Naked Science Forum
Non Life Sciences => Physics, Astronomy & Cosmology => Topic started by: Gluon8 on 25/08/2015 18:21:47
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I have been grappling with two aspects of the Big Bang (BB) which I hope members might be able to help me understand better. 1) what is the source of energy for BB? Let me clarify this. I understand that the BB started from a quantum fluctuation, and I understand that we live in a zero-energy universe. I also understand the concept of positive matter energy and negative gravitational energy, and that during inflation total energy remained zero. But do we know where this energy came from? Do we know where all this negative gravitational energy originated from? And just how is negative energy converted into positive energy? 2) what is the source of the force of expansion of the universe? At the time of the BB was it the initial explosive force originating from the initial quantum fluctuation? Following the BB and up to the present, is the expansion of the universe due to continued conversion of negative potential energy into positive energy, or can negative energy propel expansion? Thank you for any help with these questions.
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I look at the big bang theory as a limit to our universe, for I believe that there's a universe of everything and our big bang universe is in side of it. Large or small everything in the "universe of everything" is always in the act of contracting or expanding no exception to the rule. The source of motion is every where!
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I look at the big bang theory as a limit to our universe, for I believe that there's a universe of everything and our big bang universe is in side of it.
While this is an interesting idea, I don't think there is much evidence for "a universe of everything" that contains our universe within it. I am open to the concept of multiple universes, but wasn't looking for a discussion of that here. I was hoping to discuss more fully what we know of the origins of energy for the BB within standard physics, but suspect not much is known.
Large or small everything in the "universe of everything" is always in the act of contracting or expanding no exception to the rule.
Again, this is an interesting idea, but speculative and a generalization. I was hoping to keep the discussion within standard physics.
The source of motion is every where!
I was looking for more specifics. While the heat and energy generated by the BB provided a source of expansion for space, was this sufficient for current expansion? The thought is that dark energy and dark matter play a role in expansion of the universe, but do we know when their effects on expansion began and what other factors were or are involved?
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For those who may be wondering about some of the questions raised in the first post, and related issues, I have recently learned about the work of Professor Ned Wright and would like to pass along the following links: http://www.astro.ucla.edu/~wright/cosmology_faq.html, http://www.astro.ucla.edu/~wright/cosmolog.htm.
Of course, there are many authors who have written about related issues in cosmology, including Stephen Hawking, Alan Guth (The Inflationary Universe), Lawrence Krauss, Brian Greene, and many others.