who knows he is lying refuses to provide supporting evidence of his statements.
In order to get away from its awesomeness hughness one would have to be traveling at ‘ludicrous speed’.
hah!
Now I’m confused. I thought this article was about the federal government. That’s what I get for just reading the title.
Those are some of the most excellent questions I look forward to having answered when the time comes that I step from here into eternity.
LOL! I don’t know either way. I just love to read how scientists struggle to put things that are beyond our comprehension (other than as a mathematical concept) into words. It’s like trying to empty the ocean with a teaspoon.
So THAT’S where half the stock market wealth disappeared!
It’s downright hugemongous
You know that you’ve punctured their balloon when they jump in with their illogical ad hominem attacks on the author. Particularly interesting that they never have any facts, just pure hatred of an author”
Traveling at ludicrous speed.
Good point. And what's coming out the other end after swallowing all that mass?
To take it even farther, (i can't type, spelled it 'farter' 3 times), according to fractal mathematics, shorelines are an example of a boundry of infinite length, yet enclose a finite area.
I think just about every post you've made on this thread are proof of same.
DevNet since 2008-12-29
Let's see... no "about" page.
Newbies can be so annoying.
You may not be aware, but anyone can look here and see see that the tone of almost every post you make is insulting.
Yeah, fractals is nifty math; essential for modeling nature's beauty. I forget the title of the book that I read that introduced me to fractals, some 20 odd years ago. "How long is the shoreline of Great Britain?" - "It depends on how close you look."
And then there's quantum physics - the closer one looks, the more the object disappears. We still don't know the ultimate makeup of "stuff," but no doubt we are getting closer to knowing. Look how far mankind's understanding has come in the last 100 years. These are good times to be alive.
Provide specific examples. As to why I don’t have an about page - I simply haven’t gotten around to it.
Another factor about light and distance is that the intensity of light from a stable source varies inversely with the distance between the emitting and receiving objects.
In other words, if another planet like Earth orbibted the Sun at twice the distance between Sun and Earth, that planet would receive sunlight at 25% — one fourth — the intensity received by Earth.
There are tons of references to tumors (cancers) in ancient literature. The ancient Greeks even did surgery to cut them out. I just finished reading a book about Rome and I would be willing to bet that half of the natural deaths that were described were due to some form of cancer. Of course they had other names for what was happening but the symptoms give clues.
Having said that, there is very little doubt though that disease was the big killer in ancient times, followed by accidents, starvation and killing in no particular order. Cancer might not have even been in the top ten.
I have no desire to feed trolls. I provided the link. Anyone can look at it and make their own decision.
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