Dark Matter

TranceNRG · 07-30-2009, 02:23 PM

This program explores recent research into what the universe is made of by putting dark matter, dark energy and variable gravity in the spotlight, as the world's leading cosmologists attempt to explain the biggest problem in physics today. According to the best estimates, we know that about 4% of what the universe is made of matter. The rest is presumed to be made of mysterious entities about which very little is understood - 21% dark matter and 75% dark energy.

This Standard Model has its skeptics who insist that nothing's missing at all and that the real problem is far, far worse: They claim that modern gravity theory - like Newton's and Einstein's approximations of a gravity theory before - is just plain wrong, and needs to be rewritten.

Part I

Part II

Part III

Part IV

Part V

Total Length = ~ 50 Mins.

Harbinger · 07-30-2009, 02:43 PM

I'm looking forward to getting home and watching these. Can you maybe save me 50 minutes and tell me what part if any god plays in this new theory if there is a new theory offered.

Rune · 07-30-2009, 02:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Harbinger

I'm looking forward to getting home and watching these. Can you maybe save me 50 minutes and tell me what part if any god plays in this new theory if there is a new theory offered.

None. Although it is a little on the fringe of science to assume that our understanding of gravity is wrong, over say the Standard Model, it's a perfectly reasonable hypothesis, as we in reality know very little about either still.

TranceNRG · 07-30-2009, 03:06 PM

I think the topic of Dark Matter has something to offer to everyone's imagination.

A great line from one of the scientists in this program that I really enjoyed is the following,

"The greatest obstacle for progress in science is the illusion of knowledge. The illusion that we know already what is going on... when we do not."

thorton · 10-23-2009, 03:25 PM

Know its bumping an old thread. But these were a great series for explain the basic arguments on dark energy/matter.

neonhypoxia · 10-23-2009, 03:42 PM

I thought I would post this here as well as there are apparently two threads on the subject of dark matter here.

Quote:

Originally Posted by neonhypoxia

There is an alternative to the concept of dark matter that easily explains alot of the odd things that show up in the results. Its possible that the equations of General Relativity are not complete. The idea of relativity is grounded in a mathematical field called topology that deals with the concept of a space that is bent or otherwise deformed in some way. This is where you get the issues of gravity bending space, things like that. In topology we use a function known as a metric to define how that space is deformed over an area. All general relativity really does is define that metric for space, and all of the properties result from that metric. It is possible that the metric for relativity is not correct and a second order differental is need in the metric. If that is the case then the whole concpet of dark matter disappears and it fits in extremely neatly with the patterns you see in measurements coorolating dark matter and "normal" matter. It may be that dark matter doesn't exist at all, just that the equations for relativity have a small error in them.

Will watch the videos when I get the time.