Off-Topic: What's the Big Deal?

In honor of a blog post that I recently saw that was by a man named Dan Pearce, the man who writes Single Dad Laughing (http://www.danoah.com). Before I get to that, though, there is something else that I wanted to say. I recently became a Christian, after a long while of being a pantheist. ANYWAYS, back to the point.

In a post on Single Dad Laughing, Dan discusses his annoyance with religious folks who say that being a homosexual is "wrong" and "sinful." Everyone in America (and probably some other countries) have seen the signs held up by the Westboro Baptist Church that say "God hates f*gs."

It frustrates me that people think that it's okay to rag on people based on who they love. Don't all religious texts at least mention loving your neighbor? That means your gay neighbor, your addicted neighbor, your undocumented neighbor, your elderly neighbor, your Buddhist neighbor...

America, as many know, is a nation that is supposed to be all about freedom and equality. It even says it in our national anthem, "...The home of the free and the home of the brave." People aren't really equal in this country. People aren't really free in this country.

I remember reading an article a year or so ago about a ten-year-old who refused to recite the Pledge of Allegiance until all people are equal and free. I've observed that this is a country that was/is all about oppressing people that we feel to be inferior. Native Americans, African-Americans, the Japanese, women, and now it's anyone who falls anywhere on the spectrum, except for heterosexuality.

This is not a country where everyone is equal. The only group that is considered free and equal this country are the Christian, right-wing, white men. Why? Because people believe them to be better than everyone else. Okay, they think that they're better than everyone else.

People who think it's okay to say that someone else's life is wrong are just bullies. That's all it is. It's bullying.

I'm not here to say whether or not homosexuality is right or wrong, natural or genetic. I'm here to say that it's not okay for people to bully others based on anything. Religion (or lack thereof), sexual orientation, race, gender, nationality, color, creed... It's not okay to bully or ridicule anyone based on any reason that you can come up with, even if your religion says that it's wrong.

Let's face it, everyone has does something that someone else can and will consider sinful. Faith is not an excuse to bully or ridicule or hate. Isn't religion all about love? The last time that I checked, the Bible was all about love. Every single religious text mentions love in some way or another.

The Christian religion, to me, is the biggest culprit of this ridicule and bullying. The Westboro Baptist Church, for example, regularly goes out and holds up signs that say basically say "God hates everyone that isn't exactly like me." However, the Catholic Church is worse than the WBC.

The Catholic Church, in the name of God, refuses to allow women into the priesthood. They blatantly discriminate against homosexuals (except for that new pope that they have that said that it doesn't matter if priests are homosexual as long as they are Christ-like).

Now, I'm not saying that people from these specific religions are all like this. I'm saying that the vast majority are.

It's not okay to bully based on trivial things.

(The article that I'm honoring, in case you're curious: http://www.danoah.com/2011/11/im-christian-unless-youre-gay.html/)

Off-Topic: Supreme Court of the United States Strikes Down 'DOMA' and 'Proposition 8'

I know that this is about as far off-topic as I can get, but I'd like to say that I am very proud of my country's Supreme Court right now. Very rarely do I support governmental decisions, but this is one of those times that I just have to make an exception. On June 26th, the SCOTUS (Supreme Court of the United States) destroyed the Defense of Marriage Act and Proposition 8, both of which would prevent married same-sex couples to get marriage benefits in their tax returns.

If you don't live in the United States, let me tell you what's been going over here in the USA. In March, there were two Supreme Court trials. It was up to them what to do about two anti-marriage equality bills. DOMA, or the Defense of Marriage Act, would prevent married same-sex couples from getting the same amount of benefits that opposite-sex couples enjoy. Proposition 8 prevented the same thing, but it also prohibited same-sex couples from becoming legally married in the state of California, normally one of the most liberal cities in the United States.

On June 26th, the SCOTUS announced that they decided to strike down both of these anti-marriage equality bills, deeming both of them unconstitutional.

The United States has fourteen states and one district that allows for legal same-sex marriage. Within the next year, this number could increase drastically. One state to watch is Oregon, which is known for already being very liberal (most of the states in the West, such as Nevada, Washington, and California, are liberal).

