A Theory of the Universe

I’m fascinated by space and how we as a planet and its inhabitants fit within the larger cosmic landscape. Recently I watched a video (link here) about some of the mysteries that are currently unsolved about life on our planet and some questions about the universe itself. This video was very stimulating and got me thinking. By no means am I a scientist and I concede I haven’t studied these questions in quite the same rigorous academic ways as others. However, I would like to add my two cents, as a casual observer, to a conversation I think we should all be fascinated by and actively participating in. One of the great mysteries being discussed is about the presence of lithium in space. If you believe the Big Bang Theory there should be a great deal of lithium present in the universe (you can read more on that here). The reality is in fact to the contrary, there isn’t a lot of lithium evident, at least not in the quantities we would expect. This is interesting on numerous levels that scientists are working to figure out. What is interesting is that lithium is an important element with massive applications in the technological field (yes I’m also aware that it’s used to treat crazy people, the humor isn’t lost on me). Any highly advanced civilization would likely be light years ahead in their technological development, and as such, we could assume they would have a voracious appetite for lithium (much like we do for oil on earth). With that assumption in mind, is it possible that the seeming lack of lithium is due to a highly advanced civilization(s) having already mined the universe for the majority of the element that was available? Could we conclude that we are unfortunately late to the cosmic gold rush? It would appear that not only are we a substantially primitive bunch in our universal existence but also unlucky. Do we happen to exist at the tail end of the universal life cycle? A stage where the party isn’t really over, yet, but all the beer is done, everyone else is already drunk and have gone home. Yet here we are, sober and hoping to get our first drink? If my outlandish theory were to be proven true then it would lead us to raise questions about our own development as a species/planet and our place in the chronological arch of the universe. I offer no answers here, as that isn’t my goal. Quite frankly I don’t have any answers and I’m okay with that! We should all get more comfortable feeling like this. The unknown is the birthplace of imagination. What fascinates me is that as we learn more about our physical world and ponder questions about our existence we seem to uncover amazing observations that require grander questions to be asked. Life is a never ending quest for knowledge, experimentation and discovery. To not know what lies beyond our attained understanding is exciting and extremely motivating. It should makes us all want to roll up our sleeves up and delve into uncovering the mysteries of the universe. Unfortunately, I think we are victims of our accumulated intelligence, or lack thereof. We have constructed elaborate forms of story telling that I believe are obsolete. These constructs have taken the place of meaningful discovery and slowed our search for truth. That however is a discussion for my next article. Until then, I will leave you to ponder my thoughts, but more importantly and hopefully, to ponder your own.

#space #lithium #theuniverse #science #theory #humanexistence