Our universe may be 15% larger and older than we thought

[vbloke]

Now this is why I love science - it changes when we find new data, unlike some other things I could mention.

http://www.newscientistspace.com/article/dn9676-big-bang-pushed-back-two-billion-years.html

I am *so* looking forward to starting my Astronomy degree now.

[Dr B]

Astrology never predicted that one ;D, nor did dowsing, tarot, chicken bones.....you get the drift.... ;D

[Sgt Badass]

I can see why people hate the fact science changes so much. Just image the headline "Sun 5 billion years older than we thought, due to fizzle out next Tuesday".

Mind you, they'd probably blame it on global warming...

[Skepticus Rex]

i want to see how scientists would react if new data showed the universe to be smaller and younger.

[Dr B]

i want to see how scientists would react if new data showed the universe to be smaller and younger.


Why? How would pseudoscience react? How would Pseudoscience show this to be the case? :-\

[vbloke]

It's highly unlikely that new data would show the universe to be smaller and younger given that we can measure the age of stars quite accurately - this actually gave rise to theories that some stars appeared to be older than the apparent age of the universe, which was put to rest with The European Space Agency's Hipparcos Mission which used trigonometric parallax measurements on an unprecendented scale to measure the distances to over 1,000,000 "nearby" stars, and thereby calibrate the bottom steps of the distance scale.

[Dr B]

Indeed, if the data were there scientists would react by running more tests, then more stringent ones, then argue strongly that this is indeed the case.....

No current accepted theory of anything got there easily - nor should it. The phrases of type I and type II errors spring to mind ;D These do not ensure that one is correct - just make it more likely that these ideas are correct.....

[Admin]

Surely the universe is only 6,000 years old!!

It's a scientific theory you know. ;)

[doubting thomas]

By the time anybody's figured out how old the universe is, it will be to late because the human race will have died out.

So what if the universe so many billion years old, surely in our short life span this is irrelevant.

Sorry if this sounds a bit negative but thats the way i see it.

[Cuddles]

The trouble with all estimates of the universe's age is that there is very little proof for standard candles. Type IA supernovae and quasars are assumed to be constant brightness, but if this assumption is wrong then all distance measurements based on this are wrong, as are any methods calibrated using these, including red-shift measurements.

http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg12917586.100

[ocean]

can see why people hate the fact science changes so much. Just image the headline "Sun 5 billion years older than we thought, due to fizzle out next Tuesday".


O0

[Richard King]

Assuming time is all that it is cracked up to be, let alone the physical universe itself.