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Freeman: Nothingness.
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It is the beginning
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and the end of all creation.
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00:00:11,984 --> 00:00:13,984
But what is it?
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00:00:15,553 --> 00:00:17,721
Is empty space really empty?
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00:00:19,424 --> 00:00:21,825
Or is it filled
with hidden forces...
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...forces that exploded
our Universe into existence...
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...or forces that could
destroy reality as we know it?
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What is nothing?
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Space, time, life itself.
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The secrets of the cosmos
lie through the wormhole.
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00:00:49,655 --> 00:00:53,655
Through the Wormhole 03x05
What is Nothing? Original Air Date on June 27, 2012
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== sync, corrected by elderman ==
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The void.
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The Bible says it was the place
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from which God brought forth
the heavens and the earth.
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Scientists now have their
own version of that belief.
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They call it the Big Bang.
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But how can something come
from what appears to be nothing?
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Understanding
the true nature of nothingness
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is perhaps the deepest
and most-baffling conundrum
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in modern science.
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It could explain
where the Universe came from
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and whether
everything we know and love
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could turn into nothing
once again.
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"In the beginning,
the earth was without form."
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When you were young,
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did you ever close your eyes
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and try to imagine
floating in total darkness,
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to experience absolute nothing?
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I did.
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And I always failed.
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No matter what,
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I could not rid this void
of the pulse of my heartbeat
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and the thoughts in my head.
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When I imagine,
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I can't help
but imagine something,
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not nothing.
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00:02:30,796 --> 00:02:33,131
Slava Turyshev
is a NASA physicist
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who has always dreamed
of nothing
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and what nothing
might be like to visit.
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Turyshev:
The town I was born in
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was just under the trajectory
rockets launched from Baikonur.
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It's a Russian launch site.
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So that actually
made a major impression on me.
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Freeman: Slava spent
his childhood building rockets
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and yearned to one day ride one
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00:03:04,964 --> 00:03:07,031
into the emptiness
of outer space.
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But fate had other plans.
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Turyshev: I wanted
to be on a space flight,
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and at one of those times
actually was training
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for the Russian space shuttle
back in late '90s,
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just before
the program was canceled.
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Freeman:
With no Russian shuttle,
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Slava lost his ticket
to outer space,
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but as a physicist,
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he discovered that the same
space that fills the heavens
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also exists everywhere on earth.
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It's just not empty down here.
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00:03:50,276 --> 00:03:53,144
And exploring the fundamental
properties of space
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does not require
a billion-dollar rocket.
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In fact, all you need
is a bucket of water.
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00:04:01,420 --> 00:04:03,988
This is actually
a very simple experiment.
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What I'll do, I'll put
some water in the bucket,
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00:04:06,960 --> 00:04:11,362
and this experiment actually
was thought by Isaac Newton.
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The objective, of course,
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to see what's going on with the
water when we spin the bucket.
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So, let's spin it
very, very nice.
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So, stable.
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You can observe that the water
in the bucket is staying flat.
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And let's see what happens.
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Freeman: Isaac Newton
thought that the water
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ought to spin
in lockstep with the bucket,
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just as we move
with the spinning earth.
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But the water does not move
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with the spinning bucket
at first.
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Eventually, friction from
the inner wall of the bucket
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drags the water upwards.
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Turyshev: So, you can see
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that the water is slowly
going upwards in the bucket.
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Freeman: But in the first moments after
the bucket is set in motion,
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the water stays still.
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Newton realized there must be
something gluing the water
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to the larger world around it.
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He thought that glue
must be space itself,
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which exists all around
and inside the bucket.
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00:05:26,005 --> 00:05:29,307
Indeed, we cannot assume
that space is nothing.
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There is something,
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and that something
influences how matter moves.
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Freeman:
Newton could not explain
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how the nothingness of space
was somehow something.
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00:05:39,752 --> 00:05:42,854
But in 1915, Albert Einstein's
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revolutionary Theory
of General Relativity
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showed that Newton's idea
was fundamentally right.
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Space or, as he reformulated it,
Space-Time
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is a bendable fabric
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into of which all the matter
in the Universe is woven.
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The space that fills
every corner of our Universe
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plays a constant game of tug of
war with all the things in it,
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be they planets, water in
a bucket, or a stack of papers.
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So if empty space
is not nothing,
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then what is it?
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Frank Close
is a particle physicist.
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He's learned
that the power of empty space
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should never be underestimated.
