Week 8 Blog

1. What did you do in lab?

In lab on Monday we went over quite a bit as we had student led presentations. With these presentations we talked about the Big Bang as the origin of the universe, lifecycles of the stars, origin of the Earth, galaxies, black holes, as well as exploration of space. We learned the universe is over 13 billion years old and that light didn't happen until 300,000 years after the Big Bang. The Earth is only 4 and a half billion years old despite the fact that the universe is over 4 times as old. We went over this plus so much more within these presentations

2. What was the big question?

Within the presentations the big question was: What is the most important thing to know about this topic? What are the misconceptions about this idea?

3. What did you learn in Thursday's discussion?

In Thursday's lecture, we discussed the topics from the lab further and really learned why each of these aspects of space is happening. I learned about the life cycle of a star and how the explosion of a supernova created our entire solar system that our plant, moon, and sun is in. We also learned about how the sun and planets are just a bunch of remnants that stuck together and formed a sphere in which lit up for the sun, but didn't light up for the planets. Another thing we learned about is the past and present of space exploration, with how other countries have put us all in a space race to see who can get us the most information and exploration first.

4. Read Pressbook chapter 13. What did you learn? What was most helpful? What do you need more information on?

From reading Chapter 13, "Origins of the Universe," in the Pressbook, I learned about various scientific theories regarding the formation of the universe, primarily focusing on the Big Bang theory. This chapter explained how the universe began approximately 13.8 billion years ago from a singularity, an infinitely dense and hot point, and how it has expanded ever since. Key concepts like cosmic inflation, the formation of fundamental particles, and the development of galaxies were discussed in detail, highlighting the progression from simple to complex structures.

What was most helpful was the explanation of cosmic microwave background radiation as evidence for the Big Bang theory. This residual heat from the early universe provides critical insights into its origins and supports the idea of an expanding universe.

 

I need more information on the implications of dark matter and dark energy for the future of the universe. While the chapter briefly touched on these concepts, I would like to understand their roles in the universe's expansion, potential future scenarios (such as the Big Freeze, Big Crunch, or Big Rip), and how they influence our understanding of cosmology.

5. What questions, concerns, and/or comments do you have?

Will our space explorations ever take us further than Mars?