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New Hubble Release Puts Another Nail In the Coffin of Dark Matter's Competitors (spacetelescope.org)

Posted by Soulskill on from the grim-reaper-of-cosmology dept.

StartsWithABang writes: When it comes to the structure of the Universe — forming the galaxies, clusters, and Universe as we see it — the normal matter we know of simply isn't enough. Given our best-understood laws of physics, including Einstein's general relativity, what we see of galaxies and the Universe in general simply doesn't match up to our predictions. The simplest solution, arguably, is to just add a new ingredient: a new form of matter, a dark matter if you will. But a counterargument is that we've got the laws of gravity wrong, and that no new matter is necessary. There's only one way to settle an argument like this: with data, evidence and the full suite of observations at our disposal. The newest Hubble release, along with four other independent lines of evidence, rule out modifications of gravity and leave dark matter as the only option standing.

10 of 274 comments (clear)

  1. Handwavium by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Dark matter is still handwavium. The best proof we have for it so far is that if it isn't there the model we use doesn't work.

    1. Re: Handwavium by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

      So was the hypothesis of the neutrino before it was actually detected. You see, there was this anomaly in the beta decay spectrum and it was hypothesized that the missing energy was carried away by this particle called a neutrino. Decades later the neutrino was actually detected. In what way is dark matter different?

    2. Re:Handwavium by delt0r · · Score: 1, Insightful

      Oh god. Not this again. There really is no better explanation. It may feel handwavium to you, but that is because you are willfully ignorant of the data and the theory. There is more data backing up darkmatter than global warming. Also we go through the same ignorant replies below for this topic.

      /. Home of people that think they are smart because they can configure a router, but really its a bunch of illiterate idiots.

      --
      If information wants to be free, why does my internet connection cost so much?
    3. Re:Handwavium by wonkey_monkey · · Score: 5, Insightful

      The best proof we have for it so far is that if it isn't there the model [which we have created based on our observations of the universe] we use doesn't work.

      So... that'd be like... science, then?

      --
      systemd is Roko's Basilisk.
    4. Re: Handwavium by Theovon · · Score: 5, Insightful

      As someone else said, dark matter is an ad hoc solution. We don’t have direct measurement of it. We just have a phenomenon, and we’re trying to come up with different possible explanations and then rule some out.

      Currently, dark matter is the leading theory because it explains all the data and it’s also the SIMPLEST explanation.

      This doesn’t mean that dark matter theory is TRUE. But as explanatory models, it is RELIABLE. Keep in mind that science can never prove any theory to be 100% incontrovertible, but it can show a theory to be very LIKELY to be true.

      And as with any other successful human endeavor, the science here is a competition among competing theories. So far, dark matter theory is the winner, like VHS. (Betamax had better image quality, but VHS was “better” and won because it was an open format. Don’t get too distracted by the imperfect analogy!) Some day, someone will come along with something that explains more evidence and is more concise, like Blueray.

    5. Re:Handwavium by Black+Parrot · · Score: 5, Insightful

      The best proof we have for it so far is that if it isn't there the model we use doesn't work.

      That's kind of how science works: you notice an effect, assume there is a cause, generate some guesses about what that cause might be, and then start weeding them out.

      --
      Sheesh, evil *and* a jerk. -- Jade
    6. Re:Handwavium by EvilSS · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Thank you. I can't believe GGP is at +4. I really don't understand what the fucking problem is for the /. crowd when it comes to dark matter.

      Might as well argue that time dilation is handwavium and not being able to accelerate to the speed of light is a liberal conspiracy.

      Fucking scientists. What do they know?

      You must be new here. Everyone on /. is a Nobel laureate in waiting and knows more about physics from reading /. summaries and making quick, 30 second snap judgements than the people who write the papers the summaries are based on.

      --
      I browse on +1 so AC's need not respond, I won't see it.
  2. Re:A Foundational Mathematical Logician's View by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Insightful

    (google "John Allsup Mathematical Genealogy" and see where I fit in the Ph.D. tree to get an idea of the area I was trained in: life circumstances rendered a conventional career infeasible, which is why I have no academic reputation, but I have kept an eye on progress, and have kept my logical reasoning skills sharp, just in case.)

    Hence you're just another armchair physicist.

  3. Why so negative? by wonkey_monkey · · Score: 4, Insightful

    New Hubble Release Puts Another Nail In the Coffin of Dark Matter's Competitors

    Well that's a gloomy spin on it. What about "New Hubble data advances scientific understanding of the universe. Go science!"?

    --
    systemd is Roko's Basilisk.
  4. Re:scientific religion by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

    You're not a nutter. You're an idiot. You and every other fucking moron posting in this thread who is ignorant of the body of evidence for dark matter can go fuck off and die. Dark matter has been mapped, dipshit. We know where it is.

    You and everyone else are just retarded buttheads who are willfully ignorant of the evidence.

    YOU COWS!