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Hi, Andrew.
Hi, Frank.
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So, it's a metal drum,
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and you can make it collapse
by doing nothing.
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That's rig.
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We're gonna use
the power of nothing.
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So,
this is pretty dramatic.
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I better
put this on, right?
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Guess we had, yeah.
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Uh-huh.
And what else do I do?
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So, if you just switch
on the pump for me.
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Okay.
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[ Machine whirs ]
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[ Metal bangs ]
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Whew!
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[ Exhales deeply ]
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Wow.
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The power of nothing.
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We took all of the air out
of the inside of this drum.
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The atmosphere
on the outside
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was making a
10-tons-every-square-meter force
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00:07:21,955 --> 00:07:25,823
on that drum -- far too strong
for the metal to resist.
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Collapse.
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00:07:27,460 --> 00:07:29,260
So, nothing on the inside.
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10 or 20 tons
on the outside.
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Bingo!
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[ Metal bangs ]
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Freeman:
In his quest to understand
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the fundamental
forces of nature,
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Frank has discovered
that empty space can do far more
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than cause solid matter
to implode.
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He thinks it is interfering
with everything matter does.
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Close: In the 19th century,
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they thought
if you take all the air out,
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00:07:51,017 --> 00:07:53,784
what you're left with
is a genuinely empty vacuum.
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00:07:53,786 --> 00:07:55,920
And that is how
it could have stayed
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00:07:55,922 --> 00:07:59,056
except that we then discovered
the idea of Quantum Theory.
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And one of the great mysteries
underlying Quantum Theory
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is that at an instant in time,
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00:08:05,431 --> 00:08:08,699
you cannot be absolutely sure
how much energy there is.
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00:08:08,701 --> 00:08:11,769
Energy can be borrowed
or exchanged around
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on very short time scales.
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00:08:13,806 --> 00:08:15,806
So, in modern Quantum Theory,
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the vacuum
is a very violent place,
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even though you and I,
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00:08:19,879 --> 00:08:22,113
day-to-day,
aren't aware of that fact.
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Freeman: Empty space
is a froth of bubbling energy,
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like molten metal.
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And Frank and his fellow
particle physicists
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now have proof that this energy
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shields us
from seeing the true strength
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of the fundamental forces
of the Universe --
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forces like
the electrical repulsion
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between charged particles.
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So, we imagine
an electron sitting here,
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spreading out its electrical
tentacles through space,
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00:08:49,108 --> 00:08:51,642
and I got another electron here
that I will use
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and I'll measure
the force between them,
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and the closer it gets,
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the force will rise
more and more.
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But we now know,
because of the Quantum Theory,
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00:09:01,354 --> 00:09:03,421
is that that little electron
sitting there
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is actually not isolated.
168
00:09:05,658 --> 00:09:09,694
It is surrounded
by the quantum vacuum.
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00:09:09,696 --> 00:09:13,164
So, it's an electron
in a shroud.
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00:09:13,166 --> 00:09:17,702
And that shroud reduces the full
impact of its electrical force.
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The same thing is true
of this other electron.
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Freeman: Frank believes
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that all historical measurements
of the electrical force
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00:09:25,211 --> 00:09:29,213
are inaccurate
because of these energy shrouds.
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00:09:29,215 --> 00:09:31,382
But now atom smashers,
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00:09:31,384 --> 00:09:34,385
like the Large Hadron Collider
in Geneva, Switzerland,
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can tell the full story.
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00:09:36,656 --> 00:09:39,223
Here,
subatomic particles collide
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at more than
670 million miles per hour.
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They get so close to one another
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that they finally
pierce the shroud.
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00:09:52,037 --> 00:09:55,139
But eventually the clouds
get inside each other,
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00:09:55,141 --> 00:09:57,575
and that's when
it gets interesting,
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00:09:57,577 --> 00:10:00,444
and the clouds then
are so disbursed around,
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00:10:00,446 --> 00:10:03,047
we at last see the bare electron
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00:10:03,049 --> 00:10:04,915
acting on
the other bare electron.
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00:10:04,917 --> 00:10:07,151
And that's when we discover
that the force
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00:10:07,153 --> 00:10:09,620
is much more dramatic
than we'd thought before.
