ASHWIN SANGHI BOX SET

by Ashwin Sanghi

‘Modern science says that at the beginning of time there was a great explosion—the Big Bang. Around 13.7 billion years ago, all energy was concentrated at a single point—physicists call this point a singularity—and this single point has been in a state of expansion ever since. It is from this single event that all the energy of the universe—and consequently all matter—came into existence.’

‘Now, consider the Big Bang in conjunction with Albert Einstein’s theory that E=mc2,’ continued Saini, ignoring Taarak’s outburst. ‘Simply put, energy and matter are interchangeable. In fact, subsequent exploration into atomic structure has taught scientists that matter is actually an illusion and that atoms are composed of nothingness—energy fields that merely create the illusion of matter. In simple terms, all matter that makes up the universe is actually energy. Einstein’s equation also tells us that energy cannot be created or destroyed. It can merely be converted from one form to another, or transferred from one place to another.’ ‘Then how can we credit the Big Bang for having created all the energy of the universe—if energy cannot be created or destroyed? There seems to be an apparent contradiction between the Big Bang and Einstein’s theories,’ said Radhika. ‘Precisely,’ said Saini. ‘But by observing distant stars, astronomers have found that their light patterns stay constant, but move further down the light spectrum over time. This means that the stars under observation are moving further and further away over time, thus clearly proving that our universe is continuously expanding outwards, and consequently the Big Bang theory.’ ‘So the fact that the universe expanded and is continuing to expand is proven?’ asked Radhika. ‘Yes,’ said Saini. ‘But the question that no physicist has been able to answer is this: from what source did we derive the energy that was within...