Geological Time Versus Astronomical Time: Are Scientific Theories Falsifiable?

1989 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 167-169 ◽  
Author(s):  
Norriss Hetherington
Keyword(s):  
General Relativity ◽  
Homogeneous Model ◽  
Scientific Theories ◽  
Geological Time ◽  
Astronomical Observations ◽  
The Earth ◽  
Geological Age ◽  
Astronomical Time ◽  
Edwin Hubble ◽  
The Universe

During the 1930s when a relativistic, expanding, homogeneous model of the universe lead to an age for the universe embarrassingly less than the geological age of the earth, the astronomer Edwin Hubble, influenced by philosophical values, persisted in his support for a theory in conflict with observation and prediction. Notwithstanding well attested and unrefutable evidence of geological time, and various astronomical observations as well, the theory of a homogeneous, expanding universe of general relativity proved, in practice, not falsifiable.

James Bradley, Sailing on the Thames

Lightspeed ◽  
2019 ◽  
pp. 49-57
Author(s):  
John C. H. Spence
Keyword(s):  
Eighteenth Century ◽  
Experimental Evidence ◽  
The Sun ◽  
Theory Of Relativity ◽  
Speed Of Light ◽  
Astronomical Observations ◽  
The Earth ◽  
Independent Estimate ◽  
The Universe ◽  
At Home

The story of the astronomical observations of James Bradley in the eighteenth century, whose measurements of the small movements of a star throughout the year provided an independent estimate of the speed of the Earth around the Sun relative to the speed of light. His work provided the first experimental evidence in support of Copernicus’s theory that the earth is in motion, and against the idea that it is stationary at the center of the universe. His simple telescope at home, his brilliant idea and perseverance, and his life’s work and influence. The importance of his result for the development of Einstein’s theory of relativity and for theories of the Aether in the following centuries.

scholarly journals On Investigations of the Tidal Waves Mf and Mm

1979 ◽  
Vol 82 ◽  
pp. 315-316
Author(s):  
G. P. Pil'nik
Keyword(s):  
Solid Earth ◽  
Elastic Properties ◽  
Earth Tides ◽  
Love Number ◽  
Astronomical Observations ◽  
Tidal Waves ◽  
The Earth ◽  
Astronomical Time ◽  
Solid Earth Tides

The comparison of astronomical time observations with the theory of solid-Earth tides makes it possible to determine the Love number, k, which characterizes the elastic properties of the Earth. In addition, the comparison of values of k determined from different tidal waves allows us to judge the accuracy of the nutational theory in astronomical observations since both tides and the Earth's nutation are produced by the same causes.

scholarly journals II.—The Circulation of Salt and Geological Time

1901 ◽  
Vol 8 (8) ◽  
pp. 344-350
Author(s):  
J. Joly
Keyword(s):  
Sodium Chloride ◽  
Geological Time ◽  
Considerable Error ◽  
The Earth ◽  
Geological Age ◽  
Considerable Length ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Made In ◽  
Geological Magazine

From time to time I have received from correspondents suggestions that the method of determining the geological age of the Earth by the rate of solvent denudation of sodium might be open to considerable error if the allowance made in my paper (Trans. R.D.S., ser. ii, vol. vii), for sodium chloride carried from the sea by winds and washed from the atmosphere by rain, was seriously at fault. These suggestions arise from incomplete study of the quantities involved. Had more space been given in my paper to this question, the hasty criticisms I have had to contend with, doubtless, would be less often advanced. The whole matter is capable of the simplest arithmetical statement, and the limit of error arising from this source easily defined. Recently one gentleman has written at considerable length on the matter in the pages of the Chemical News. I have replied to Mr. Ackroyd in that journal. But the definition of the limit of error referred to, and the consideration of some other points raised in the discussion, are more in place in a geological than in a chemical journal. I would therefore seek for space in the Geological Magazine wherein to repeat in part what I have said in the Chemical News, adding some matters more especially suited to geological readers.

scholarly journals CAN THE EXISTENCE OF DARK ENERGY BE DIRECTLY DETECTED?

2009 ◽  
Vol 24 (18n19) ◽  
pp. 3426-3436 ◽  
Author(s):  
MARTIN L. PERL
Keyword(s):  
General Relativity ◽  
Dark Energy ◽  
Energy Density ◽  
Total Mass ◽  
Mass Density ◽  
Mass Energy ◽  
Dark Energy Density ◽  
Astronomical Observations ◽  
Expansion Of The Universe ◽  
The Universe

Over the last decade, astronomical observations show that the acceleration of the expansion of the universe is greater than expected from our understanding of conventional general relativity, the mass density of the visible universe, the size of the visible universe and other astronomical measurements. The additional expansion has been attributed to a variety of phenomenon that have been given the general name of dark energy. Dark energy in the universe seems to comprise a majority of the energy in the visible universe amounting to about three times the total mass energy. But locally the dark energy density is very small. However it is not zero. In this paper I describe the work of others and myself on the question of whether dark energy density can be directly detected. This is a work-in-progress and I have no answer at present.

scholarly journals On the Devonian age of the World

The Geologist ◽  
1861 ◽  
Vol 4 (8) ◽  
pp. 332-347
Author(s):  
W. Pengelly
Keyword(s):  
Thermal Conditions ◽  
The Sun ◽  
Geological History ◽  
Geological Time ◽  
The Earth ◽  
The World ◽  
Astronomical Time ◽  
History Of ◽  
Time Required ◽  
Devonian Age