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00:10:11,056 --> 00:10:13,190
Freeman:
Just like protective eyewear
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00:10:13,192 --> 00:10:16,093
that shields a welder
from dangerously intense light,
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00:10:16,095 --> 00:10:19,497
Frank believes
that empty space itself
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00:10:19,499 --> 00:10:20,931
is insulating the Universe
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00:10:20,933 --> 00:10:25,770
from the true intensity
of the forces of nature.
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00:10:25,772 --> 00:10:29,540
If it was possible to turn off
that cloak around the electron,
195
00:10:29,542 --> 00:10:32,910
you'd have turned off all
of the effects of the vacuum,
196
00:10:32,912 --> 00:10:35,246
and you would actually,
at the same time,
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00:10:35,248 --> 00:10:36,947
have destroyed the Universe.
198
00:10:36,949 --> 00:10:38,449
Because all structure --
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00:10:38,451 --> 00:10:40,918
the existence
of atoms and molecules --
200
00:10:40,920 --> 00:10:44,155
could not be if it wasn't
for the Quantum Theory.
201
00:10:44,157 --> 00:10:48,993
Freeman: Without the dampening energy
buzzing around in the vacuum,
202
00:10:48,995 --> 00:10:53,030
the fundamental forces of nature
would run out of control.
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00:10:53,032 --> 00:10:56,667
Our entire Universe
would break apart.
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00:10:56,669 --> 00:11:00,204
But that is only
one side of the story.
205
00:11:00,206 --> 00:11:04,341
Because locked inside
this dampening shroud,
206
00:11:04,343 --> 00:11:06,911
there should be enough energy
to trigger an explosion
207
00:11:06,913 --> 00:11:10,848
deadlier than anything
we have ever known.
208
00:11:10,850 --> 00:11:16,554
Empty space might be
a powder keg waiting to explode.
209
00:11:20,475 --> 00:11:23,910
It might surprise you to know
that our best theory
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00:11:23,912 --> 00:11:27,781
of how the Universe works
down at the microscopic level --
211
00:11:27,783 --> 00:11:29,816
the Theory
of Quantum Mechanics --
212
00:11:29,818 --> 00:11:34,521
also predicts
empty space has enough energy
213
00:11:34,523 --> 00:11:37,891
to boil the Universe
out of existence.
214
00:11:39,527 --> 00:11:42,062
But it doesn't.
215
00:11:42,064 --> 00:11:46,166
Something must be keeping
nothing in check.
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00:11:46,168 --> 00:11:48,134
Question is...
217
00:11:48,136 --> 00:11:49,836
what?
218
00:11:54,308 --> 00:11:57,911
Neal Weiner
is a theoretical physicist
219
00:11:57,913 --> 00:12:00,046
at New York University.
220
00:12:00,048 --> 00:12:02,949
He studies the showers
of subatomic particles
221
00:12:02,951 --> 00:12:06,319
produced by atom smashers
like the LHC in Geneva
222
00:12:06,321 --> 00:12:09,923
and the Tevatron in Chicago.
223
00:12:09,925 --> 00:12:13,026
Weiner: So, suppose
that you take these two rocks
224
00:12:13,028 --> 00:12:14,794
and you think of them
as protons.
225
00:12:14,796 --> 00:12:17,330
You collide them together
from opposite directions,
226
00:12:17,332 --> 00:12:18,532
and when you do that,
227
00:12:18,534 --> 00:12:20,400
you have enough energy
in the collision
228
00:12:20,402 --> 00:12:22,168
that you can
actually make particles
229
00:12:22,170 --> 00:12:23,503
that you would never think of
230
00:12:23,505 --> 00:12:25,438
as being part
of the individual protons.
231
00:12:25,440 --> 00:12:28,408
My job is to try to make sense
of what they find
232
00:12:28,410 --> 00:12:31,411
when they've collided
these particles together.
233
00:12:31,413 --> 00:12:34,214
Freeman:
But to understand the shrapnel
234
00:12:34,216 --> 00:12:37,217
flying out of
these subatomic explosions,
235
00:12:37,219 --> 00:12:41,655
Neal must look at the Universe
in a way that seems strange.
236
00:12:41,657 --> 00:12:44,925
He must see the smallest
building blocks of solid matter
237
00:12:44,927 --> 00:12:48,128
as not solid at all.
238
00:12:48,130 --> 00:12:51,331
Weiner: In the Quantum realm,
if you create particles,
239
00:12:51,333 --> 00:12:54,401
you're creating them in a state
that looks more like a wave
240
00:12:54,403 --> 00:12:55,969
than it does like a particle.
