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Cody Robison English 131.14 February 1, 2011

An Undefined Existence
The universe has always been and still is a metamorphoric paradox; that is to say, it is always changing into something more breathtaking and cosmic that it truly is a scientific heaven of infinite proportions, and that it ostensibly contradicts its very presence. Everything must come to an end, but the entity of which the human race is a part of somehow stretches to well, infinity and beyond. But, not only do the cosmos oppose their existence; the bodies it is compiled of hold very interesting incongruities of their own. And even more interesting is the presence of black holes; a void within a vacuum, the undefined precedence of empty space. Black holes are a fascinating presence that demonstrate unique characteristics unlike anything else in our vast universe. Though deemed; through the laws of thermodynamics that matter is neither created nor destroyed, but rather rearranged through the movement of valance electrons; black holes seemingly obliterate even the existence of the light that travels near it. This process could provide valuable evidence on the process of which our universe was created and also through which it may be destroyed. The heavens are a profound mystery. The existence of the unparallel stretches into the vast wastelands of nothing short of a void. And the creation of this unknown holds the treasures of the very life the human race is a part of and struggles to understand. "We look up on a dark night and wonder at the stars in their brilliant isolation" (Wheeler 1). However, it is of our nature to ask questions , of our nature that we strive to know, and of our nature to seek that which we don't. The question posed of how our universe came to be has been a heated debate since the

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dawning of mankind's legacy. Though no correct answer has ever came to a general consensus, many have been considered, but each still holds a generic fallacy; a missing link, that fuels this animated debate. Though many of the ideas are improbable; it is as said, Once you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains, no matter how improbable, must be the truth (Sherlock Holmes). The formation of our universe is on a much more stellar level than that of the stars and celestial bodies encompassed within in, or so it is believed. But, with a concept so deep in understanding, a broad basis should be formed for compensations sake. "Sufficiently massive clumps of matter that have a greater inward gravity force that exceeds the pressure they can exert, so they contract and become ever more dense and hot until nuclear reaction starts and the clump becomes a star" (Wheeler 16). In other words enormous sums of gas floating in the vacuum of space begin to accelerate rapidly in an orbital fashion eventually creating a gravitation pull that is far greater than the outward force the gases are exerting. So, gravity begins to compress these gases into a ball due to the circular orbit. Because of the compression the gases, they begin to become so dense and create heat so rapidly, a process known to science as nuclear reaction (the collision of subatomic particles) occurs. These collisions then cause the protostar to radiate energy until the protostar ignites the nuclear gases and becomes a fully fledged star (Wheeler). And that is how the stars seen in the night time sky came to be Of course with the creation of something, there must be an end. A stars life is defined by a: its size and b: the fuel it has been supplied with. When this fuel runs out or it simply becomes too large for itself to sustain a substantial support system, the star dies. When a star dies, it explodes as a supernova. The remaining mass condenses into a heavy, dense dead star core. The dead star core can follow two different paths. The star core may

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become a neutron star. Or if there is enough energy and gravity pull, the dead star core will collapse into itself to become a black hole. (Science Weekly A1) All a supernova suggests is that a very large star has finally ran out of fuel and implodes upon itself (Lochner). After this explosion, all of the mass is shoved and compacted into a dense core with seemingly no external force allowing gravity to pull the star inside out. This inside out star is what has come to be known as the black hole. And what has become the most stellar of questions. With creation wrapped up into a celestial nutshell and out of the way, the true story can unfold, and chaos can be unraveled. Imagine a prison where even the brightest of minds and intellects cannot escape. A cage that even Houdini would have to succumb. Imagine a force so provocative it potentially created our universe. This barricade of scientific lust is widely known as the black hole. A question that arises on a much formal basis: why is the black hole deemed a prison? Well, the black hole contains a rather formidable characteristic, the event horizon. This horizon is, to science, just as beautiful as any ocean sunset even though invisible to the naked eye. So, how can something exist if it's not there? Well, consider the wind, it is presumed present because of its surroundings and how it interacts. Black holes are much the same, they interact with their surrounding environment. Though the human eye cannot detect this interaction, there are such devices that can pick up the radiation that is emitted past the event horizon. This radiation is known to be Hawking radiation. This radiation exists because "No matter how cold, as long as an object is not at absolute zero, it will radiate energy in the form of electromagnetic radiation. In the case of a black hole, it is called Hawking radiation" (Susskind 329). The presence of Hawking radiation acts as a medium much like the trees and grass that identify the existence of wind here on Earth. However, this event horizon is particularly odd due to the fact that only the radiation is spewed

