Why is the Big Bang shown always directional, instead of globally?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the depiction of the Big Bang and the evolution of the universe. Participants explore questions regarding the directional representation of the Big Bang and the potential for the universe to have evolved in a manner that incorporates elements of both the "little" and "big" theories.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Debate/contested
  • Conceptual clarification

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants question why the universe could not have evolved in a way that combines aspects of both the "little" and "big" theories.
  • There is a suggestion that the universe is currently infinite in extent, raising questions about the implications of finite versus infinite size in the context of its evolution.
  • One participant notes that the early universe was opaque to light, implying that our understanding of its nature may be limited.
  • Another participant expresses uncertainty about the assumptions made regarding the early universe and its relationship to the current state of the universe.
  • Some participants discuss the distinction between biological evolution and cosmological evolution, suggesting that conflating the two can lead to confusion.
  • There is a mention of various theories regarding the early universe, with an acknowledgment that if something cannot be observed, it is challenging to develop a working model or theory about it.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express differing views on the nature of the universe's evolution and the implications of its infinite extent. There is no consensus on the questions raised, and multiple competing perspectives remain throughout the discussion.

Contextual Notes

Some participants highlight the limitations in understanding the early universe due to its opacity and the challenges in observing it, which complicates the development of theories. Additionally, there are unresolved distinctions between cosmological and biological evolution that affect the discussion.

two OLD 2 care
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TL;DR
Why is the Big Bang shown always directional, instead of globally ?
I`m new to physics, but old to the plant ( 70 )
My question is 1) why wouldn`t the universe have evolved ,
( change from little / big ), leaving a bit of both , i.e. 2 theories ?
2) Why is the Big Bang always depicted, directionally ?
 
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two OLD 2 care said:
why wouldn`t the universe have evolved ,
( change from little / big ), leaving a bit of both
It is bigger now than it was before. But we think the universe is infinite in extent. If you think about it more, you should see that nothing finite in size can ever grow to infinite size. Nor can something infinite in size ever have been finite in the past.

two OLD 2 care said:
Why is the Big Bang always depicted, directionally ?

The early universe was also opaque to light. So here is a more realistic picture of it. Not very interesting huh?

1638633264252.png
 
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two OLD 2 care said:
Summary:: Why is the Big Bang shown always directional, instead of globally ?

I`m new to physics, but old to the plant ( 70 )
My question is 1) why wouldn`t the universe have evolved ,
( change from little / big ), leaving a bit of both , i.e. 2 theories ?
2) Why is the Big Bang always depicted, directionally ?
I'm not sure I understand either of these questions.
 
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anorlunda said:
It is bigger now than it was before. But we think the universe is infinite in extent. If you think about it more, you should see that nothing finite in size can ever grow to infinite size. Nor can something infinite in size ever have been finite in the past.
The early universe was also opaque to light. So here is a more realistic picture of it. Not very interesting huh?

View attachment 293563
You didn`t get my drift.
I was axing, why should we assume the universe back then is what
we ended up with along with some flak from before ?
Maybe the elements change or gave ( birth ) to or decayed from what was once. Leaving us with a open path of the physics tree.
 
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two OLD 2 care said:
You didn`t get my drift.
I was axing, why should we assume the universe back then is what
we ended up with along with some flak from before ?
Maybe the elements change or gave ( birth ) to or decayed from what was once. Leaving us with a open path of the physics tree.
What reading have you been doing about these questions? Hopefully we can point you to some better sources of information to read...

Here is a reasonable place to start:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Bang

How about you read through that introductory article and come back here with any specific questions you have about that reading... :smile:
 
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Reading the Wikipedia article and come back is likely the best idea. My naive attempt to riddle the second set of questions is that there is a confusion between biological evolution theory and cosmological evolution of the expanding universe. This is a confusion deliberately sourced by creationists, and one may meet it in various places where it doesn't belong (such as on science sites).

The former theory is the theory of the observed biological evolution process, which do have pathways and splits and forms phylogenetic trees. The latter is a completely different process, best described by likewise observed inflationary hot big bang theory in US National Academy of Sciences Astro2020 Decadal Survey* - a cosmological inflationary expansion process [a "Lambda expansion" if you want to analogize] followed by a Lambda-Cold Dark Matter expansion process.

*It reads as the committee result as it is, since the cosmological report can't come out and clearly separate the two eras albeit they do admit that inflation happened before the now properly labeled Hot Big Bang and that unless the expansion was eternal - the naive result in the observed flat space topology - it may explain how expansion started. I think I will call the NAS Astro2020 description the "Bug Bang" because the mental gymnastics of conservative cosmologists bugs me. 😎
 
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two OLD 2 care said:
Maybe the elements change or gave ( birth ) to or decayed from what was once. Leaving us with a open path of the physics tree.
It's certainly possible that the early universe was very, very different from what we see today. And scientists have various theories about this possibility. The problem is that if we can't observe it, it's nearly impossible to make a working model or theory on it.
 

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