241
00:12:55,971 --> 00:12:57,938
Just like we have in a fountain,
242
00:12:57,940 --> 00:12:59,539
where you have water coming down
243
00:12:59,541 --> 00:13:02,509
and sourcing waves that then
spread out from a central point,
244
00:13:02,511 --> 00:13:04,444
in Quantum Mechanics,
when you source a particle,
245
00:13:04,446 --> 00:13:06,513
you have a wave that spreads out
from a central point,
246
00:13:06,515 --> 00:13:07,914
rather than
a particular particle
247
00:13:07,916 --> 00:13:09,950
going in any given direction.
248
00:13:11,519 --> 00:13:14,721
Freeman: Just like the ripples
on the surface of a pond,
249
00:13:14,723 --> 00:13:16,556
a particle wave
will spread itself
250
00:13:16,558 --> 00:13:19,125
over the entire ocean of space,
251
00:13:19,127 --> 00:13:23,396
and that means that
at every point in the Universe,
252
00:13:23,398 --> 00:13:25,498
there exists ripples
253
00:13:25,500 --> 00:13:29,102
from trillions upon trillions
of particle waves.
254
00:13:29,104 --> 00:13:33,373
There is no such thing
as empty space.
255
00:13:33,375 --> 00:13:37,344
And the energy contained
in that great rippling ocean
256
00:13:37,346 --> 00:13:41,047
is causing
the Universe to expand.
257
00:13:41,049 --> 00:13:43,650
When you look at
the expansion of the Universe,
258
00:13:43,652 --> 00:13:46,653
you see galaxies, galaxy
clusters, all expanding away --
259
00:13:46,655 --> 00:13:48,855
everything flying away
from each other.
260
00:13:48,857 --> 00:13:52,559
And it turns out that the
Universe is not slowing down.
261
00:13:52,561 --> 00:13:54,794
The Universe is actually
speeding up its expansion.
262
00:13:54,796 --> 00:13:56,062
The Universe is accelerating.
263
00:13:56,064 --> 00:13:58,632
So the only way that we know
how to explain this
264
00:13:58,634 --> 00:14:01,701
is if there's something
like an energy density
265
00:14:01,703 --> 00:14:05,405
that is pervasive
in Space itself.
266
00:14:05,407 --> 00:14:06,773
If you have that,
267
00:14:06,775 --> 00:14:10,510
that's going to cause
the Universe to accelerate.
268
00:14:10,512 --> 00:14:13,747
Freeman: Physicists call this
"dark energy."
269
00:14:13,749 --> 00:14:16,950
From the rate of expansion
of the Universe,
270
00:14:16,952 --> 00:14:20,754
they can measure how much of it
empty space contains.
271
00:14:20,756 --> 00:14:23,056
But when
they tallied that number
272
00:14:23,058 --> 00:14:26,559
against how much energy
empty space ought to have
273
00:14:26,561 --> 00:14:29,462
from all the particle waves
filling the Universe,
274
00:14:29,464 --> 00:14:31,698
there was a staggering mismatch.
275
00:14:31,700 --> 00:14:34,267
When you calculate
the amount of energy
276
00:14:34,269 --> 00:14:37,771
that there should be in empty
space from quantum effects,
277
00:14:37,773 --> 00:14:41,374
you get a number which is
10 to the 120 times larger
278
00:14:41,376 --> 00:14:43,076
than the number
that we actually observe
279
00:14:43,078 --> 00:14:45,311
from the expansion and the
acceleration of the Universe.
280
00:14:45,313 --> 00:14:47,714
And this is an enormous number.
281
00:14:47,716 --> 00:14:50,850
Freeman:
According to their calculations,
282
00:14:50,852 --> 00:14:54,254
there should be enough energy
in space itself
283
00:14:54,256 --> 00:14:57,857
to boil the Universe away.
284
00:14:57,859 --> 00:14:59,926
But we are still here.
285
00:14:59,928 --> 00:15:03,430
Neal and many of his colleagues
think they might know
286
00:15:03,432 --> 00:15:08,301
why such a big mismatch exists
between theory and observation.
287
00:15:08,303 --> 00:15:11,104
It could be
that most particle waves
288
00:15:11,106 --> 00:15:14,007
are canceling each other out.
289
00:15:14,009 --> 00:15:15,508
Weiner:
The cancelation of waves
290
00:15:15,510 --> 00:15:17,544
is a pretty easy phenomenon
to understand.
