Do Singularities Prove Actual Infinities Exist?

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The discussion revolves around whether singularities, as described in the context of the Big Bang and black holes, imply the existence of actual infinities in reality. Participants clarify that current Big Bang models do not definitively support the existence of singularities, as they only indicate that the universe was smaller and hotter in its early stages. It is suggested that the concept of singularities may be oversimplified or sensationalized in popular science literature. Furthermore, there is a consensus that quantum gravity may resolve the infinite characteristics attributed to singularities, suggesting they do not exist in a true mathematical sense. Overall, the conversation emphasizes the need for careful interpretation of singularities and infinities in cosmological models.
Matt1128Y
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Please correct me if I'm wrong in any sense. And please forgive me if I'm posting this in the wrong forum.

I guess my general question is, presuming the big bang model is correct (one that includes a singularity), does that prove actual infinites exist? In other words, we know infinites exist in mathematics, but do infinites exist in reality? To give an example, could an infinite number of marbles exist (and what would happen if you took 1 away or added 1)?

When I read unsophisticated books about the big bang, they often describe singularity as being infinitely hot and possessing infinite curvature. But in what sense are they using the word infinite? Wouldn't it have taken an infinite amount of time for a singularity that was infinitely hot to cool down? I also have a hypothetical question. If a universe containing more matter than ours was extrapolated backward to a singularity, would that singularity possesses space-time curvature and heat equal to the singularity of our universe?

Thank you.
 
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You have 6 questions.
Bring this down to one to start.
 
pallidin said:
You have 6 questions.
Bring this down to one to start.

I apologize. I wasn't aware of there being a question limit per post.
 
It is more favorable to ask one question at a time.
With such you are much more likely to get responsible answers.

Sure, I've seen multiple question posts, but those are difficult to deal with.
Keep it simple.
Then, ask the next question.
 
Actually I wonder the same. I believed infinites only exists in concept, but now you remind me of how a black hole has infinite density. Any more knowledgeable comments on this?
 
I think what you're experiencing is a bit of sensationalism on the part of the popular science media. Let me clarify.

Current Big Bang models say absolutely nothing about a singularity. All they say is that when the universe was young, it was smaller and hotter. You can continue saying this until you get to around the Planck time, at which point the physics you used to derive this model no longer make sense.

This is the point at which quantum gravity becomes important, but I don't think anyone seriously proposes a model containing a legitimate singularity.

Similarly with the singularities in black holes, most people think that quantum gravity corrections will resolve their infinite nature, as the density comes to be around the Planck density.

To sum: Nobody seriously thinks singularities exist in the "true" mathematical description of the universe (whatever that means...).
 
Nabeshin said:
To sum: Nobody seriously thinks singularities exist in the "true" mathematical description of the universe (whatever that means...).

Yeah that is just what I thought!
Very interesting physics!
 

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