A Universe from Something

by Daniel J. Blanchette Jr.

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DISCLAIMER:

Before I begin, I would like to stress that this is pure conjecture, and is simply meant to form a basis for further research and to spark dialogue, which is why I’ve opted to word things colloquially.  I do not have any strong empirical evidence to support this conjecture, because it’s just that: conjecture. Please treat it as such, and approach the idea with an open mind. If my conjecture makes sense to you, help me round it out so we can make a theory out of this. These are exciting times we’re living in. Let’s build a better tomorrow, together!

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We’ve all heard of the Big Bang: the theory stating our universe–or at least our portion of the greater multiverse, as it may in fact be–started from a singular point (Edwin Hubble, 1929), which contained a seemingly infinite amount of matter within. Then, suddenly, this point very rapidly inflated to a specific cosmological size (Alan Guth, 1979). After this rapid expansion, the universe remained in motion, continuously expanding, albeit at a slower rate. The high heat and radiation present during the expansion dissipated, matter dispersed, galaxies formed, and life began where life had the ability to begin. I’m loosely paraphrasing, of course, but that’s the Big Bang in a nutshell. While this theory has had incredible staying power and has withstood rigorous testing (even though it is being questioned more and more lately), it is missing a crucial piece of the grand puzzle: what came before? To answer this question, I suggest we turn our focus to warp fields.

Freelance scientists/inventors (David Pares, 2013; Marshall Barnes, 2000) and NASA engineers (Harold G. White, 2011) are working on a new method of space travel: the warp-drive. No, it’s not science-fiction. Warps in spacetime are very real, and some very smart people are hard at work creating machines that produce them. Some have even claimed they’ve already done it. These fields of spacetime separate from our own theoretically have the ability to move through the cosmos at faster-than-light speeds while remaining within the framework of general relativity (Miguel Alcubierre, 1994).

Space exploration is very much the next frontier, and we’re right at its doorstep. However, I believe we physically will not achieve faster-than-light speeds with warp-drive technology, at least not in the way Miguel Alcubierre and Harold White have proposed. The reason I feel this way is due to the nature of a warp field.

As scientists have already theorized (William Edelstein, 2010), the stronger the warp field (increased in strength simply by higher wattage input), the higher the heat and radiation within. This means trouble for anyone inside, for it spells certain death. Some scientists have proposed using special shielding (Pedro Gonzalez-Diaz, 2007), which would hypothetically allow the use of this technology for faster-than-light space travel. However, this shielding may never be developed. Even if shielding were to be developed, we’d still have to learn how to use all the negative mass contained within the warp field.

Do we give up on the warp-drive, then? My suggestion is yes, we should give up on the warp-drive for now (at least the Alcubierre-White model). However, let’s get back to the warp field itself. What is it, exactly? Well, this is where things get interesting and where my conjecture comes to a head and loses major support, for we are entering mostly uncharted territory.

Warp field characteristics and the beginnings of our universe share a very interesting relationship: they are both high in heat and radiation. This relationship suggests the possibility that a warp field and a young universe could be one in the same.

To understand why I believe this, one must only ask a couple questions: what is our universe? Space, time, baryonic matter, and dark matter (and possibly other unknown substances or phenomena we haven’t discovered, of course). What is a warp field? An isolated instance of space and time separate from our own, which encapsulates all baryonic matter and dark matter (in addition to other possible materials) upon creation. Based on this fact, I would say warp fields are indisputably universes.

This raises a big existential question: could our universe have been created in a warp field? It’s a very interesting question, and one I hope we will learn soon enough. Until then, let this be a starting point. Let’s postulate and inquire and think. Only together can we decode the greatest mysteries of life.