Rainbow flag, otherwise known as the gay pride flag.

Pantheism vs. Atheism

Before, I'm sure that I've said that I am a deist and it turns out that I got the definition of a "deist" wrong. By definition, I am pantheistic, not deistic. Pantheism is the belief that the universe itself is what most people call "God." It can also mean that the natural force that exists in the universe is "God." Now, "God" is in quotation marks because it is doubtful that there is one true celestial being that rules over the universe in it's entirety.

The word "pantheism" comes from the Greek roots "pan_" (all) and "hyle" (matter). To break down the word, the Greek root "pan-" means "all" and the word theism means "belief in the existence of one god that controls and created the universe" (to paraphrase how Google responded when I typed in "meaning of theism").

One famous example of a pantheist in Albert Einstein (read "Important  Figures in Astrophysics"). However, he never stated his true religion. He grew up in a Jewish household and left Germany long before the Holocaust to go New Jersey (his first action in New Jersey was to purchase a comb).

Baruch Spinoza (or Benedict de Spinoza, as he is more commonly known) had a philosophy that was often labeled as pantheism. However, he never used the term to describe his beliefs. While he never used the term, he is often regarded as the father of pantheism.

However, pantheism is not the same thing as atheism. Atheism is the belief that there is no deity, no matter what shape or form it may have taken. Pantheism states that the natural force in the universe, or the universe itself, is "God." Famous atheists included Richard Dawkins, Bob Geldof, David Gilmour, and Billy Joel.

(By no means do I disrespect people based on their religious/spiritual beliefs just because my belief system is bizarre. This is a simple explanation of one belief system that many scientists have adopted. If you're offended by this, that's your problem.)

White Holes

Most people have heard of black holes, the vacuum cleaners of the universe, but those same people may not have heard of "white holes." The basic explanation of a white hole is that it's the opposite of a black hole in the sense that light and matter can escape and that it cannot be entered from the outside. That's just the basics. Let's get into the exciting scientific explanations.

If a white hole cannot be entered from the outside, how would matter and light be there in the first place?

The simple way to explain this is that it had to have been there when it was first forming. The complex way to state this is that since matter cannot enter from the outside, it had to have been in the general area before and during the formation of the structure.

Are they, well, real?

No one has proven that yet. There is about a 50/50 chance that they exist.

If they are real, could they be viewed?

Well, since a black hole is invisible and white holes are the polar opposite of black holes, then most likely yes. This is only going by what we know of black holes, though.

Who "came up with" white holes?

No one really came up with white holes. It's rather difficult to explain exactly how this theory came about. Read this article to clear things up. If you do not read/speak English, you can select a language on the bar on the left.

Don't forget to like us on Facebook (if Facebook is accessible at your current location)! 

https://www.facebook.com/AstrophysicsAndOtherSciences?ref=hl

The Natural Force in the Universe vs. Religion

This is not meant to offend the religious people that may view my blog on a regular basis. I am writing to merely show how the "natural force" in the universe is what people often think of as a "god." I don't define "god" as "one old man in the sky." I define "god" as "a force that drives the universe through its entirety." (Again, this is not meant to offend or argue against anyone's point of view.)

What do you mean by "natural force"?

A natural force is something that causes the universe to "work." The natural force is what keeps everything in check. All black holes suck things in, all galaxy spins, and matter and anti-matter are forever enemies. This is because of the natural force. It basically does what religious people say their god (Allah, Buddha, Yahweh, etc.) does.

What a second! Are you saying that my religion is phony?

No, not at all. What I'm trying to say is, people believe their god to be what drives the universe around its eternal racetrack.

Ah, phew! Is there proof that a natural force even exists?

The answer is, yes. There are four powerful natural forces that make the universe run the way it does. For example. gravity. The most powerful force in the universe is gravity. Without gravity, the universe itself could not exist at all, because nothing would be held together and everything as we know it would collapse.

What about the other three?

The other three are electromagnetism, weak nuclear force, and strong nuclear force.