291
00:15:17,546 --> 00:15:19,612
You just simply imagine
you have one wave,
292
00:15:19,614 --> 00:15:21,915
which has peaks and troughs,
293
00:15:21,917 --> 00:15:24,484
and then you have another wave
that has peaks and troughs,
294
00:15:24,486 --> 00:15:25,785
and when those waves combine,
295
00:15:25,787 --> 00:15:27,987
if the peaks and troughs
are in the same place --
296
00:15:27,989 --> 00:15:30,523
if I have two peaks in the same
place -- they add together.
297
00:15:30,525 --> 00:15:32,792
If I have two troughs
in the same place,
298
00:15:32,794 --> 00:15:34,360
they add together negatively.
299
00:15:34,362 --> 00:15:36,362
But if I have
one peak and one trough,
300
00:15:36,364 --> 00:15:38,565
they cancel out,
and I'm left with nothing.
301
00:15:38,567 --> 00:15:40,133
And so this interference,
302
00:15:40,135 --> 00:15:42,502
this phenomenon
of how waves can cancel,
303
00:15:42,504 --> 00:15:44,003
carries over to particles.
304
00:15:44,005 --> 00:15:46,973
Freeman: Neal thinks
there is a whole other set
305
00:15:46,975 --> 00:15:50,877
of as-yet-undetected particles
out in the Universe,
306
00:15:50,879 --> 00:15:52,245
each creating waves,
307
00:15:52,247 --> 00:15:55,715
which cancel out the waves
from the particles we know.
308
00:15:55,717 --> 00:15:59,686
It's an idea
known as supersymmetry --
309
00:15:59,688 --> 00:16:04,157
every particle
has a mirror-image partner.
310
00:16:04,159 --> 00:16:06,359
The fact that my Universe
allows electrons
311
00:16:06,361 --> 00:16:09,662
means that I should have the
possibility of creating selectrons.
312
00:16:09,664 --> 00:16:12,599
And if I have quarks,
I should have squarks.
313
00:16:12,601 --> 00:16:16,469
Freeman: And Neal's supersymmetric
partner should be...
314
00:16:16,471 --> 00:16:19,172
Sneal.
315
00:16:19,174 --> 00:16:22,041
If you're in New York,
you're either a lawyer,
316
00:16:22,043 --> 00:16:25,478
you're in finance, or you're
an actor, and I can't act.
317
00:16:25,480 --> 00:16:27,680
Freeman: But finding Sneal
318
00:16:27,682 --> 00:16:30,784
or any other supersymmetric
particle wave
319
00:16:30,786 --> 00:16:33,286
is a frustrating task.
320
00:16:33,288 --> 00:16:34,721
Weiner:
You can look for them directly.
321
00:16:34,723 --> 00:16:36,156
You can look for them
indirectly.
322
00:16:36,158 --> 00:16:38,224
I have all sorts of ways
to look for supersymmetry.
323
00:16:38,226 --> 00:16:39,692
But up to this point,
324
00:16:39,694 --> 00:16:42,695
it's done an excellent job
of hiding from us,
325
00:16:42,697 --> 00:16:45,198
so either we're about to find it
326
00:16:45,200 --> 00:16:48,468
or I think a lot of us are
gonna say it's just not there.
327
00:16:51,272 --> 00:16:56,976
Freeman: The LHC has so far seen no sign
of supersymmetric particles.
328
00:16:56,978 --> 00:16:59,245
If they do not exist,
329
00:16:59,247 --> 00:17:01,781
scientists will be left
with a baffling predicament --
330
00:17:01,783 --> 00:17:05,018
explaining why
the energy of empty space
331
00:17:05,020 --> 00:17:08,121
is not tearing
our Universe to shreds.
332
00:17:08,123 --> 00:17:10,089
But other scientists believe
333
00:17:10,091 --> 00:17:15,061
a cataclysmic explosion
of nothing is inevitable.
334
00:17:15,063 --> 00:17:18,698
And one has worked out
335
00:17:18,700 --> 00:17:20,466
when it might happen.
336
00:17:25,639 --> 00:17:26,506
And one has worked out
337
00:17:27,261 --> 00:17:30,764
Empty space fills our cosmos
338
00:17:30,766 --> 00:17:34,194
like a great ocean
of nothingness.
