Malaika Gomes

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Capstone Essay

Malaika Gomes

Mr. Coussens

8th Grade English Honors

21 April 2020

Capstone Research Paper

The universe was created in only three minutes (Rothstein)!? I have always had a curiosity about where we started and where we are going. My Capstone project is an illustrated book all about the origin of the universe and its evolution. My book will mostly cover the leading theory: the Big Bang, as well as the evolution of our universe after it’s creation. In the book, I also plan to include common misconceptions, what happened before the Big Bang, and how the end of the universe could look like. I thoroughly enjoy learning about science, so I knew that physics was the way to go. Researching and educating about the origin of the universe was the perfect thing. I needed to research what scientists believe really happened in the beginning, as well as what it evolved into after. Through this research, I plan to educate others about the pure prominence of where we come from and its significance.

What is it?

The Big Bang is the model of the history of the universe and is the most logical and evidence-supported theory of the universe's existence. This is one of the first few theories that arose that are exceedingly similar to the Modern Theory. Although this is the most widespread and accepted theory, it is not 100% fact, because no theory is 100% fact (Sutter). Scientists have wondered what is behind a black hole, this curiosity led to the discovery of singularities. Scientists have been forced to wonder what happened before the big bang when the theory of general relativity was proposed. The answer to these two questions is a gravitational singularity. A gravitational singularity or a space-time singularity is a place where the quantity of measurement is infinite (Williams). The universe started out as a small singularity. Over what scientists think is 13.8 billion years, it has expanded into the cosmos we see in the present. Since we do not yet have the supplies and instruments needed to see what actually happened at the time, we rely on mathematical formulas as well as models to test and prove theories (Howell).

What exactly happened?

In the beginning, there was an explosion, this explosion was not like any of the explosions on earth. It had no definite center, and the explosion occurred simultaneously everywhere. Every particle of matter rushed apart from every particle. The matter rushing apart contained these so-called elementary particles. It was so hot lthat none of the ordinary components of matter could survive like molecules, atoms, or even nuclei atoms could be held together. At that point, the universe was the smallest and the simplest it would ever be again. All that it is is a distinguished soup of radiation and matter. In this stage, the particles are rapidly slamming into one another because of the heat. Although the temperature is 100,000 million degrees Kelvin, the universe is nearly at the state of thermal equilibrium. The universe is so dense that even particles called neutrinos (which can travel through lead bricks without a problem) are kept in the equilibrium. In the next few milliseconds, the universe is constantly and rapidly expanding and cooling. To get some perspective, it is expanding at the speed of escape velocity. In the very first frame, there is only a minimal amount of nuclear particles; one proton for every 1,000 million photons (particle of light). In the second frame of time since the explosion, 0.11 seconds have gone by. Electrons, positrons, neutrinos, photons, and antineutrons are still dominating the universe, but they are in the thermal equilibrium. Now that the temperature has dropped significantly, it's much easier for the isotopes of neutrons to form. Keep in mind, but they are still not bound into nuclei. When we get into the third frame, the temperature is now 10,000 million degrees Kelvin, and it is been 1.09 seconds since the origin of the universe. In the fourth frame, the temperature is 3,000 million degrees Kelvin, and 13.82 seconds have elapsed. Now it is stable, and nuclei like helium can form, although it does not happen instantly. In the fifth and last frame of the origin of the universe, the temperature is now 1,000 million degrees Kelvin, that's about seventy times hotter than the center of our sun. Since the explosion, it has been 3 minutes and 2 seconds (Weinberg).

The Evidence

In 1922, Alexander Friedmann created equations known as the Friedmann equations. They were based on Einstein’s theory of relativity, and they showed that the universe was probably in an expanding state. Later, in 1924, Edwin Hubble discovered that there was some sort of connection between distance and recession velocity (the rate at which something in space recedes from the observer due to the expansion of the universe). In 1927, a Belgian physicist named Georges Lemaitre realized that through the Friedmann equations, the farther you go back in time, the smaller the universe would be. His hypothesis was that if you went back in time far enough, the universe would be compressed in one single point. Throughout the ’20s and ’30s, scientists argued over this evidence. Most physicists agreed that the universe was not expanding, and at this time the idea of a “Big Bang’ was completely theoretical and foolish. Theories such as the Milne Model and the Oscillary Universe model were promoted. Both of these theories were based on Einsteins Theory of Relativity. Fred Hoyle formalized the Steady State Model after World War Two. The Steady-State Model and the Big Bang theory were heavily debated since the Big Bang was now growing in popularity. Finally, the Big Bang theory won the debate, because of the overwhelming observational evidence. Physicists detected the cosmic microwave background to confirm the Big Bang theory. Famous physicists like Stephen Hawking began to submit evidence in their papers for the Big Bang theory, ultimately securing its place as the leading theory for the origin and evolution of the universe (Big).

