Forget about the threat that mankind poses to the Earth: our activities may be shortening the life of the universe too.
The startling claim is made by a pair of American cosmologists investigating the consequences for the cosmos of quantum theory, the most successful theory we have. Over the past few years, cosmologists have taken this powerful theory of what happens at the level of subatomic particles and tried to extend it to understand the universe, since it began in the subatomic realm during the Big Bang.
Sounds like a job for the UN Intergalactic Panel on Cosmological Change.
The Telegraph: Mankind 'shortening the universe's life'
Ian, our new leader has been known to peer at them!
The Telegraph eh? Was that before the tits, after the tits, or, huh, huh, huh, between the tits?
And what, exactly, would constitute peer review?
The article says, "...quantum theory, the most successful theory we have..."
Journalists are gullible. But increasingly, physicists are gullible--or trying to start new religions.
Quantum theory is in its current state so vacucous that you could explain everything with it--such as, that Luke is the reincarnation of Richard Nixon.
I note with interest that the article is in the (London, UK) Telegraph.
Having been to London several times recently, I've been able to notice a strange phenomenon there--people on street corners *giving newspapers away for free*.
The Brits have obviously figured out the value of their news publications.
You have to find people willing to beg others to take it.
Dayum!
I never even heard of a late-decaying false vacuum before.
You think it might be the new model from Kirby?
What denialism. I'm starting to question my existence and that's enough proof for me.
As Dr. Evil himself, I was asked to make a comment on this blog.. something I usually do not do.. Alas, I hate to say this after you have amassed 100 billion to save the universe, but the reports of the Universe's demise were premature.. I hold myself responsible for the confusion of the journalist, but in the final lines of the paper (the main thrust of which is not the subject of the journalists' articles) we allowed for the interpretation of causality.. namely that by measuring dark energy we are causally affecting the future of the universe.. this is not the case.. instead we questioned whether by measuring it we are constraining our quantum state within the wavefunction of the universe in a way which might imply we are not in a late-decaying false vacuum configuration.
L. Krauss
I think we are being led to ruin by beings from another part of the universe--Al Gore, perhaps?
From article: "In a nutshell, the theory suggests that we change things simply by looking at them and theorists have puzzled over the implications for years.'
Everyone stare at Luke and SJT.
To make Mottsa happy we'd need to replace Schrodinger's cat with a Mahogany Glider in a custom-fab timber industry death box fashioned from an endangered tree species that only grows on his mate's farm.
I couldn't understand why Dr Evil didn't want his money in an off planet bank account, rather than an off shore account.
Malcolm sorted me out. He had to keep the money on planet to be able to be able to participate in the Gore bonanza.