Cosmology looks beyond the standard model

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around various candidates for dark matter and dark energy, including Cold Dark Matter (CDM) and sterile neutrinos, as well as the viability of string theory and modifications to gravity in explaining cosmological phenomena. Participants explore the implications of recent predictions and potential detections in the context of cosmology.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Debate/contested
  • Technical explanation

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants propose that sterile neutrinos could be a viable candidate for dark matter, despite challenges regarding their warm nature and implications for large scale structure formation.
  • Others argue that Cold Dark Matter (CDM) remains the most popular candidate, although it has yet to be detected.
  • There is a question regarding the total energy of dark energy (DE) in the universe, with some noting that while percentages are known, total volume remains uncertain.
  • One participant suggests that modifications to Newton's Second Law of Motion might be necessary to explain cosmological observations.
  • Concerns are raised about the viability of string theory, with a participant stating it currently lacks testable predictions and is more mathematical than physical.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express differing views on the viability of sterile neutrinos and the necessity of modifications to gravity, indicating that multiple competing perspectives exist without a clear consensus.

Contextual Notes

Some claims about dark matter candidates depend on ongoing research and potential future detections, while discussions about string theory highlight its current limitations in making empirical predictions.

wolram
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http://phys.org/news/2015-07-cosmology-standard.html

The most popular candidate for the elusive particles that give the Universe extra mass is Cold Dark Matter (CDM). CDM particles are thought to move slowly compared to the speed of light and interact very weakly with electromagnetic radiation. However, no one has managed to detect CDM to date. Sownak Bose from Durham University's Institute for Computational Cosmology (ICC) will present new predictions at NAM 2015 for a different candidate for dark matter, the sterile neutrino, which may have been detected recently

Is the Sterile neutrino the best candidate for DM?
Do we know how much DE is in the universe?
Is a modification of gravity necessary to explain our cosmology?
Is String theory viable?.

A fresh look at cosmology.
http://arxiv.org/pdf/1407.0059v2.pdf
 
Last edited:
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wolram said:
http://phys.org/news/2015-07-cosmology-standard.html

The most popular candidate for the elusive particles that give the Universe extra mass is Cold Dark Matter (CDM). CDM particles are thought to move slowly compared to the speed of light and interact very weakly with electromagnetic radiation. However, no one has managed to detect CDM to date. Sownak Bose from Durham University's Institute for Computational Cosmology (ICC) will present new predictions at NAM 2015 for a different candidate for dark matter, the sterile neutrino, which may have been detected recently

Is the Sterile neutrino the best candidate for DM?
Do we know how much DE is in the universe?
Is a modification of gravity necessary to explain our cosmology?
Is String theory viable?.

A fresh look at cosmology.
http://arxiv.org/pdf/1407.0059v2.pdf
No. We've looked in all the reasonable places that DM might be hiding. It's not there.
According to ΛCDM, we know the percentage, but until we know the total volume, we don't know the total energy.
No. But you might try fixing the Newton's Second Law of Motion. That should do it.
No. It makes no predictions (currently) that are disprovable. It's more a branch of mathematics than physics.
 
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It may be a little premature to dismiss the sterile neutrinos as a dark matter candidate. Their potential detection announced independently by Bulbul and Boyarsky around year ago interest garnered significant interest. It also raised the stock of the axion, another low mass potential DM particle candidate. Despite objections raised over sterile neutrinos being too warm to account for large scale structure formation, it appears to remain viable.
 
closed for moderation

Edit: several nonsense posts were removed and the thread will remain closed.
 
Last edited by a moderator:

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