Uncovering the Mystery: What Existed Before the Big Bang?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion centers around the question of what existed before the Big Bang, exploring various theories and models related to the origins of the universe. Participants express uncertainty and speculation regarding the nature of time, causality, and the limitations of current cosmological models.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Debate/contested
  • Conceptual clarification

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants assert that in the standard model of cosmology, there is no "before" the Big Bang, as everything begins after inflation.
  • Others suggest that the notion of the universe beginning from a point is outdated, proposing that it was a very small, dense volume that expanded rapidly.
  • There is mention of various speculative ideas regarding what might have existed before the Big Bang, including concepts like God, parallel universes, and quantum fluctuations.
  • Participants express confusion about how the Big Bang could occur if there was no time, with some emphasizing that current models do not provide clear answers.
  • One participant notes that the structure of spacetime complicates the notion of causality and questions the meaning of "what caused the universe to come into existence."
  • There is a reference to a cosmology book, "The First Three Minutes" by Steven Weinberg, which organizes cosmological events numerically, suggesting a structured approach to understanding the timeline of the universe.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants generally agree that there is significant uncertainty regarding what existed before the Big Bang, and multiple competing views remain regarding the interpretation of cosmological models and the nature of time.

Contextual Notes

Limitations include the ambiguity surrounding the definitions of time and causality, as well as the unresolved nature of various speculative ideas about the universe's origins.

curious222
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TL;DR
what was it before the Big Bang?can you count one by one?
what was it before the Big Bang?can you count one by one?
 
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curious222 said:
Summary:: what was it before the Big Bang?can you count one by one?

what was it before the Big Bang?can you count one by one?
I have no idea what "count one by one" means in this context, but as to what came before the Big Bang, we don't know and all speculation depends on what model you choose. In the standard model of modern cosmology, The Big Bang Theory, there IS NO "before". Everything starts after inflation and that means a tiny fraction of a second after the singularity.
 
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Don't know what 'count one by one' means, but we don't know what was before the Big Bang.

It's a bit of an antiquated notion now. We never seriously thought the universe began from a point, and we never thought it started with a bang.

What our theories model is that, at once it is a very small, very dense volume, and at some point, it expanded rapidly to form the precursor of the universe we know and love today.

But science is pretty silent on what might have happened before that initial very hot, very dense state. The wheels fall off our models at that point.
 
DaveC426913 said:
Don't know what 'count one by one' means, but we don't know what was before the Big Bang.

It's a bit of an antiquated notion now. We never seriously thought the universe began from a point, and we never thought it started with a bang.

What our theories model is that, at once it is a very small, very dense volume, and at some point, it expanded rapidly to form the precursor of the universe we know and love today.

But science is pretty silent on what might have happened before that initial very hot, very dense state. The wheels fall off our models at that point.
like God, parallel universes, quantum fluctuation ?
 
phinds said:
I have no idea what "count one by one" means in this context, but as to what came before the Big Bang, we don't know and all speculation depends on what model you choose. In the standard model of modern cosmology, The Big Bang Theory, there IS NO "before". Everything starts after inflation and that means a tiny fraction of a second after the singularity.
how did the big bang occur if there was no time?
 
curious222 said:
how did the big bang occur if there was no time?
It's a MODEL. Nature doesn't care how we model it. We don't know what happened.
 
curious222 said:
how did the big bang occur if there was no time?
If I can jump into pave the way.
First we don't do god's, they are not discussed and don't fall within the scope of Scientific enquiry.
Second don't try and think your way out of this. Just read what the current research and stance is on this. NASA website quite good. It's not all worked out, that's the beauty. Plenty to go after.
 
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pinball1970 said:
If I can jump into pave the way.
First we don't do god's, they are not discussed and don't fall within the scope of Scientific enquiry.
Second don't try and think your way out of this. Just read what the current research and stance is on this. NASA website quite good. It's not all worked out, that's the beauty. Plenty to go after.
so, reasons God?
 
curious222 said:
so, reasons God?
He just means that the PF rules prohibit most religious discussions. You can review the rules under INFO at the top of the page. Here is the part about discussing religion/deities:

Greg Bernhardt said:
Religious Discussion:
Discussions that assert the a priori truth or falsity of religious dogmas and belief systems, or value judgments stemming from such religious belief systems, will not be tolerated. As a rule of thumb, some topics pertaining to religion might be permissible if they are discussed in such a way so as to remain neutral on the truth of, or value judgments stemming from, religious belief systems. However, it is essential to use good judgment whenever discussing religious matters to ensure that the discussion does not degenerate into a messy dispute. If in doubt, err on the side of caution.

Because of the complexity and ambiguity of this subject matter, there are no hard and fast moderation rules that apply over all possible cases. Ultimately, it is up to the administrators and mentors to decide what is appropriate and what is not on a case-by-case basis. Discuss religious matters at your own risk: Administrators and mentors retain the right to lock or delete any religious thread or post at any time without warning or explanation. All administrator and mentor action taken with regard to religious discussions will be final and will not be up for dispute.

Religious proselytizing is strictly prohibited! PF is not the place to promote or discuss particular religious dogma.
 
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  • #10
curious222 said:
how did the big bang occur if there was no time?
It's worth noting that our notions of cause and effect seem to stem from the structure of spacetime, so it's not entirely clear that "what caused the universe to come into existence" has any meaning - or at least, not necessarily in any naive sense.

My understanding is that most current models have an infinite past prior to what's called the Big Bang, anyway. This is "inflation".
 
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  • #11
berkeman said:
He just means that the PF rules prohibit most religious discussions. You can review the rules under INFO at the top of the page. Here is the part about discussing religion/deities:
ok :)
 
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  • #12
No idea if the OP's curiosity extends to reading science texts, but the thread title and subsequent posts on counting remind me of a well known cosmology book "The First Three Minutes" by Steven Weinberg.

I last read revision 6 updated to reflect COBE among other recent data. Weinberg organizes this readable text numerically by time frames before and after the hypothetical 'three minutes'.
 
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  • #13
This thread has run its course and is now closed.
 

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