-
-
----------------------- 1854 - How do we know Cosmic Inflation happened?
-
- Ludwig Boltzmann discovered the concept of “Entropy” as a randomness that increases, entropy always increases as time progresses in a closed system. The Universe started out with minimum Entropy and it has been increasing ever since. ( See Footnote 1)
-
- Nature is full or irreversible phenomena. Mathematics on the other hand tends to run backwards and forwards equally well to get a solution. So mathematics can see things differently than the way Nature behaves.
-
- Mathematics has laws like for gravity, or Faraday’s laws for electricity. Entropy is a different kind of law, it is a “probabilistic” law. If you flip a nickel a million times it won’t come up with a buffalo a million times. It is just not within the statistical probabilities., but, it is still “possible”.
-
- So we should say randomness probably doesn’t decrease over the long term.
-
- To illustrate this direction for randomness increasing or Entropy increasing, drop a black ink in a glass of water. The ink spreads out eventually as the atoms oscillate and eventually the water becomes gray. Now, take a glass of gray water, what are the odds the ink inside will coalesce into a single black drop? Randomness tends to work in one direction, to more randomness, higher entropy.
-
- Randomness increases because it is “more likely” to increase. Statistical probabilities tell us it is so.
-
- Astronomically thinking: “ the Universe must have started with a very low degree of randomness, a very low degree of Entropy. There is this uncertainty that grows in the Universe. In this environment you can not prove something to exist by the very fact you can not disprove it exists. (Hamlet used this argument when it came to proving that God exists)
-
- This leads us to a discussion of “ beauty” and “truth” and what do they have to do with each other. Just because a theory is simple and beautiful does not mean it is true. No matter how much we like it , it may not be right.
-
- “Group Theory” is mathematics that transforms symmetry into a precise science or intuitive aesthetic beauty. To illustrate the dichotomy here is an example using crystals.
-
- Math can show us that to fill a space with identical shapes, meet edge-to-edge, and leave no spaces,, we can only use squares, rectangles, triangles , parallelograms and hexagons. No other polygons will work.
-
- Pentagons, heptagons, octagons and every other polygon can not accomplish this.
-
- Mathematically this explains crystals we find in nature. Aluminum oxide with Chromium will form the ruby crystal.
-
- Elegance and simplicity works and we often find it useful criteria in judging theories. But, that can often mislead us. We could be wrong.
-
- It turns out that Quasi-crystals have been shown to exist in 3-dimensions that are not subject to these beautiful rules in crystallography. So, for some crystals new rules apply. We still think simplicity leads to beauty, which leads to symmetry, an aspect of beauty.
-
- So let’s try to get to some simple rules in astronomy: Gravity is universal, everything responds to gravity in the same way. Einstein realized that if gravity affects everything equally it is not right to think of it as a “force”. Rather, gravity is a feature of space-time itself through which all objects move.
-
- Gravity is a curvature of space-time. Space and time bend and stretch because of the influence of matter and energy.
-
- Einstein also realized the “light” consists of energy “ quanta”, later called photons. He realized that Entropy, randomness of radiation, changes with the volume of its container the same mathematical way as for atoms. Randomness increases with the logarithm of the volume. Einstein understood that the Entropy of a gas because it consist of atoms then radiation (light) too must consist of particles (photons).
-
- The most incomprehensible thing about the Universe is that we are here trying to comprehend it. We assume the laws of physics used for our comprehension are the same everywhere. Mathematicians and physicists can only live in a Universe that is comprehensible. The laws of mathematics must work everywhere and all the time. Or, the laws have to change.
-
- The Universe is “flat” and “homogeneous” because of Cosmic Inflation. The Universe expanded at an exponential rate, doubling in size every instant of time for a very short time after the Big Bang.
-
- Say a human baby after conception its cells double roughly daily, day by day, 1,2,4,8,16,….. After nine months 274 doublings the baby would weigh more than all the matter in the Universe. Thankfully the mother knew better and slowed the growth of the baby down to end at about 8 to 10 pounds.
-
- The same thing happened with the Universe. It started as an atom doubling in size every instant of time, but, it somehow transitioned to slower growth when it reached 10 centimeters in size, about the size of a grapefruit.
-
- At that point slower growth occurred hot plasma diluted, cooled into particles, coalesced in to nuclei, atoms, molecules, stars and planets.
-
- Mass can not be creating itself from nothing. But, mass can be created from energy and energy can be created from mass, E=mc^2.
-
- We can create mass by adding energy. An inflating Universe has to have negative pressure and an enormous amount of energy. We think Cosmic Inflation is correct because it explains some stuff:
-
--------------------- The Universe is flat, parallel lines never meet, measured to 1% accuracy.
-
-------------------- The Universe is homogenous, the same in all directions, with only 0.002% fluctuations place to place.
-
-------------------- Inflation explains how Quantum Fluctuations ( The Uncertainty Principle) at the micro scale in the beginning are galaxies and the cosmic structure in today’s macro scale.
-
- There are many constants in our Universe that are so fine-tuned for life. Cosmic Inflation still has some explaining to do. Starting with, “ how could any of this even be possible?” God only knows.
-
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- Request these Reviews to learn more on Cosmic Inflation:
-
- #1855 - about cosmology that shows how simplicity and beauty evolves from chaos and randomness.
-
- Footnote (1) - Ludwig Boltzmann - an Austrian physicist ( 1844 - 1906 ) worked on the kinetic theory of gases using a statistical interpretation of the 2nd law of Thermodynamics. That Entropy always increases because it corresponds to lost heat and lost energy that is irreversible. Entropy is a measure of disorder, or randomness. He committed suicide because of depression due to no one at the time believing in his theories.
-
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
---- Comments appreciated and Pass it on to whomever is interested. ----
--- Some reviews are at: -------------- http://jdetrick.blogspot.com -----
-- email feedback, corrections, request for copies or Index of all reviews
- to: ------- jamesdetrick@comcast.net ------ “Jim Detrick” -----------
- https://plus.google.com/u/0/ -- www.facebook.com -- www.twitter.com
----- 707-536-3272 ---------------- Friday, April 8, 2016 -----
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
No comments:
Post a Comment