hey that's sounds interesting to read about, where can I find more info?

~stephanie

--- Claudine Kavanagh <KLAVAK@excite.com> wrote:
> On Sat, 14 Oct 2000 15:41:36 PDT, Angela Magee
> wrote:
>
> > What does that the universe in geometrically flat mean?
>
> good question, angela.
>
> i'll answer it by using a comparison between an
> infinite flat sheet and globe.
>
> if i draw a straight line on a globe, like an orange, i'll eventually come
> around to meet up where is started again. a line that seems to start off
> going straight ends up going to back to the beginning point, and it never
> turned!
>
> if i draw a straight line on a flat infinite sheet, it'll never encounter
> the same starting point again. it'll just go on and on forever _without_
> intersecting its starting point anywhere, anytime.
>
> there was a project that was recently completed at the south pole, using
> large balloons to hold a telescope aloft long enough to get enough data to
> answer the question about whether the universe is more like an orange or an
> infinite flat sheet. the answer might seem obvious..(it's a sheet,
> right?).. but the Earth (which _is_ round) looks flat from our perspective.
> so the astronomers on this "BOOMERANG" project in antarctica took data
> answer the question using pictures of the little fluctuations of the
> microwave background radiation left over from the big bang. dr. kim coble is
> a SII associate who's been working on the"BOOMERANG" project and she came
> to speak at the SII conference in September.
>
> if the little fluctuations (the dappled spots representing temperature
> changes) were sized within one parameter, the universe would be distorting
> images and showing us that it was "curved." maybe not completely like an
> orange, but something like that. specifically, the way they could tell is
> related to the internal angles of a triangle. draw a triangle on an orange
> and the interior angles **don't** meet up to 180 degrees like they would in
> a flat sheet. the same would be true for a larger object, like the vast
> expanse of space.
>
> but the BOOMERANG scientists found that the fluctuations were smaller than
> the size projected for a "curved" universe. so they concluded that the
> geometery of the larger universe is flat.
>
> so, this finding was announced on the national news because it was a major
> discovery. many reporters said: "the universe is like a pancake." the
> _oregonian_ ran an editorial cartoon of angels playing billiards on a FLAT
> table. (get it?) but those pictures are not really true, either. i can
> still move up and down and all around in three spatial dimensions. i can
> also move forward in time, a fourth dimension. there are lots of dimensions
> for all kinds of movement, but a ray of light going away from me will always
> go away from me.
>
> there are tons more details about this study and they can be found at:
>
http://www.physics.ucsb.edu/~ruhl_lab/boom/BoomFont.html
> there's even a primer for non-scientists, if you want more info.
>
> hope this helps.
>
> anyone else have something to add, or i forgot to mention?
> claudine
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> | Claudine Kavanagh |
> | Program Coordinator |
> | Science Integration Institute |
> | office: 503) 848-0280 |
> | klavak@excite.com