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Posting-Version: version B 2.10.1 6/24/83; site harpo.UUCP
Path: utzoo!linus!decvax!harpo!jrl
From: jrl@harpo.UUCP (jrl)
Newsgroups: net.space
Subject: big bang
Message-ID: <2256@harpo.UUCP>
Date: Tue, 3-Apr-84 14:05:21 EST
Article-I.D.: harpo.2256
Posted: Tue Apr  3 14:05:21 1984
Date-Received: Thu, 5-Apr-84 01:39:23 EST
Organization: AT&T Bell Laboratories, Whippany
Lines: 36


       Here is an interesting question posed by a friend. It is believed
that we live in an expanding universe that was created from an very small 
very dense and very hot 'point' that let go around 20 billion years ago. 
There are two outcomes of this. One being that this event was a one time
thing and the universe is open. That is that it will keep expanding until
entropy sets in and the stars die out and that is the end of it. The other
theory is that the universe is an oscillating one. That is it expands, and
after some time it contracts again into that 'point' and the big bang starts
over again with a new universe with new phyisical laws and constants. 

      I tend to subscribe to the latter theory since the contraction of
the universe into a primordal 'point' that goes off again makes some 
sense. If the universe is a one time occurance, then one can say that
perhaps the first line in the bible explains it all .... In the beginning
there was light ! ......

     Now the question:  When the universe was the size of a softball (i.e.
at T =  1 x 10 E -39 second and the temprature was 1 x 10 E +35 degrees
kelvin)  WHAT WAS THE FIREBALL EXPANDING INTO ????? and what lies beyond
the 20 billion light-year barrier.

     An interesting article appeared in Scientific American about the
creation and state of the universe. One interesting thing is that perhaps
we exist in more than four dimensions, They said that a universe with 
seven dimensions works out well in theory. And another interesting point
that was made is perhaps the distinction between past, present and future
becomes 'blurred' at the Plank level of dimensions ( 1 x 10 E -33 cm).
Too bad I can not understand the math used to postulate these interesting
theories



                                                harpo!jrl