Roman Candle Circus

astrotastic: ikenbot: Evidence of a Past Universe? Circular...

Wed, 13 Jun 2012 02:19:27 -0400

ikenbot:

Evidence of a Past Universe? Circular Patterns in the Cosmic Microwave Background

Stephen Hawking has said: “We should look for evidence of a collision with another universe in our distant Past.” Some experts believe that what we call the universe may only be one of many. Is there any conceivable way that we could ever detect and study other universes if they exist? Is it even falsifiable?

This was a key question Hawking was was asked in an interview with the BBC. “Our best bet for a theory of everything is M-theory —an extension of string theory,” Hawking continued. “One prediction of M-theory is that there are many different universes, with different values for the physical constants. This might explain why the physical constants we measure seem fine-tuned to the values required for life to exist.”

It is no surprise that we observe the physical constants to be finely-tuned. If they weren’t, we wouldn’t be here to observe them. One way of testing the theory that we may be one of many universes would be to look for features in the cosmic microwave background radiation (CMB) which would indicate the collision of another universe with ours in the distant past.

The circular patterns within the cosmic microwave background shown above suggest that space and time did not come into being at the Big Bang but that our universe in fact continually cycles through a series of “aeons,” according to University of Oxford theoretical physicist Roger Penrose, who says that data collected by NASA’s WMAP satellite supports his idea of “conformal cyclic cosmology”.

Penrose made the sensational claim that he had glimpsed a signal originating from before the Big Bang working with Vahe Gurzadyn of the Yerevan Physics Institute in Armenia. Penrose came to this conclusion after analyzing maps from the Wilkinson Anisotropy Probe.

These maps reveal the cosmic microwave background, believed to have been created just 300,000 years after the Big Bang and offering clues to the conditions at that time. Penrose’s finding runs directly counter to the widely accepted inflationary model of cosmology which states that the universe started from a point of infinite density known as the Big Bang about 13.7 billion years ago, expanded extremely rapidly for a fraction of a second and has continued to expand much more slowly ever since, during which time stars, planets and ultimately humans have emerged.

That expansion is now believed to be accelerating due to a scientific X factor called dark energy and is expected to result in a cold, uniform, featureless universe. Penrose, however, reports Physics World, takes issue with the inflationary picture “and in particular believes it cannot account for the very low entropy state in which the universe was believed to have been born – an extremely high degree of order that made complex matter possible. He does not believe that space and time came into existence at the moment of the Big Bang but that the Big Bang was in fact just one in a series of many, with each big bang marking the start of a new “aeon” in the history of the universe.”

Full Article

That is so interesting to think about I can’t even aldskfaj;

The more I read, the more I feel a disconnect with those around me who don’t.

Wed, 13 Jun 2012 02:18:27 -0400

The more I read, the more I feel a disconnect with those around me who don’t.

Sometimes, I sit with my arm extended up into the air and my hand bent forward, letting my fingers...

Tue, 12 Jun 2012 02:51:54 -0400

Sometimes, I sit with my arm extended up into the air and my hand bent forward, letting my fingers droop down. I think I can feel the blood drain from my fingers. But then, I realize what I’m doing, yet unaware of how long I’ve been doing it, and who saw me doing it. At this point, I begin to consider the idea that I’m becoming catatonic…one limb at a time.

Or, like my family says: I’m just a little weird.

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Sat, 09 Jun 2012 19:54:29 -0400

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Fri, 08 Jun 2012 17:42:11 -0400

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Wed, 06 Jun 2012 23:08:04 -0400

Today is the 68th anniversary of D-Day. Not only the largest...

Wed, 06 Jun 2012 21:27:00 -0400

Today is the 68th anniversary of D-Day. Not only the largest amphibious invasion in history, but a major turning point in World War II. More individuals died on this day than during the entire Iraq War. What does Obama do to commemorate this anniversary? He sends a “D-Day” tweet and then goes fundraising in California. What a JOKE.

I’m sure these young guys would love to know at the time, that not even 70 years later, after they fought and gave their lives, the President of the country they fought for, cared only so much as to send a 140 character electronic text to acknowledge their bravery and sacrifices.

I’ll remember to tweet you an apology when I forget to vote for you in the upcoming election.

Class act, Obama.

D-Day. June 6,1944. Normandy, France. The largest amphibious...

Wed, 06 Jun 2012 20:19:29 -0400

D-Day. June 6,1944. Normandy, France.

The largest amphibious invasion in world history and a major turning point in World War II. Scary to think what the world would be like if this invasion, by these young soldiers, was not successful. Never forget the selfless heroism of those 10,000 that fought and lost their lives and of the 160,000 who were there and fought against the Nazi regime for freedom.

Amsterdam, The Netherlands.

Tue, 05 Jun 2012 19:36:42 -0400

Amsterdam, The Netherlands.

Center For Disease Control Makes Zombie Comics Now?

Tue, 05 Jun 2012 19:24:25 -0400

Center For Disease Control Makes Zombie Comics Now?

Some days, this is what the inside of my mind looks like. Today...

Tue, 05 Jun 2012 19:22:15 -0400

Some days, this is what the inside of my mind looks like.

Today is one of those days.

photojojo: It’s totally safe to say that Mark Mawson is the...

Tue, 05 Jun 2012 18:55:04 -0400

photojojo:

It’s totally safe to say that Mark Mawson is the master of underwater ink photography. He knocked it out of the park with Aqueous one and two, and now he’s done it again with his latest series!

Underwater Aqueous Wonders by Mark Mawson

via Colossal

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Tue, 05 Jun 2012 00:54:25 -0400

know-knowledge: The Universe is inside us.

Mon, 04 Jun 2012 00:36:06 -0400

know-knowledge:

The Universe is inside us.

Downtown - Minneapolis, Minnesota. I love this city.

Sun, 03 Jun 2012 20:33:04 -0400

Downtown - Minneapolis, Minnesota.
I love this city.

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Fri, 01 Jun 2012 19:52:29 -0400

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Fri, 01 Jun 2012 19:46:00 -0400

"‘They can romanticize us so, mirrors, and that is their secret: what a subtle torture it would be to..."

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 19:29:59 -0400

“‘They can romanticize us so, mirrors, and that is their secret: what a subtle torture it would be to destroy all the mirrors in the world: where then could we look for reassurance of our identities? I tell you, my dear, Narcissus was no egoist … he was merely another of us who, in our unshatterable isolation, recognized, on seeing his reflection, the one beautiful comrade, the only inseparable love … poor Narcissus, possibly the only human who was ever honest on this point.’”

- Truman Capote, Other Voices, Other Rooms (via nickmiller)

thepenguinpress: Jack Kerouac’s journal.

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 19:27:38 -0400

thepenguinpress:

Jack Kerouac’s journal.

First World Problems.

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 19:25:00 -0400

First World Problems.