Why the Big Bang Ain't So Crazy of an Idea

The prospect of an explosion happening from out of nowhere while creating all existence sounds hard to believe.

And it should be. That's your skepticism kicking in . . . and that's a good thing.

Yep. I said it. Skepticism of the Big Bang is a good thing.

Don't simply believe in the Big Bang. Understand the premise and then make a judgment for yourself.

So, why do so many scientists buy into such a strange idea?

Well . . .

The light our eyes see is not all there is to light.

When light goes through a prism, it is dispersed into a spectrum. And the spectrum of light can revel the chemical elements found within the source that is emitting the light.

Still with me?

Spectral analysis of stars show that all the elements found on Earth are also found in Sol, our sun.

Nearly all of us have heard about E = mc², which is Einstein's famous equation. But what about the implications of this deceptively simple, yet powerful equation?

Matter can be turned into energy, and energy back into matter. Stars compress hydrogen gas so much that they smash into each other at nearly the speed of light. This causes the hydrogen to fuse together to form helium. As this happens, immense energy that gives off a bright light is released. And then the helium atoms are further fused into heaver elements, producing even more energy still. The hotness and luminosity of our sun (and any other star for that matter) comes from this constant reaction of nuclear fusion.

Through this process, stars create the elements found all around us.

When a star experiences a supernova, all those elements get scattered throughout the cosmos. The released gases also tend to spark off the formation of a new star.

When one star dies and another is born, the elements of the Universe are formed. When planets, asteroids, and comets formulate out of the gaseous eddies left over from star formation, all the elements of the periodic table will already be in place.

If a star can form the elements from scratch, what could an infinitesimal release of energy produce?


Bell Labs back in the 1960's was working on a project with satellite transmissions. But, they had a nagging problem. They kept getting static interference which they couldn't explain.

And that static was jackin' up their experimentations and stuff.

Simultaneously and serendipitously, a pair of scientists had a conjecture that if a star had the ability to form the raw materials of existence, then perhaps the Universe itself came forth from an immense release of energy. In that release, the building blocks of matter could have formed. The mathematics (which I'm sure I couldn't understand) added up-- with the exception of one major problem. An energy release that big would not have cooled down completely-- not even after billions of years. So, the mathematics predicted that some sort of background radiation should exist.

But, they don't see none.

Oh well, time to move on to another hypothesis.

That is until these scientists happened to hear about out what was going on at Bell labs. That static that was jackin' up the Bell Labs experiments-- that was the cooling radiation from a really big release of energy. Something like a . . . um, how would you say . . . a Big Bang?

Those guys got a Nobel Prize for their discovery.

Hey, it's still okay to be skeptical. It's okay to remain skeptical about the Big Bang.

But at least realize the Big Bang ain't so crazy of an idea-- even if one day physicists realize the idea was completely wrong.

Why We Need Skepticism

Angela Donovan is a psychic who predicts by May of 2010, President Obama will cause the United States to stop using the dollar as it's base currency. Better start investing in gold and making other important preparations to keep your family safe. Her books will show you how.

Skeptical?

Jack and Rexella Van Impe predict that the next pope after Benedict XVI will became the leader and founder of the New World Order. Basically, that will either make the next pope a forerunner to the Antichrist or the Antichrist himself.

Skeptical?


Robert Tilton.
Enough said.

The-End.com claims that the End Times were set into motion back in 2008 and that by May 27, 2012 the "self-rule of man" will end. You need to get a copy of their book so you can be fully prepared. You see, terrorism will continue to grow until the United States collapses and WW III will commence. [Jesus enters stage right]

At least they provide their book for free. Maybe they are at least sincere.

But still . . . be skeptical.

• You need skepticism when a preacher tells you that depression is all in your head.
• You need skepticism when a preacher tells you that you can choose your sexual orientation through determination and prayer.
• You need skepticism when the bible tells you blasphemy of the Holy Ghost is unforgivable, yet that same bible cannot give you any comfort or assurance as to whether you're guiltless of this damnable sin.
• You need skepticism when someone tells you that Hitler could be in heaven had he only confessed Jesus. However, you will burn in hell for eternity if you fail to confess Jesus no matter how decent your life might have been.
• You need skepticism when you hear yourself "speaking with tongues" yet nobody can ever understand or translate what you're saying.
• Hell . . . you need skepticism even if someone does claim to understand what you say when you speak in tongues.
• You need skepticism when politicians speak. Regardless of party affiliation or super-star status.