The rooks composing the earth's crust contain a history and represent time—a history of changes numerous, varied, and important: changes in the distribution of land and water; in the thermal conditions of the world; and in the character of the organic tribes which have successively peopled it. The time required for these mutations must have been vast beyond human comprehension, requiring, for its expression, units of a higher order than years or centuries. In the existing state of our knowledge it is impossible to convert geological into astronomical time: it is at present, and perhaps always will be, beyond our power to determine how many rotations on its axis, or how many revolutions round the sun the earth made between any two recognised and well-marked events in its geological history. Nevertheless it is possible, and eminently convenient, to break up geological time into great periods: it must not be supposed, however, that such periods are necessarily equal in chronological, organic, or lithological value; or separated from one another by broadly marked lines of demarcation; or that either their commencements or terminations in different and widely separated districts were strictly synchronous.One of the terms in the chronological series of the geologist is known as the Devonian, that which preceeded it the Silurian, and the succeeding one the Carboniferous period; and these, with some others of less importance, belong to the Palæozoic or ancient-life epoch, or group of periods.

The Information Architecture of the Universe

2009 ◽  
pp. 419-433
Author(s):  
Andrew Targowski
Keyword(s):  
20Th Century ◽  
Intelligent Design ◽  
Albert Einstein ◽  
Information Architecture ◽  
The Earth ◽  
Stephen Hawking ◽  
Roger Penrose ◽  
Edwin Hubble ◽  
The Universe ◽  
Origin Of The Universe

For years, the construction of the universe has occupied the best minds of theologians and scientists. The first modern breakthrough was made by Copernicus about 500 years ago. Later, in the 20th century, contributions were made with the bold theories developed by Albert Einstein, Edwin Hubble, Roger Penrose, Stephen Hawking, and others. Science continues to discover the great mystery of the universe and life. But the more we know about this subject, the worse our outlook may be on the fate of humankind. The magnitude of the universe and our own smallness are in such contrast that it seems we are in a hopeless situation, even if you take into account only life’s perspective on the earth. However, the study of the universe may bring some unexpected surprises and humankind may after all have a future, particularly if we decipher the mystery by whom and how the universe was developed. This study has assumed the position of considering intelligent design in the origin of the universe, but with the addition of proposing that any existence of intelligent design would suggest corollary problems that must be scientifically testable.

scholarly journals XLVIII. A proposal for measuring the attraction of some hill in this kingdom by astronomical observations

1775 ◽  
Vol 65 ◽  
pp. 495-499 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Sir Isaac Newton ◽  
Heavy Body ◽  
Astronomical Observations ◽  
Isaac Newton ◽  
The Earth ◽  
The Mind ◽  
The Universe

If the attraction of gravity be exerted, as Sir Isaac Newton supposes, not only between the large bodies of the universe, but between the minutest particles of which these bodies are composed, or into which the mind can imagine them to be divided, acting universally according to that law, by which the force which carries on the celestial motions is regulated; namely, that the accelerative force of each particle of matter towards every other particle decreases as the squares of the distances increase, it will necessarily follow, that every hill must, by its attraction, alter the direction of gravitation in heavy bodies in its neighbourhood from what it would have been from the attraction of the earth alone, considered as bounded by a smooth and even surface. For, as the tendency of heavy bodies downwards perpendicular to the earth's surface is owning to the combined attraction of all the parts of the earth upon it, so a neighbouring mountain ought, though in a far less degree, to attract the heavy body towards its centre of attraction, which cannot be placed far from the middle of the mountain.

scholarly journals V.—The Extent of Geological Time

1878 ◽  
Vol 5 (10) ◽  
pp. 450-455
Author(s):  
Maxwell H. Close
Keyword(s):  
Geological Time ◽  
Geological Investigation ◽  
The Earth ◽  
Geological Age ◽  
History Of

The question of the geological age of the earth has been of late very prominently before the minds both of geologists and physicists. There is no occasion to take up time by giving a sketch of the late history of the discussion. I beg leave simply to point out some considerations which seem to lessen considerably the weight of the physical objections to the great extent of geological time. Let us observe before proceeding further that we do not wish to avoid wholesome restriction of geological time. It seems to me that it adds greatly to the interest of geological investigation to know that we have not a wilderness of possibility before us as to the length of time and the consequent deliberateness of geological operations.

Homogeneity and Clustering

2020 ◽  
pp. 3-36
Author(s):  
P. J. E. Peebles
Keyword(s):  
General Relativity ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Albert Einstein ◽  
Large Scale Structure ◽  
Relativity Theory ◽  
Expanding Universe ◽  
History Of ◽  
Edwin Hubble ◽  
The Universe ◽  
Georges Lemaître

This chapter traces the history of the development of ideas on the large-scale structure of the universe. Modern discussions of the nature of the large-scale matter distribution can be traced back to three central ideas. In 1917, Albert Einstein argued that a closed homogeneous world model fits very well into general relativity theory and the requirements of Mach's principle. In 1926, Edwin Hubble showed that the large-scale distribution of galaxies is close to uniform with no indication of an edge or boundary. In 1927, Georges Lemaître showed that the uniform distribution of galaxies fits very well with the pattern of galaxy redshifts. The chapter then assesses several questions. The first is whether the universe really is homogeneous. Could the homogeneity of the universe have been deduced ahead of time from general principles? Or might it be a useful guide to new principles? It also asks how clustering evolves in an expanding universe, what its origin is, and what this reveals about the nature of the universe.

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