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Scientists Seek 'Dark Energy' That's Filling In the Universe
Wall Street Journal ^ | 18 October 2002 | SHARON BEGLEY

Posted on 10/20/2002 2:48:21 PM PDT by PatrickHenry

Edited on 04/22/2004 11:47:20 PM PDT by Jim Robinson. [history]

The creative bookkeeping at some accounting-challenged firms is nothing compared with what cosmologists must do to balance the universe's ledgers. But thanks to their efforts to make the numbers come out right, these scientists have stumbled on an improbable coincidence: The amount of a mysterious energy that seems to pervade the cosmos is precisely what is needed to allow for the emergence of stars, planets and life itself.


(Excerpt) Read more at online.wsj.com ...


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Miscellaneous; Philosophy
KEYWORDS: cosmology; crevolist; darkenergy; missingmass; physics

1 posted on 10/20/2002 2:48:21 PM PDT by PatrickHenry
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To: VadeRetro; jennyp; Junior; longshadow; *crevo_list; RadioAstronomer; Scully; Piltdown_Woman; ...
Ping to my crevo list.
2 posted on 10/20/2002 2:49:34 PM PDT by PatrickHenry
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To: PatrickHenry
Is this where we post a photo of Al Sharpton?
3 posted on 10/20/2002 2:49:54 PM PDT by alaskanfan
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To: PatrickHenry
It's a film noir universe.
4 posted on 10/20/2002 2:57:29 PM PDT by Consort
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To: PatrickHenry
In 1998, observations of exploding supernovas hinted that cosmic expansion has been speeding up lately.

Relative to what 8-? Al Gore's political half-life? ;-)
5 posted on 10/20/2002 3:01:52 PM PDT by NormsRevenge
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To: Jimer

6 posted on 10/20/2002 3:08:59 PM PDT by ALS
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To: PatrickHenry
It must be due to entanglement with the aether gravitational flux, with the universe spinning inside and out. It reminds me of the detergent commercial, where all the oil spreads apart, anyway. Perhaps they should saturate the region above Podletnikov's disk with electromagnetic fields, to stiffen the aether.

Gee, that was easy.
7 posted on 10/20/2002 3:27:00 PM PDT by apochromat
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To: PatrickHenry
Recently given the scientific name "Nadlerite".
8 posted on 10/20/2002 3:28:40 PM PDT by Arkinsaw
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To: PatrickHenry
a leading candidate for the repulsive force...


9 posted on 10/20/2002 3:36:39 PM PDT by Slyfox
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To: PatrickHenry
On related note, did you happen to see this story regarding more confirmation of the existence of the black hole at the center of the Milky Way?
10 posted on 10/20/2002 4:05:30 PM PDT by Condorman
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To: Condorman
Yes. Not of any immediate concern, however. (Have you noticed how odd the comments in this thread are?)
11 posted on 10/20/2002 4:38:37 PM PDT by PatrickHenry
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To: PatrickHenry
It's the weekend.
12 posted on 10/20/2002 4:40:46 PM PDT by <1/1,000,000th%
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To: PatrickHenry
Just wondering. Why is this crevo material?
13 posted on 10/20/2002 7:05:51 PM PDT by RightWhale
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To: PatrickHenry
we are left with one more hint that the universe is fine-tuned for life and, perhaps, intelligence.

One person's opinion...with "perhaps" being the operative word. I haven't seen too much evidence of this so-called "intelligence" lately, though.

14 posted on 10/20/2002 7:10:43 PM PDT by Aracelis
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To: RightWhale
Why is this crevo material?

It isn't. But my crevo ping list has a large number of people who often participate in science threads other than evolution. Sorry if I pinged you in error.

15 posted on 10/20/2002 7:15:23 PM PDT by PatrickHenry
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To: RightWhale
The amount of a mysterious energy that seems to pervade the cosmos is precisely what is needed to allow for the emergence of stars, planets and life itself.

I suppose the ID crowd could take this as evidence for a Creator.

16 posted on 10/20/2002 7:17:53 PM PDT by Aracelis
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To: PatrickHenry
No, that's fine. I am interested in science. Cosmology, too, if there is a cosmology ping list.
17 posted on 10/20/2002 7:27:01 PM PDT by RightWhale
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To: Piltdown_Woman
we are left with one more hint that the universe is fine-tuned for life and, perhaps, intelligence

Alan Guth pointed out that there cound be an infinite number of universes and ours could be unique in that conditions are just right for stars, planets, and life to develop. All these universes would be independent and there would be absolutely no communication between them, nor would such a thing as communication between them be possible. I have always thought that would be obvious, that we would inhabit a universe that is just right for us, and we could know of no other, except for theoretical models.

18 posted on 10/20/2002 7:33:05 PM PDT by RightWhale
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To: All
Some go the distance, some don't. Farewell, old thread.
19 posted on 10/21/2002 7:07:01 PM PDT by PatrickHenry
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To: Piltdown_Woman
I suppose the ID crowd could take this as evidence for a Creator.

Someone seems to have strong leanings towards that conclusion.

Until scientists do better, though, we are left with one more hint that the universe is fine-tuned for life and, perhaps, intelligence.

20 posted on 10/21/2002 7:29:36 PM PDT by AndrewC
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