Ok here’s the deal: I sometimes entertain myself by reading about theories surrounding the remaining physical mysteries of the universe. Gravity is by far the most interesting and perplexing of all of these mysteries.
Most people think they know what gravity is. “9.8 m/s^2″, or “a force which is exerted by anything with mass” are the typical answers. Welp, I got news for you; the smartest people in the world don’t yet know how to explain gravity. We can explain the effects of gravity quite well mind you, but the actual physical phenomenon or mechanism by which gravitational attraction is imparted is not at all understood. There are several theories, but no way to prove them, and their potential truths (or lack thereof) have very interesting ramifications. Anyways…I’ll save you the details…not the point of this post.
The point I’d like to make is that for all of our knowledge, for all of the gains and technological progress and prowess we think we have these days, we really don’t have that much to show for it. We’ve barely scratched the surface of the Universe(s?). The generations since Albert Einstein have not made any fundamental, paradigm changing breakthroughs. Hell, we’re just now on the cusp proving some of the effects described by Einsteins work (see Gravity Probe B)! The airplane, the spacecraft, the car, the computer, the Internet…all of mankinds greatest problem solving inventions of the 20th century remain intrinsically the same thing today as they did at their inception (albeit vastly improved). For all of their greatness, and for all of their worth, they do absolutely nothing to change the fact that we humans exist as a mere speck of dust in a perpetual universe of possibilities.
So what are we missing? Are we approaching an asymptote? Does the mere existence of asymptotes, imaginary numbers (which really can carry no physical meaning as we understand them), singularities, entropy, paradoxes, etc., mean we’re missing something at the most fundamental level?
I think it does. I’ll bet the answers are hiding right in front of our very noses. I would also wager they are tied to our very presence on Earth, and to the existence and nature of God.
In all of my worldly experience, the things I find to work the best, last the longest, and give me the most enjoyment are a) things that are intrinsically beautiful, b) things which are fundamentally simple or trivial at their root, but c) could never in our wildest dreams be perfectly replicated by man.
From all of this, it’s safe (in my opinion…I have no proof) to say that there are two possibliities:
1) We are all collectively approaching an asymptote of some sort. The implications of this are tough to understand, and (I think anyways) imply the existance of (and need for?) God.
2) There are no asymptotes, and we are nearing a local maximum (or minimum, as some might see it). This could mean we’re in for a potentially bumpy ride at some point, but it’s a less fundamentally appeasing answer to me. The embodiment of the copout “history repeats itself”. Fall/Rise of the “Empire”, but one in an infinite sequence (Frank Herbert aficionados will understand this well).
The time base and constants of both are a completely unpredictable mystery of course.
Either way, enjoy the ride!
-Nikkel