The evolution of the universe from the Big Bang to the present

The summary of the evolution of the universe is that after the explosion, the universe cooled significantly, which allowed the formation of subatomic particles and simple atoms. Big clumps of these particles traveled through the universe and they had enough gravity to create stars and galaxies. The earliest known period of time is known as the Singularity Epoch. At this time all the matter in the universe was condensed into one tight ball of extreme heat and density. It then began to expand and cool leading into the next period known as the Inflation Epoch. At this time, all fundamental forces were created and high energy density was dispersed throughout the cosmos. Particle-antiparticle sets were being created and destroyed, and the universe continued to cool leading into the next time period: the Cooling Epoch. In this period, the universe dropped in density and temperature, and all particle energies dropped. Since the temperature was not as high, it could not form proton-antiproton pairs, so the population of these particles reduced to nothing. This left room for more complex particles to form. The next period is the Structure Epoch, which lasted several billion years. In this time, matter was evenly distributed into the cosmos, making it less dense. This was also the period where the modern universe took place, stars formed, galaxies were created. Galaxy clusters and superclusters were conceived, and dark matter takes up 23% of the universe.

What might the future of the universe look like?

The future of our universe is hypothesized by many physicists whos questions always provoke new ones. Many wonder that if our universe once started so small, could it lose all of its driving force and turn around in a Big Crunch. This can only happen if the critical density is less than the mass density. But if the mass and critical density are the same, that means the expansion of our universe would never stop, the universe would continue to expand until star formation stops and all the gas in the universe runs out. Stars, planets, galaxies, and black holes would be torn apart by the ever expansion. This theory is known as the Big Freeze. The last theory is that the universe will keep expanding until one day it reaches a happy point and does not expand anymore.

What is the significance?

Many might ask, “Why does learning about the origin and the evolution of the universe even matter?”. It matters because having curiosity leads to knowledge. If Edwin Hubble never wondered and dreamed about galaxies, we never would have known about the expansion of our universe. If Einstein was not curious about why do physical phenomena act the way it does, he never would have come up with the theory of relativity. It matters because knowledge leads to hidden benefits. If scientists were not curious about galaxies, they would never have invented digital cameras, the devices they used to study them. I am sure everyone has a digital camera on their phone. We also would never have had Wifi, if scientists had not created it to transfer files instead of doing the cumbersome process of wiring files. It is all in the hidden benefits.

I learned all about the expansion of our universe, multiple theories, star formation, singularities, and much more! During the research, I learned about the tools scientists use like telescopes, models, and theories. I started this project initially with the thought that this topic may be dull, but I was pleasantly surprised by how interesting and amazing the topic was. I will apply this knowledge and research not only to the book I am creating for Capstone, but I will also use what I learned about curiosity leading to knowledge in my life. The significance of my project is the knowledge you learn from the curiosity, as well as all the hidden benefits. Many people also feel comforted knowing exactly where the universe comes from. I have a newfound appreciation for the process of scientific theories, and the physicists who dared to be curious about our universe. By creating this illustrated book I hope to share my passion and wonder about our universe.

Works Cited

“The Big Bang.” NASA, NASA, science.nasa.gov/astrophysics/focus-areas/what-powered-the-big-bang. Accessed April 9, 2020

Howell, Elizabeth. “What Is the Big Bang Theory?” Space.com, Space, 7 Nov. 2017, www.space.com/25126-big-bang-theory.html. Accessed April 9, 2020.

Jessa, Tega. “What Are Photons.” Universe Today, Universe Today, 24 Dec. 2015, www.universetoday.com/74027/what-are-photons/.Accessed April 9, 2020.

Rothstein, Blair. “THE BIG BANG: It Sure Was BIG!!” THE BIG BANG, www.umich.edu/~gs265/bigbang.htm. Accessed April 9, 2020.

Sutter, Paul. “What Triggered the Big Bang? It's Complicated (Op-Ed).” Space.com, Space, 23 Nov. 2015, www.space.com/31192-what-triggered-the-big-bang.html. Accessed April 5, 2020.

Sutton, Christine. “Subatomic Particle.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 28 July 2017, www.britannica.com/science/subatomic-particle.

Weinberg, Steven. First Three Minutes: a Modern View of the Origin of the Universe. Basic Books, 2015. Accessed April 9, 2020.

Williams, Matt. “What Is A Singularity?” Universe Today, 7 Jan. 2017, www.universetoday.com/84147/singularity/. Accessed April 7, 2020.

Williams, Matt. “Big Bang Theory: Evolution of Our Universe.” Universe Today, 1 Mar. 2020, www.universetoday.com/54756/what-is-the-big-bang-theory/.