In cosmology we believe that the universe
started off in a big bang 13.7 billion years
ago.
All alternatives have been pretty much ruled
out.
Steady state theories, other alternatives
have been ruled out.
However, how will the universe end?
We have several possibilities.
One possibility is a big crunch when the universe
squashes together in a gigantic ball of flame
and maybe bangs once again.
Another possibility is the big freeze, that
the universe expands and just keeps on going
and we're all going to freeze to death and
we're all going to die when the universe reaches
near absolute zero.
Then there is something called the big rip
where the universe goes into an exponential
expansion and expands so rapidly that the
distant galaxies can no longer be seen because
they travel faster than the speed of light,
that even the distant galaxies break the light
barrier, and that's called the big rip, meaning
that the night sky will be totally black except
for some of the nearby stars.
Which of the three alternatives is the fate
of the universe?
Well, the short answer is we don't know.
However, what we do know is that the universe
is undergoing an exponential runaway expansion.
The universe at the present time is careening
out of control.
Every astronomy textbook says that there was
a big bang.
The universe is expanding, but it's slowing
down.
It also says that the universe is mainly made
out of atoms.
Every textbook says that.
The universe is made out of atoms.
The universe is expanding, but slowing down.
Both are wrong.
We have to rewrite every single high school
textbook on the planet earth.
The universe is not mainly made out of atoms.
Four percent of the universe is made out of
atoms, just four percent.
23% is made out of dark matter.
73%, which makes up most of the universe,
is dark energy, and unfortunately, we are
clueless as to what dark energy is and what
dark matter is.
In fact, if you ever find out what dark energy
and dark matter is, be sure to tell me first.
Now why is that important?
Because the amount of matter and energy in
the universe determines the rate of expansion.
We now know there is a lot more dark energy
than we previously thought.
Therefore, the universe is undergoing an inflationary
exponential expansion.
It is in a runaway mode, but here is the catch:
we don't know how long that runaway mode is
going to last.
Some people say that it's temporary.
We're in this huge expansion right now, exponential
expansion, but it's going to reverse itself.
Instead of a red shift, we'll have a blue
shift as the universe collapses.
At the present time we simply don't know.
Why don't we know?
Because we don't know what dark energy is.
In fact, if you were to try to write down
a theory of dark energy, your number would
not correspond to the data by a mismatch of
10 to the 120.
That is the largest mismatch in the history
of science.
There is no mismatch bigger than 10 to the
120.
So this is a mystery.
Until we solve the mystery of dark energy,
we do not know the ultimate fate of the universe.
My personal thoughts are that perhaps we will
continue with this exponential expansion and
perhaps go into a big rip mode and at that
point all intelligent life in the universe
will die.
All the tears and all the struggles and all
the heartbreak of humanity since we rose from
the swamp, it's all for nothing.
Why should you bother to wake up tomorrow
knowing that we're all going to die billions
and billions of years from now when the universe
turns to absolute zero, when the stars blink
out, when we have nothing but neutron stars
and black holes?
What does it all mean anyway, if we're all
going to die in a big rip?
Well, my personal attitude is that when the
universe is about to die, why not leave the
universe?
Trillions of years from now, we will have
the ability to bend space and time into a
pretzel.
We'll be able to tie space into knots.
We'll be what is called a type three, maybe
a type four civilization, a galactic civilization
with the capability of harnessing galactic
power.
At that point, when the universe becomes so
cold that all life is freezing to death, I
say let us escape the universe, go into hyperspace
and go to another universe.
