The standard model of our Universe may be showing some cracks. Several fundamental cosmological observations are contradicting each other. For instance, the Universe appears to be expanding 10 percent faster than it should be, according to observations of the leftover heat from the Big Bang.
It’s perfectly possible that the contradictions will disappear as our estimates of cosmic parameters improve.
But it’s also possible that the contradictions won’t go away and that our fundamental picture of the Universe is about to undergo a radical revision, perhaps to include invisible, ‘dark’ components as complex as atoms, stars and galaxies.
ADDITIONAL INGREDIENTS
Cosmology is the ultimate science. It deals with the birth, evolution and fate of the Universe. The standard model consists of several ingredients: the Big Bang, dark matter, dark energy and inflation.
First, take the Big Bang. Astronomers can see that the galaxies – the basic building blocks of the Universe of which the Milky Way is one – are flying away from each other in the aftermath of a titanic explosion. They also observe that the Universe is permeated by relic heat – the cosmic background radiation. Together, these two observations tell astronomers that the Universe was smaller and hotter in the past. In fact, according to the standard picture, the Universe was born in a blisteringly hot fireball 13.82 billion years ago and has been expanding ever since, with the galaxies congealing out of the cooling debris.
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Denne historien er fra New Year 2021-utgaven av BBC Focus - Science & Technology.
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Do We Finally Know How the Egyptian Pyramids Were Built? - A number of breakthrough studies are beginning to paint a picture of how these wonders of the world were built, but much of the story still remains a mystery...
A number of breakthrough studies are beginning to paint a picture of how these wonders of the world were built, but much of the story still remains a mystery...How the Egyptian pyramids were built has long been a mystery. Constructed as tombs for the pharaohs over 4,000 years ago, more than 100 of them remain. The largest one, the Great Pyramid of Giza, was originally 147m tall (482ft). It's made up of about 2.3 million stone blocks, each weighing between 2.5 and 15 tonnes, and would have had to be transported to the building site and lifted into place with techniques available at the time. To put this into context, it's akin to lifting a double-decker London bus to the top of St Pauls Cathedral a few million times.
An Artificial Heart Inspired by Plumbing - Mechanical circulation could revolutionise transplant design and reduce waiting lists
Mechanical circulation could revolutionise transplant design and reduce waiting lists. In July, this artificial heart was successfully implanted, for the first time, into a patient with end-stage heart failure. Built by The Texas Heart Institute (THI) and BiVACOR, the replacement organ has been dubbed the Total Artificial Heart (TAH). Although, being an implant rather than transplant, it's designed to temporarily support patients while they wait for a real heart transplant.
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LIVING FOSSILS
FOR SOME CREATURES ALIVE TODAY TIME HAS ALMOST STOOD STILL. MEET THE 'LIVING FOSSILS' THAT GIVE US A GLIMPSE INTO LIFE IN THE DISTANT PAST