339
00:17:34,196 --> 00:17:36,430
But the still waters
of the Universe
340
00:17:36,432 --> 00:17:39,132
may not be tranquil for long.
341
00:17:39,134 --> 00:17:41,835
As one scientist sees it,
342
00:17:41,837 --> 00:17:44,304
a storm may be brewing.
343
00:17:46,307 --> 00:17:50,410
Max Tegmark
is a cosmologist at M.I.T.
344
00:17:50,412 --> 00:17:54,581
Do not let his relaxed charm
fool you.
345
00:17:54,583 --> 00:17:57,184
He is deeply troubled.
346
00:17:57,186 --> 00:17:59,019
What is on his mind
347
00:17:59,021 --> 00:18:03,790
is nothing other than
the future of empty space.
348
00:18:03,792 --> 00:18:08,895
Space itself seems just
imminently stable and permanent,
349
00:18:08,897 --> 00:18:10,831
just like these golf balls here.
350
00:18:10,833 --> 00:18:14,835
Been hitting these around
for quite a while now,
351
00:18:14,837 --> 00:18:17,137
and they always look the same
afterwards,
352
00:18:17,139 --> 00:18:22,109
but how can I be really, really
sure that stuff is stable?
353
00:18:32,153 --> 00:18:36,623
Just like the golf ball changed
its state into a cloud of dust,
354
00:18:36,625 --> 00:18:39,092
could space itself
somehow change its state
355
00:18:39,094 --> 00:18:40,460
into something else?
356
00:18:40,462 --> 00:18:44,865
Freeman: A rapid decay of space
into a different state
357
00:18:44,867 --> 00:18:47,401
may sound highly unlikely,
358
00:18:47,403 --> 00:18:49,403
but it is not without precedent.
359
00:18:52,006 --> 00:18:55,075
13.7 billion years ago,
360
00:18:55,077 --> 00:18:57,677
the Universe shifted
its fundamental properties
361
00:18:57,679 --> 00:19:00,247
and its temperature plummeted.
362
00:19:00,249 --> 00:19:04,351
Physicists call this
the Big Bang.
363
00:19:04,353 --> 00:19:06,520
And through Max's eyes,
364
00:19:06,522 --> 00:19:08,388
there was something fishy
about it.
365
00:19:11,125 --> 00:19:12,125
[ Laughs ]
366
00:19:12,127 --> 00:19:13,960
I pretend I'm a fish.
367
00:19:13,962 --> 00:19:16,530
I've spent my whole life
in the ocean,
368
00:19:16,532 --> 00:19:20,400
and I think of water
as just empty space,
369
00:19:20,402 --> 00:19:21,635
'cause that's all I know.
370
00:19:21,637 --> 00:19:22,936
And then one day,
371
00:19:22,938 --> 00:19:25,672
I realize that this emptiness
is actually a substance.
372
00:19:25,674 --> 00:19:28,542
And I am an interested
and curious fish,
373
00:19:28,544 --> 00:19:31,711
so I figure out in addition to
the liquid water, which I'm in,
374
00:19:31,713 --> 00:19:35,782
there is this solid phase --
ice -- and there's steam.
375
00:19:35,784 --> 00:19:39,019
And then I would start worrying
about whether one day, you know,
376
00:19:39,021 --> 00:19:40,954
my water might freeze
and I might die.
377
00:19:40,956 --> 00:19:43,490
And in exactly the same way
we've looked at our space,
378
00:19:43,492 --> 00:19:46,827
realized that it, too,
seems to be able to freeze
379
00:19:46,829 --> 00:19:48,028
and kill us all.
380
00:19:54,902 --> 00:19:56,670
Freeman:
Max thinks the Big Bang
381
00:19:56,672 --> 00:20:00,440
was not the last cosmic freeze
our Universe will experience,
382
00:20:00,442 --> 00:20:04,044
and his proof
lies in the mind-bending science
383
00:20:04,046 --> 00:20:05,946
of Quantum Mechanics,
384
00:20:05,948 --> 00:20:10,784
where nothing is fixed
and nothing can last forever.
385
00:20:10,786 --> 00:20:12,886
Quantum Mechanics
tells you that a particle
386
00:20:12,888 --> 00:20:15,388
can never be perfectly still
387
00:20:15,390 --> 00:20:17,057
in a known position.
