What's the difference between the observable universe and... the universe
[From: ] [author: ] [Date: 12-07-04] [Hit: ]
this is hugely useful.It allows us to check whether todays physical laws are the same as those billions of years ago (yes, as far as we can tell), and has allowed us to establish that the expansion of the universe is accelerating, something very few scientists thought plausible only 20 years ago.Does any of that help?......
When it comes to the large size of the early universe, you are not alone in finding that a paradox. Scientists did for years. What cosmologists have agreed on as the solution to the paradox is the 'inflationary era', in which space expanded by a factor of around 10^78 more or less instantly. Read
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inflationar…
which may make your brain hurt the first time, but keep trying.
As for the fact that by looking at distant galaxies we are looking into the past, this is hugely useful. It allows us to check whether today's physical laws are the same as those billions of years ago (yes, as far as we can tell), and has allowed us to establish that the expansion of the universe is accelerating, something very few scientists thought plausible only 20 years ago.
Does any of that help?
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We don't assume the Universe is infinite, actually. The Universe is expanding, and an infinite Universe could not do that.
The Universe is mind-bogglingly gigantic, but not infinite. Thus, all the questions you posed collapse and are answerable by that.
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What we can see with what technology we have and what we cannot see... There's more out there than the eye's can see!
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Didn't you already learn ALL of this at the Academy? Apparently you need a refresher course A.S.A.P, Maybe if you request Mr. Spock do a mind-meld with you that will help.
WHY DO YOU ASSUME and deny?
WHAT IS YOUR PROBLEM?
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Everyone sees the same observable inverse because everything is expanding "roughly" from everything else, so not only will everyone see everything expanding away from them, the universe is also only a finite age. That means that light hasn't had enough time to traverse say 15 billion years. This is why the sky is dark, even though there are light sources everywhere in the sky, light has only had so long to reach us.
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