Could the universe be a big ripple?

In summary, two of the theories of the universe are the big rip and the big crunch or bounce. The big crunch theory suggests that the universe will eventually stop expanding and implode on itself, leading to a series of bounces from expansion to contraction. On the other hand, the big rip theory is more popular and suggests that the universe will continue to expand, with entropy ultimately winning and all remnants of stars dying out. This leads to the dark era, where only photons remain in the universe. Some have proposed the idea of a "big ripple" after the heat death of the universe, where low energy photons converge and start the cycle of the universe all over again. This is similar to the concept of chaotic eternal inflation and the supercool inflation
  • #1
Mpcahn
7
0
So two of the theories of the universe are the big rip and the big crunch or bounce. Big crunch being expansion of the universe stops, then the universe implodes on itself creating another big bang in a series of bounces going from expansion to contraction. The big rip theory (the most popular) being the universe continues to expand and entropy wins, the star's eventually stop forming 10^14 years from now, All remnants of stars die 10^20 years from now, the black holes dissipate and eventually all that's left in the universe is the dark era where all that's left is photons 10^100 years from now.

My question is could the universe be a big ripple that starts again after the universe has suffered heat death? One hypothesis (or dumbed down explanations for those of us who don't have Ph.D.'s in physics) for the creation of the big bang is that the universe arose out of nothing because nothing itself is unstable. So is it possible that after the heat death of the universe when all that's left is low energy photons traveling for inconceivable periods of time, the ridiculously low probability event of all those photons in the universe converge on a single point and starting this whole universe business over again?

Something like Isaac Asimov's "The Last Question," http://filer.case.edu/dts8/thelastq.htm
 
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  • #2
Somehting like this has been proposed , here is one example :

http://www.unc.edu/news/archives/jan07/newmodel012907.html


This one depends upon a big rip, heat death is not the same as the big rip.
 
  • #3

1. Could the universe really be a big ripple?

There is currently no scientific evidence to support the idea that the universe is a big ripple. The concept of a "ripple" implies a disturbance or fluctuation in a medium, but the universe as a whole is not a medium in the traditional sense. It is also important to note that the universe is constantly expanding, not simply oscillating like a ripple.

2. What is the theory behind the idea of the universe being a big ripple?

The theory is based on the idea that the universe is made up of tiny vibrating strings, similar to those found in string theory. These strings could create ripples or vibrations in the fabric of space-time, resulting in the universe appearing to expand and contract like a ripple.

3. How does this theory explain the observed expansion of the universe?

The theory suggests that the expansion of the universe is not due to a Big Bang event, but rather the result of the ripples or vibrations in the strings. As these vibrations propagate through the fabric of space-time, they cause the universe to expand and contract.

4. Are there any experiments or observations that support this theory?

Currently, there is no experimental or observational evidence to support the idea of the universe being a big ripple. This is still a very speculative concept and is not widely accepted within the scientific community.

5. Are there any potential implications or consequences if the universe is a big ripple?

If this theory were to be proven true, it would fundamentally change our understanding of the universe and the laws of physics. It would also have implications for our understanding of the origins of the universe and the potential for time travel or other phenomena. However, until there is concrete evidence to support this idea, it remains purely theoretical.

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