Electromagnetism is what makes the magnets work. (Have you ever heard, "Ask a Mormon how magnets work?")

Weak and strong nuclear forces are, well, exactly what they sound like.

Is there anything else you can tell me?

Yes. Go to this blog's Facebook page and give me a "like" if you please!

https://www.facebook.com/AstrophysicsAndOtherSciences?fref=ts

The Big Crunch Theory

Now, this is a new one. I'm surprised that no one has suggested that I write about my feelings on the Big Bang theory already. Anyone who wanted me to write about it is in for an extra-special treat, I'm writing about the exact opposite of the Big Bang: the Big Crunch.

What's the Big Crunch theory?

You have probably heard of the Big Bang theory that states that all of time and space was created in one massive explosion. Well, the Big Crunch is the exact opposite to the Big Bang. The Big Crunch is the theory that at some point, the universe will cease to tolerate all of the matter inside of it and therefore implodes and destroys all of time and space.

The problem with this theory is that it does not specify when the universe will implode. Like any theory, it has its flaws.

What Would Happen to Me?

If the Big Crunch were to happen right this very second, you would, obviously, die along with every other living thing in the universe. No one would survive and nothing would exist. Now, there is the possible that the Big Crunch could result in another universe forming (which scientists have already said anyway).

When Will This Happen?

Well, some scientists theorize that the Big Crunch will take place in thirteen billion years (which is the approximate age of the universe). There is no reason to worry about it. The human race (and the Earth) will be long gone by then.

Why Will This Happen?

Like I mentioned, this will happen because the universe will no long be able to hold all of the matter that exists within it, therefore having a panic attack and imploding (I've heard about people with that same problem).

The big question here is, Will this ever actually happen, or will the universe last forever? It will most likely last forever. Who's to say what the universe will do?

Our Size in the Universe

Putting Things into Perspective

Recently in my science class, we watched a video called "The Known Universe." As this is a popular video, you've probably seen it floating around on the Internet somewhere, such as YouTube. It shows the amount of time it takes for light from stars to go to the Earth. This video made me realize that all of us are no more than a trillionth of a trillionth of a trillionth of a speck of dust in this universe and that we are almost totally isolated, as the Andromeda galaxy, the closest galaxy to the Milky Way galaxy, is 200 million light-years away from us. (Imagine how long it would take to travel there, remembering that a trip to Pluto and back would take about thirty years.)

I've noticed that people on this planet like to complain about petty things, such as relationships and who said what about who. Knowing that you are nothing more than a speck of salt in an ocean really puts the importance of these things into perspective. There is just no purpose to complaining about such petty things when we should really be worrying about the big things and life. The little things in life don't really matter in the scheme of things, so why worry about them at all?

Take some of the Facebook statuses that most people see on a daily basis. People say things like, "Ugh, I don't want to go to school in the morning," or the constant, "I can't BELIEVE what my boyfriend said last night." What irks me about these asinine Facebook statuses is that when someone finds out that they are, in the scheme of things, nothing at all and these problems that occur day to day are not important and shouldn't really matter to anyone. Of course, there will always be large problems in life that you really should worry about, like a divorce or a death, and those are the things that need to be taken seriously.

How Big You Actually Are

Imagine the biggest thing that you possibly think of. The first thing that will come to mind is probably Mt. Everest, the largest mountain in the world located in the Himalayan Mountain Range that runs through southeastern Asia. Now imagine one hundred of this monstrous mountain stacked one on top of the other. That would be even CLOSE to how big the universe is. As a matter of fact, that would be barely visible from space.

If you had a rather large basket full of one hundred suns, that still wouldn't be anywhere close to the size of universe. Think all of the galaxies in the universe put together. Still not even close.

The point I am trying to make here is that there is no such thing as something bigger or more important than the universe, despite what self-centered people like to think. As a matter of fact, the universe is always going to be the biggest thing ever. In all directions, the universe is infinite. Think about travelling in a spaceship going at the speed of light going in one direction from Earth. You would never get to the edge of the universe and you would most likely be wasting your time.


Stay tuned for the next post!