New Physics on the rise?
The recent news regarding cosmology and astronomy triggered a certain feeling. Our standard model of the universe will dramatically change. It seems as if in the next 10 to 20 years we will have a totally new insight on the development of the universe as well as a complete new understanding of space, time and matter (including the known and yet unknown forces).
Let’s start with the actually most thrilling news at first: The discovery of a so called dark flow. As a teenager I learned that something like a big bang happened and as a result we have a expanding universe (e.g. Redshift-Phenomena). But obviously the flow of space is not evenly distributed, as new examined Planck Data revelas.
Actually a gigantic space of billions of lightyears is moving “into the wrong/unexpected” direction. For the moment the only applicable explanation for this kind of force is NOT a blackhole. Even this super strong forces could not move these masses through space. So the idea is: it could be another universe, which “pulls” the sector. Imagine that: we live in a multiverse. And EVERYTHING is much bigger than anyone has ever dreamed of.
And Planck revealed more unexpected results – our universe is a bit older than we thought (13,8 not 13,7 bn yrs). Furthermore the data suggests that the observable universe is way bigger then we thought. On the other hand the data proofed with a very high resolution the current standard model.
But still there are these little findings that disturb the model. Take for instance the “Methuselah Star“. The measurements suggest, that this object must be older than the universe. Maybe our anthropo-centristic understanding of time (length, linearity) are the biggest obstacles to crack the paradoxons we are experiencing.
Paradox as the new default state of mind
In astronomy it is a habit to include to unknown phenomena the term “dark”. For a couple of years astronomers try to understand, what is called dark energy and dark matter. If we would understand these phenomenas, we should be able to answer fundamental questions like: What is the origin of the universe (or multiverse)? What is time?
IMHO an interesting approach to solve this mystery might be the idea to see dark matter and dark energy as the outcome of the same source. The dark fluid. It just depends on the perspective, if these forces appears to be energy or matter.
If you combine the aboved mentioned aspects with the most promising candidate to solve the contradiction between Relativity Theory and Quantum Physics, the so called Loop Quantum Gravity*, it is obvious to me that it is really just a matter of a few decades till we reach a new level of physics.
Maybe these new physics also help to explain, why these enormous voids in space exist – regions of thousands of lightyears, which seem to be “empty”. Or another unexpected recent find through the Kepler system: A “dead” star, floating alone in space without a sun. And then there is the assumption, that statistically every fifth planet is in a habitable zone.
The Ptolemaic System, technological civilization
I like to use the idea of the Ptolemaic System as a general reminder. It should remind me of the relativity of knowledge. The model itself made sense, but unfortunately new discoveries (data) and new technologies (engineering) proofed the model was wrong. Not to mention Gallileos struggle with the vatican.
So these new physics will dramatically have an social impact on our civilization. It will not be necessarily a quick “zapp” moment. It will probably be a slow simmering process – because it will take some time, till these new physics are kind of a “common sense”. But then there is maybe a generation on this planet, that may be able to intertwine different assets of this basic research to new technologies. Hopefully I will witness the day, when the current state of 3D-Printing will appear to me as a pre-historic sweet try.
Further more I expect, that sooner or later the Fermi Paradox will we solved – what ever the answer will be. It would fit into the history of discoveries, when mankind would make contact with ETIs by accident. Typically it would be something more sustainable as the WOW-Signal đ
But this is another story for another post.
* = Loop Quantum Gravity in short: Combine Time, Space and Matter on a quantum level to a “Quantum Fractals of space-time”-Reality model. One important insight in this context – space itself consists of “space atoms” – which means, that the the spacial density/compression is limited.