h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Let me start and say this is what appears to be a well written entry.

I under stood most of it


I have a number of ideas / questions that may expand some peoples thinking a bit:

The speed of light is finite (even though it may reach different speeds in different media). Finite bounds for our Universe have not been calculated - same goes for number of stars. Does it go without reason to say that all the light from all the stars have not reached all points in the space-time continuum - therefore no equal brightness ?

Second - light has waveform properties (even different wavelengths for different colours). Waves experiece instances of interpolation, interference, polarization etc. Is there a way to calculate the net result of effective visible light once all these wave-like events affect the light emminated from the bodies we call stars ?

Lastly am I mistaken or is the big bang theory discounted by the fact that residual energy (waves / aftershock) must be present and be quantified in order to prove the theory ?

Futher more objects in the Universe negate the theory of a great bang - since their movement is not related to a single point of origin ?

Just asking some heavy questions and admiring your work,
Panther
Keeper of Webthingz / Downloadz

I have no special knowledge of big bang theory. I thought that the cosmic microwave background radiation accounted for the residual energy from the big bang; certainly that's what all the cosmologists whom I have met think.

I've not studied the single point thingy either; but I thought that since the big bang happened everywhere at once and that *all* space is expanding, there isn't a need for everything to converge on a point - the point is everywhere.

I don't quite understand about your first argument about equal brightness - I guess the universe may not be the same size in all directions, but since we can't measure it I guess classically this potential solution is ignored because the universe seems equally dark in all directions at the moment

Big Bang Theory is still a theory, even if its the best explanation most scientists accept at the moment.

Thanks for commenting on the entry!

Just in a friendly way.

Most of the problems is with relativity (What UC and what IC is not always the same).

Otherwise just enjoying the view

Have a

Panther

Do like the article, clear and concise and even uses something that ive learnt during my uni course so far (the maths bit)!

Indeed I do think that the microwave background radiation is some of the evdens. It was predicted that the temperature should be about 3 degrees kelvin and then some TV or radio workers rtealised that the static they kept finding all over the place, that wasn't interference, happend to be at 3K. So when your TV shows the lovely snowy scene that is infact part of the BB's radiation!

Interesting idea on the intereference between stars etc, however I in the relms of light wavelenghts the spacing needs to be pretty small. (Incidently you can workout the grating size required to get interference of a person! It is admitidly quite tiny but would be fun if it worked).

Thinking...
Yeliab

Hi Yeliab Glad you like the entry... I have a peer review thread: F48874?thread=184625

you could randomly link the h2g2as?

Hmmm.. it used to be on my page. Sorry I forgot to leave it there when I re-did it...

I have amended my personal space. All is as it should be.