Huge gamma-ray blast spotted 12.2 bln light-years from earth

[Scott & Lai 12]

Hmmm... seriously... I don't think that would be all that relevant. Scientific concepts aside... the universe is likely not as singular as we may think it to be in terms of having limits. But who really knows?

All I can say is 42.

Be very careful with that... 42 is the answer to the Ultimate Question of Life the Universe and Everything, but we don't know what the Ultimate Question actually is. If we know both the Answer and the Question, the Universe will cease to exist and be replace by an even stranger one

Setting science aside for a moment, does anyone believe the universe is endless? Similar to the theory that the Earth was flat several centuries ago? Given that our deep space exploration abilities are very limited, aside from the Hubble telescope, how much more is actually out there?

If one could travel in a space vehicle in any random direction, would there be an end?

A thought to ponder.

You mean like would you encounter a brick wall with a "Dead End" sign?

Setting science aside for a moment, does anyone believe the universe is endless? Similar to the theory that the Earth was flat several centuries ago? Given that our deep space exploration abilities are very limited, aside from the Hubble telescope, how much more is actually out there?

If one could travel in a space vehicle in any random direction, would there be an end?

A thought to ponder.

William, when asking such questions please post them in the "Do you smoke weed?" thread. Thank you for your cooperation.

I don't smoke weed....but I do ponder this concept from time to time....After that, I think about containable concepts like the economy, bills, employment stability and so forth...

I find the structure of the Universe makes much more sense

[I AM NOT THAT GUY 5,715]

Setting science aside for a moment, does anyone believe the universe is endless? Similar to the theory that the Earth was flat several centuries ago? Given that our deep space exploration abilities are very limited, aside from the Hubble telescope, how much more is actually out there?

If one could travel in a space vehicle in any random direction, would there be an end?

A thought to ponder.

William, when asking such questions please post them in the "Do you smoke weed?" thread. Thank you for your cooperation.

That is probably the best answer, since the other answer is counter-intuitive. (Doesn't make sense unless you are stoned, a theoretical physicist, or worse, a mathematician!)

Edited February 22, 2009 by Mister_Bill

[HAL 9000 96]

Scott yay!

[William33 110]

I think we could all talk about it all night from topic to topic as long as the central theme to it all was 42.

Hitchhikers guide?

I would rather think about this band:

Level 42

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zamqe602AU4

[William33 110]

I knew that some could not get their mind around this concept, which is why I raised it.

People demand a quantifiable explanation for everything, even when none exists....

[Scott & Lai 12]

I knew that some could not get their mind around this concept, which is why I raised it.

People demand a quantifiable explanation for everything, even when none exists....

I believe the Universe is endless, but limited.

[William33 110]

I knew that some could not get their mind around this concept, which is why I raised it.

People demand a quantifiable explanation for everything, even when none exists....

I believe the Universe is endless, but limited.

Scott,

Please help me understand the bolded statement......Which appears contradictory....

[Scott & Lai 12]

I knew that some could not get their mind around this concept, which is why I raised it.

People demand a quantifiable explanation for everything, even when none exists....

I believe the Universe is endless, but limited.

Scott,

Please help me understand the bolded statement......Which appears contradictory....

Perhaps I should say "finite" instead of limited. Think of a curved surface like that of a balloon. An ant could walk on it endlessly in any direction without reaching a point beyond which it could not go, but the actual area it can walk on is finite, limited. This is just a picture, of course, and the actual structure of the Universe is more complex, but it shows how the Universe being endless (in the sense of being without boundaries) and its being finite or limited are not necessarily contradictory. And, yes, the balloon also has an internal volume and it exists with three dimensional space around it, but it still helps with understanding the concept.

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

My (very limited) understanding that both time and space are curved - and eventually loop back on one another.

I think a lot of people find it difficult to grasp concepts in theoretical physics because they think about the universe as a 3 dimensional entity.

Time and Gravity are important parts of the equation - and that's without looking at string theory and dark matter, which turns the whole thing on its head.

[William33 110]

I knew that some could not get their mind around this concept, which is why I raised it.

People demand a quantifiable explanation for everything, even when none exists....

I believe the Universe is endless, but limited.

Scott,

Please help me understand the bolded statement......Which appears contradictory....

Perhaps I should say "finite" instead of limited. Think of a curved surface like that of a balloon. An ant could walk on it endlessly in any direction without reaching a point beyond which it could not go, but the actual area it can walk on is finite, limited. This is just a picture, of course, and the actual structure of the Universe is more complex, but it shows how the Universe being endless (in the sense of being without boundaries) and its being finite or limited are not necessarily contradictory. And, yes, the balloon also has an internal volume and it exists with three dimensional space around it, but it still helps with understanding the concept.

For clarification, are you suggesting that space has a finite end? Given my previous example of a space vehicle that could actually travel beyond our technological scope, we woud reach some end?

[HAL 9000 96]

Probably not an end as in reaching a town's city limits... but a transformation which is likely improbable to cross.

With that I bid thee well.

[William33 110]

Probably not an end as in reaching a town's city limits... but a transformation which is likely improbable to cross.

With that I bid thee well.

Cheers and good night Bro..