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from it, and in order for this to be even remotely plausible it would have to exceed the speed of light, which according to Einstein is impossible due to the equation E=mc2. So, in turn this "prison" is virtually inescapable yet undoubtedly easy to enter. But, what does this have to do with the universe and its vast multitude of creational possibilities? Well, much of science works backward from an easily conveyed outer shell to a veraciously complex inner core. In a simpler statement: a vague idea is presented and is broken down into pieces onto a very intricate sub-atomic level. Black holes follow this guideline; they are fueling themselves on the decomposition of stars and other matter. They are taking the creation process and reversing it; thus a scientific haven for questions. As a body falls [is pulled] into a black hole , the tidal forces increase drastically. First the body stretches into a noodle and breaks apart. Then the individual cells stretch into noodles and are destroyed. Next gravity overcomes the electrical forces that bind matter into molecules and atoms. As infall proceeds, the rising tidal forces overcome the nuclear force, stretching out the nuclei...into protons and neutrons...the protons and neutrons will break into quarks...and so forth. (Wheeler 182) The black hole is literally tearing apart matter, unraveling the chaotic composition of the stars, and all it is comprised of. It is shredding the very fabric of space-time and undoing the process the universe was first created by. But, within this chaotic unraveling a new life; a new beginning is started. The process of tearing these particles apart requires so much energy that an exothermic burst of radiation is spewed from the black hole in the form of the Hawking radiation discussed earlier. This radiation is the remnants of that which entered the black hole except that now it is broken down into the smallest form of matter possible. This allows for a potential new beginning because this simple form of matter will then disperse back into space in preparation of new star

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formation. Studying these theories will potentially grant science the knowledge of creation and how reality came to be. Many hold beliefs of how the planet, and the world will end and each is held by a different name and religion: Armageddon, The Apocalypse, The Mayan Calendar; each preaches a different scenario, but each a common motive: the termination of the world. But, in each of these holds something not so common, and that is of how. Some say the world will end in fire, Some say in ice. From what I've tasted of desire I hold with those who favor fire. But if it had to perish twice, I think I know enough of hate To say that for destruction ice Is also great And would suffice. (Robert Frost) The world's fate has been predicted to some a torrential rain of flame that shall engulf the encompassing globe, other say it will freeze over out of nuclear winter or the next ice age. But, for some scientists they believe in a much more genocidal manner. This death is approached by the super massive black hole that potentially resides at the center of the Milky Way Galaxy. Though the outcome of this fate lies much further down the timeline of destiny, it has been proposed as an ultimate destruction of the Milky Way. "Astronomers have detected giant stars hurtling around an unseen mass in tight orbits at as much as 9,000 kilometers per second. The breakneck motions of these stars provide convincing evidence that our galaxy hosts a black hole nearly 4 million times more massive than our sun" (Irion). These ultrasonic speeds typically represent the presence of the infamous black hole. However, scientists have noted that this particular black hole has quite an odd diet, consuming only 1/100,000th of the available gases. (Irion) This notion is one of the feeble causes that have lead physicists to question the data they

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are receiving. Without plausible data, the theories that have been developed cannot be applied and therefore lead to a paradox of whether or not it is a black hole or some other source of gravitation at the center of the galaxy. With such controversial assumptions orbiting around, it makes it difficult to believe any such matter. Surely everything eventually must come to an end; even the vast universe which humanity is a part of. Yes, the celestial backbone of life without a doubt does stretch to infinity and beyond, but on stranger tides the universe is a shrinking adventure and in time its secrets can be revealed. But, until that endeavor reaches its end the human race will be left to its general nature of asking question of the unknown, and be left on a note of wonder, what will we find when we venture into the dark abyss of the unknown; Life, Death, or the Future?

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Works Cited "Black Holes." Science Weekly 7. General Reference Center Gold. 7 Mar. 2008: A-1 (8). Web. 31 Jan. 2011. Irion, Robert. "The Milky Way's Dark, Starving Pit (News Focus)." Science 300.5624 (2003): 1356+. General Reference Center Gold. Web. 31 January 2011. Lochner, Jim. "Supernovae." www.nasa.gov. 1997. Web. 31 Jan 2011. Susskind, Leonard. "The Cosmic Landscape--String Theory and the Illusion of Intelligent Design." Time Warner Book Group. 2005: 329. Print. Wheeler, J. Craig. "Cosmic Catastrophes--Exploding Stars, Black Holes, and Mapping the Universe." Cambridge University Press. 2007: 1-182. Print.