Even when Obama speaks; Especially when Palin speaks.

• You need skepticism when scientists pontificate about the origins of life and of the Universe. As a matter of fact, many scientists would encourage that you do this.
• You also need skepticism when people claim magnets can make a perpetual generator that can bring your electric bill down to $0, even though perpetual motion seems to defy the very laws of physics!

Excited anyway? You still want to purchase one of these generators? Well, MangiWork* will only provide you with a DIY guide to build your own for the special discounted price of $49.00. They even encourage you to resell their technology if you get one of those generators up and working!

Say . . . why aren't they simply selling the generators rather than the DIY kits? They could be making a fortune building those things!

Now, are you skeptical?

By the way . . .

If you can write a simple letter like this one, you can make six figures.

Are you skeptical?

Does that guy in Nigeria really want to give me a cut from that million dollar trust that he just inherited by dubious means? Does he really need my bank account number to cash out that money?

Remember, you may be trading your hard earned money and good years of your life paying for someone's sports car and mansion. Worse, you may be buying some sort of snake oil that could actually endanger your life! Or, talked out of real help or denied a life time of happiness because you allowed someone else to forbid you to be your true self.

Skepticism does not mean that truth or trustworthy information can never be found. On the contrary, skepticism seeks out truth and trustworthy information. Skepticism is simply the act of sending a claim through a vetting process. Skepticism simply asks the claimant to provide some reasonable evidence before expecting you to take the bait.

Unthinking belief is exactly what charlatans and confidence men want out of you. After they gain that, the rest if pretty easy.

Are you still skeptical about the importance of skepticism now?


* By the way, the MangiWork site no longer exists. But with the power of Google, you can find some YouTube videos on the topic.

Theocracy + Nukes = Colorful Expletives

On Tuesday, January 12th, nuclear scientist Massoud Ali-Mohammadi was assassinated in Iran. Mainstream media reports from Iran claim that the U.S. and Israel instigated this tragic incident.

One could speculate that somebody within the Iranian leadership called for Ali-Mohammadi's assassination. After all, he openly supported the protests against the 2009 elections results where Mir Hossein Mousavi won lost against the current Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

Now officials of Iran claim that the (alleged) terrorist act by the U.S. and Israel will only hasten the goal of turning Iran into a nuclear power.

We can all rest assured that their nuclear goals are totally peaceful, right?

I don't like the idea of a theocratic society having nuclear weapons.* At any given moment, someone in leadership can become convinced that the end of the age has finally come. I fear that someone will one day decide that nuclear weapons are a wonderful way to usher in the ultimate punishment, retribution, wrath, and final victory blow of their god.

Can this happen to a secular society? Well, the urge to press the button might be there, but hopefully the leadership of a secular society will at least pause and consider that fact that we cannot obliterate our adversaries with nuclear weapons without ourselves facing grave consequences. If one leader says that god wants the missiles to fly, other leaders (even religious ones) will undoubtedly require more evidence than that-- even if the extra evidence they demand happens to be falsified!

Perhaps this is not simply about religion, but about all radical ideologies. The extreme views of any ideology can become very dangerous very quickly. To me, religion often fuels extremist views because religious leaders tend to discourage openness of ideas (heresy) and open inquiry (the challenging religious authority).

Should two nations decide to retaliate by exchanging nuclear weapons, the whole sky will eventually turn black and the earth will turn cold. We will all suffer.


Everywhere.


And our suffering will not come by the wrath of god, but by the wrath of our own stupidity as a human race.

When I consider the awesome, destructive power of nuclear weapons, I utter colorful expletives. When the wrong group of extremist leaders gain nuclear capabilities, all of our lives will be in their hands, not gods.


Holy expletive!


* Pakistan is not a theocracy to my understanding. But, that nation does seem quite unstable. One never knows what will happen there in the next few years. That alone is cause for colorful expletives!

Shocking

This post is off topic from my typical musings.

According to the May issue of Discover Magazine, engineers at MIT have built a shock absorber that can generate energy to help keep a car battery charged.

As the car bounces up and down while moving down the road, the shocks harness the heat that is normally wasted and converts the energy into electricity. This allows the battery to run the air, stereo, and lights with more efficiency. That translates into better gas millage and less pollution.

Zee, I thought that you in particular would get a kick out of this one-- not to exclude anyone else who reads this, of course!

Read the article here --> The Next Source of Green Energy: Your car Itself