What Is Space?
nautil.us
What Is Space?
1–10 of 155 posts
Re: What Is Space?
#2I'm simultaneously glad that someone's writing articles about these things and dismayed that too many people will read this and believe they understand astrophysics without having philosophized about it on their own. Analogies like "space goo" are useful but can be a double-edged sword(seems the author recognizes this) that can mislead the public in much the same way that the holographic universe theory leads the public to think we might be in a simulation run by space bastards, which doesn't really explain anything about the very nature of existence.
Re: What Is Space?
#3I'm simultaneously glad that someone's writing articles about these things and dismayed that too many people will read this and believe they understand astrophysics without having philosophized about it on their own. Analogies like "space goo" are useful but can be a double-edged sword(seems the author recognizes this) that can mislead the public in much the same way that the holographic universe theory leads the pub…
Do you mind elaborating? Or pointing me in the direction of material that explains the space goo issue. thx
Re: What Is Space?
#4Jesus fucking Christ, who fucking cares? It's space, there's some objects, humanity needs to colonize it.
That's all there is if you want to take action.
It's like a company that makes great and not-so-great-but-useful products stopping and wondering "why are we doing this? Why do we exist?"
You won't exist forever, so just do it. Some people with enough free time and money can do the philosophies, the rest need to focus on action.
Re: What Is Space?
#5I'm simultaneously glad that someone's writing articles about these things and dismayed that too many people will read this and believe they understand astrophysics without having philosophized about it on their own. Analogies like "space goo" are useful but can be a double-edged sword(seems the author recognizes this) that can mislead the public in much the same way that the holographic universe theory leads the pub…
Do you mind elaborating? Or pointing me in the direction of material that explains the space goo issue. thx
The biggest issue I see with the goo metaphor, is that it seems to suggest some sort of stationary ether that we move through as we move through space. That is to say, the mathaphor suggests that it makes sense to differentiate between stationary objects and moving objects in an objective sense. However, the core insight of relativity is that there is no such distinction.
Re: What Is Space?
#6Jesus fucking Christ, who fucking cares? It's space, there's some objects, humanity needs to colonize it. That's all there is if you want to take action. It's like a company that makes great and not-so-great-but-useful products stopping and wondering "why are we doing this? Why do we exist?" You won't exist forever, so just do it. Some people with enough free time and money can do the philosophies, the rest need to f…
Why do something if you don't understand why something?
Re: What Is Space?
#7Jesus fucking Christ, who fucking cares? It's space, there's some objects, humanity needs to colonize it. That's all there is if you want to take action. It's like a company that makes great and not-so-great-but-useful products stopping and wondering "why are we doing this? Why do we exist?" You won't exist forever, so just do it. Some people with enough free time and money can do the philosophies, the rest need to f…
Yours is but one perspective.
Consider the alternative that you are the only person in the universe. What would be your modus operandi then?
Re: What Is Space?
#8How fast are you really going?
One of the things I've thought about is relatively.
Consider a toddler strapped to his car seat in a luxurious BMW cocoon while his father speeds down the autobahn at 200km/h. He calmy drinks from his sippy cup.
You're in a passenger jet above him going 700km/hr. You're going 500km/hr faster than him.
But how fast are you really going?
Consider that the Earth is spinning around the sun at a rate of 1 billion kilometers per year or about 100,000 km/hr.
You're on Earth, so is your jet's true speed 100,700 km/hr?
Relative to the sun, yes, but everything that orbits our sun is considered our solar system which itself is orbiting our galaxy at a rate of 800,000 km/hr.
So if we add the 800k, 100k, and 700 km/hr your plane is moving, is it not fair to say you are traveling at almost a billion kilometers per hour?
I'm sure you can infer the galaxy itself is hurling through space at an ungodly speed.
I ask two questions:
1. When does this stop? What is the most supreme center in the universe?
2. Just as the child could roll down his window, and have instant access to the outside, is there a way we can do the same?
Re: What Is Space?
#9How fast are you really going? One of the things I've thought about is relatively. Consider a toddler strapped to his car seat in a luxurious BMW cocoon while his father speeds down the autobahn at 200km/h. He calmy drinks from his sippy cup. You're in a passenger jet above him going 700km/hr. You're going 500km/hr faster than him. But how fast are you really going? Consider that the Earth is spinning around the sun…
there are no absolute reference frames. only relative ones! however, at least there is a fixed relationship between reference frames they all must obey with regards to the speed of light.
Re: What Is Space?
#10Maybe space is the ether afterall