31 Aug '08 09:39>
Except that the cooling setting is less efficient.
Originally posted by XZantothYour question is the ultimate question about the universe.
Possibly... but if so, then where did that come from?
Originally posted by geepamoogleA "theory" is something that HAS been tested (when a scientist is speaking...not when those idiot ID people are talking). You want the phrase "unsupported model" or something like it.
There are any number of interesting theories as to the "origins" of the universe (including those origins which state that there has always been something in existence).
However, they fall outside the ability of science to observe or test with any confidence, and so they must remain theories.
Originally posted by AThousandYoungNot really. There are lots and lots of untested theories developed by the most prestigious scientists around. A theory can be right (i.e. it makes predictions that are confirmed by experiments and observation), wrong (i.e. it makes wrong predictions) and so bad that is not even wrong.
A "theory" is something that HAS been tested (when a scientist is speaking...not when those idiot ID people are talking). You want the phrase "unsupported model" or something like it.
Originally posted by smaiaWhich 'theories' do you refer to specifically?
Not really. There are lots and lots of untested theories developed by the most prestigious scientists around. A theory can be right (i.e. it makes predictions that are confirmed by experiments and observation), wrong (i.e. it makes wrong predictions) and so bad that is not even wrong.
Originally posted by joe shmoGod is a possible explanation for any number of observations. Science has not been able to find support for God as the correct explanation on any occasion.
Every one is so worried about excluding the existance of a god from the universe, Why? Religion is the bad guy here.... Someone said that cavemen exclaimed "god" everytime they encountered the unknown, and if we think like that today we have not progressed...yadayada. Well, god is just an idea, a "goal" its been used since we first percieved ourselve's, and will continue to be used until "proven" to be false.....
Originally posted by AThousandYoungFrom dictionary.com:
Which 'theories' do you refer to specifically?
Theory, hypothesis are used in non-technical contexts to mean an untested idea or opinion. A theory in technical use is a more or less verified or established explanation accounting for known facts or phenomena: the theory of relativity.
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/theory
As I ...[text shortened]... keep coming out to be correct based on the Model, then the Model is given Theory status.
Originally posted by joe shmoIt is not that we want to exclude God from the universe. But when we do science, we search for explanations that result from the laws of nature. We want to believe that everything that exists results from these laws.
Every one is so worried about excluding the existance of a god from the universe, Why? Religion is the bad guy here.... Someone said that cavemen exclaimed "god" everytime they encountered the unknown, and if we think like that today we have not progressed...yadayada. Well, god is just an idea, a "goal" its been used since we first percieved ourselve's, and will continue to be used until "proven" to be false.....
Originally posted by smaiaHawking radiation was demonstrated to be consistent with the quantum mechanical uncertainty principal in Soviet Moscow in 1973. It also is necessary for both the Second Law of Thermodynamics and black holes to exist.
From dictionary.com:
theory:
"a coherent group of general propositions used as principles of explanation for a class of phenomena: Einstein's theory of relativity. "
Based on the definition above, let me give you a couple of examples of recent untested or unverified theories:
1- Stephen Hawking's theory of black holes evaporation (Hawking radiation).
2- The Theory of Inflation (Alan Guth and others)
3- Super symmetry (various)
Originally posted by smaiaAs a junior particle physicist, Guth first developed the idea of cosmic inflation in 1979 at Cornell after attending a Big Bang lecture by Robert Dicke, and gave his first seminar on the subject in January 1980.[1] Moving on to Stanford University Guth formally proposed the idea of cosmic inflation in 1981, the idea that the nascent universe passed through a phase of exponential expansion that was driven by a positive vacuum energy density (negative vacuum pressure). The results of the WMAP mission in 2006 made the case for cosmic inflation very compelling.
From dictionary.com:
theory:
"a coherent group of general propositions used as principles of explanation for a class of phenomena: Einstein's theory of relativity. "
Based on the definition above, let me give you a couple of examples of recent untested or unverified theories:
1- Stephen Hawking's theory of black holes evaporation (Hawking radiation).
2- The Theory of Inflation (Alan Guth and others)
3- Super symmetry (various)
Originally posted by AThousandYoung"Quantum Field Theory is a theory, but there's no mention of Hawking Radiation Theory. Instead it's referred to as a prediction."
Hawking radiation was demonstrated to be consistent with the quantum mechanical uncertainty principal in Soviet Moscow in 1973. It also is necessary for both the Second Law of Thermodynamics and black holes to exist.
I find the phenomenon only rarely described in a scientific context as a theory, by the way, but it looks like some people are calli ...[text shortened]... fers to going towards a full theory of black holes, not that we already have one.
Originally posted by XZantothI don't know. There is no satisfying answer. This chain of questioning is generally used by people trying to get the answer "God" but with comes the question "Who made God?" Religion fails to answer these questions too.
Possibly... but if so, then where did that come from?