Something different today, more universal!

There is a reasonably good Question and Answer software program called Quora. To be fair you have to look for the things you are interested in as there are a lot of nonsensical questions as well. For instance, if your field is mathematics you can read things like ‘How many times can you deduct 1 from 50’? Yes, very interesting, wake me up please. Anyway, you can just ignore those. But recently there were a flurry of good ‘Universe’ questions. It is a field I just love to read about. Like this – ‘What is beyond the Universe? If it’s expanding that means it’s not infinite etc’. For myself I have asked this also. Except the concept or theory that the Universe is not infinite. True, we will probably never really know, the concept itself is ‘infinite’. But it is fun just to let the mind wander across the vastness. Like this – What do we mean by Universe? First and foremost the term Universe is mostly taken to mean what we can see and furthermore probably including some of what we cannot see. Termed ‘The Observable Universe’. Much like the idea of a Big Bang and matter expanding in all directions at some or other speed originating from a central point or what we see exists in a limitless nothingness. The fact that we have observed the red shift on many of the galaxies meaning they move away from our viewpoint might explain that the matter we exist in is moving outward, expanding it’s volume. Some matter, galaxies for instance would then be going outside of our visible volume. Ergo, the theory of the expanding universe. To follow up on that theory or view is ‘What are we expanding into’? Again it poses a few conundrums, to expand signifies there is room to expand into. Otherwise there could not be an expansion at all. So if we are expanding, are we expanding into a limitless nothingness or are within that nothingness more universes like our own? This would be the idea of the Mega-universe. Trillions of universes upon trillions. Like golf balls floating in an everlasting dance. The other thing that is good to have a ‘think’ about is the concept of ‘Time’. To me time means the period between a begin and an end. Much like being born and then die. This seems an universal concept (forgive the pun!). The question then whether our universe is also a time constricted entity needs debating. Was there a begin, like the idea of the Big Bang, or Big Whimper or even a fast outward flow of energy slowly cooling to form matter. Like steam cooling to water and further to ice. These natural phenomena seem to underwrite all of nature. Or was there no begin at all and we live in a expansion-contracting universe? Always being born and always dying. So then how can we ‘marry’ all these concepts into one? Recently I read the concept of that all we are is the emanation of energy from a vast black hole. Something prof Al Khalili showed in his excellent TV show amongst other ideas about the Universe. Whatever, so many ideas but in the end the facts are – we are here, we see, we exist. Therefore our and my inclination is to ask – How? Why? It puts into perspective our continual problems, such as the war in the Ukraine and indeed our human proclivity to wage war. Obviously viewing nature, conflict is part of our being. It is ‘built-in’. Our problem is how to control these impulses so that we will be able to delve deeper into the place we find ourselves, the incredible Universe!