This is the most difficult concept that challenges the Earth. There are no definitive answers, only theories. I like that.

[Scott & Lai 12]

I knew that some could not get their mind around this concept, which is why I raised it.

People demand a quantifiable explanation for everything, even when none exists....

I believe the Universe is endless, but limited.

Scott,

Please help me understand the bolded statement......Which appears contradictory....

Perhaps I should say "finite" instead of limited. Think of a curved surface like that of a balloon. An ant could walk on it endlessly in any direction without reaching a point beyond which it could not go, but the actual area it can walk on is finite, limited. This is just a picture, of course, and the actual structure of the Universe is more complex, but it shows how the Universe being endless (in the sense of being without boundaries) and its being finite or limited are not necessarily contradictory. And, yes, the balloon also has an internal volume and it exists with three dimensional space around it, but it still helps with understanding the concept.

For clarification, are you suggesting that space has a finite end? Given my previous example of a space vehicle that could actually travel beyond our technological scope, we woud reach some end?

I'd say space has limited volume and mass (it is not infinite, though it is expanding), but as for a space vehicle reaching an end, it depends on what you mean by an "end." I don't think there is a barrier that you would reach beyond which you cannot cross, like a car going down an alley and reaching a dead-end wall, or like being inside a box and going from the center to one of the sides and having to stop there even though there is an "outside" to the box beyond the wall you've just encountered. Taking the balloon illustration again, the ship (ant) could travel forever in any direction in space, as defined by the ballon's surface, without ever encountering an end where the ship could go no further. Due to the curvature of the balloon, the ship could reach its starting point without reversing, but the same may or may not apply with the universe, depending on the actual geometries of the mutliple dimensions of space-time.

[William33 110]

I knew that some could not get their mind around this concept, which is why I raised it.

People demand a quantifiable explanation for everything, even when none exists....

I believe the Universe is endless, but limited.

Scott,

Please help me understand the bolded statement......Which appears contradictory....

Perhaps I should say "finite" instead of limited. Think of a curved surface like that of a balloon. An ant could walk on it endlessly in any direction without reaching a point beyond which it could not go, but the actual area it can walk on is finite, limited. This is just a picture, of course, and the actual structure of the Universe is more complex, but it shows how the Universe being endless (in the sense of being without boundaries) and its being finite or limited are not necessarily contradictory. And, yes, the balloon also has an internal volume and it exists with three dimensional space around it, but it still helps with understanding the concept.

For clarification, are you suggesting that space has a finite end? Given my previous example of a space vehicle that could actually travel beyond our technological scope, we woud reach some end?

I'd say space has limited volume and mass (it is not infinite, though it is expanding), but as for a space vehicle reaching an end, it depends on what you mean by an "end." I don't think there is a barrier that you would reach beyond which you cannot cross, like a car going down an alley and reaching a dead-end wall, or like being inside a box and going from the center to one of the sides and having to stop there even though there is an "outside" to the box beyond the wall you've just encountered. Taking the balloon illustration again, the ship (ant) could travel forever in any direction in space, as defined by the ballon's surface, without ever encountering an end where the ship could go no further. Due to the curvature of the balloon, the ship could reach its starting point without reversing, but the same may or may not apply with the universe, depending on the actual geometries of the mutliple dimensions of space-time.

OK Scott, you provided a very well defined opinion.

Advancing the original point, I am convinced that there is no circular loop, rather uncharted territory with no end. We have no evidence to the contrary.

[Scott & Lai 12]

I knew that some could not get their mind around this concept, which is why I raised it.

People demand a quantifiable explanation for everything, even when none exists....

I believe the Universe is endless, but limited.

Scott,

Please help me understand the bolded statement......Which appears contradictory....

Perhaps I should say "finite" instead of limited. Think of a curved surface like that of a balloon. An ant could walk on it endlessly in any direction without reaching a point beyond which it could not go, but the actual area it can walk on is finite, limited. This is just a picture, of course, and the actual structure of the Universe is more complex, but it shows how the Universe being endless (in the sense of being without boundaries) and its being finite or limited are not necessarily contradictory. And, yes, the balloon also has an internal volume and it exists with three dimensional space around it, but it still helps with understanding the concept.

For clarification, are you suggesting that space has a finite end? Given my previous example of a space vehicle that could actually travel beyond our technological scope, we woud reach some end?

I'd say space has limited volume and mass (it is not infinite, though it is expanding), but as for a space vehicle reaching an end, it depends on what you mean by an "end." I don't think there is a barrier that you would reach beyond which you cannot cross, like a car going down an alley and reaching a dead-end wall, or like being inside a box and going from the center to one of the sides and having to stop there even though there is an "outside" to the box beyond the wall you've just encountered. Taking the balloon illustration again, the ship (ant) could travel forever in any direction in space, as defined by the ballon's surface, without ever encountering an end where the ship could go no further. Due to the curvature of the balloon, the ship could reach its starting point without reversing, but the same may or may not apply with the universe, depending on the actual geometries of the mutliple dimensions of space-time.

OK Scott, you provided a very well defined opinion.

Advancing the original point, I am convinced that there is no circular loop, rather uncharted territory with no end. We have no evidence to the contrary.

So, do you think the volume or mass of space are infinite?