388
00:20:17,992 --> 00:20:19,726
And Quantum Mechanics
tells you that
389
00:20:19,728 --> 00:20:21,595
not just about little things
like atoms,
390
00:20:21,597 --> 00:20:23,597
but also about big things
that are made of atoms,
391
00:20:23,599 --> 00:20:24,764
like this golf ball.
392
00:20:24,766 --> 00:20:29,603
Which means nothing
is completely stable.
393
00:20:29,605 --> 00:20:32,806
This quantum jiggling of things
will eventually,
394
00:20:32,808 --> 00:20:35,342
if I were to stand here
long enough,
395
00:20:35,344 --> 00:20:39,012
cause the golf ball to just
randomly go up a little bit,
396
00:20:39,014 --> 00:20:41,715
then fall down
into a lower energy state.
397
00:20:42,850 --> 00:20:46,386
Freeman: Left alone on the tee,
there was a very slight chance
398
00:20:46,388 --> 00:20:49,156
this golf ball
will tunnel through space
399
00:20:49,158 --> 00:20:51,691
and materialize
closer to the ground,
400
00:20:51,693 --> 00:20:53,793
where its energy is lower.
401
00:20:53,795 --> 00:20:56,396
When an object
tunnels through space,
402
00:20:56,398 --> 00:20:58,899
it can end up
practically anywhere,
403
00:20:58,901 --> 00:21:02,235
as long as its energy is lower.
404
00:21:02,237 --> 00:21:04,771
It could even tunnel
into the tin cup --
405
00:21:04,773 --> 00:21:08,575
a perfect hole-in-one
without even swinging.
406
00:21:08,577 --> 00:21:12,145
But this phenomenon could be
bad news for the Universe.
407
00:21:13,681 --> 00:21:18,685
We physicists have found pretty
good evidence that space itself
408
00:21:18,687 --> 00:21:21,054
can be in several different
energy states --
409
00:21:21,056 --> 00:21:23,823
lower, medium, higher.
410
00:21:23,825 --> 00:21:25,759
And we also have
good reason to believe
411
00:21:25,761 --> 00:21:28,395
that our space used to be
in a much higher energy state
412
00:21:28,397 --> 00:21:30,830
in the early Universe,
413
00:21:30,832 --> 00:21:33,333
in which even the kinds
of particles that could exist
414
00:21:33,335 --> 00:21:34,467
were different.
415
00:21:36,237 --> 00:21:39,806
Now, this early Universe,
which gave us our Big Bang,
416
00:21:39,808 --> 00:21:42,442
was unstable
and very quickly decayed
417
00:21:42,444 --> 00:21:45,712
into a lower energy state
that we inhabit today,
418
00:21:45,714 --> 00:21:48,982
with this peaceful, very nice,
and inhabitable Space
419
00:21:48,984 --> 00:21:52,252
which contains our kinds of
particles that we're made of.
420
00:21:52,254 --> 00:21:54,754
But we've also measured
421
00:21:54,756 --> 00:21:57,724
that there must be
an even lower state,
422
00:21:57,726 --> 00:22:01,528
because our empty space,
as we call it, isn't empty.
423
00:22:01,530 --> 00:22:03,797
It has mass, and as such,
424
00:22:03,799 --> 00:22:06,933
should be able to decay...
425
00:22:06,935 --> 00:22:09,669
into an even lower energy state,
426
00:22:09,671 --> 00:22:14,374
where our kinds of particles
aren't allowed to exist.
427
00:22:14,376 --> 00:22:16,776
And since I'm made
out of that kind of particles,
428
00:22:16,778 --> 00:22:18,545
that would be a bit of a bummer
for me.
429
00:22:18,547 --> 00:22:22,282
Freeman: When this sudden decay in the
energy of empty space happens,
430
00:22:22,284 --> 00:22:24,451
a blast
of destructive nothingness
431
00:22:24,453 --> 00:22:28,255
will spread through the Universe
at the speed of light.
432
00:22:28,257 --> 00:22:31,358
We will have
no way to see it coming.
433
00:22:34,095 --> 00:22:35,362
It's inevitable.
434
00:22:36,864 --> 00:22:41,901
What's very unclear, though,
is how long it's gonna last.
435
00:22:41,903 --> 00:22:44,904
Some things are a lot more
stable than others, you know?
436
00:22:44,906 --> 00:22:49,943
A uranium atom will last for
billions and billions of years,
437
00:22:49,945 --> 00:22:53,413
whereas, say, a Cesium-137 atom
438
00:22:53,415 --> 00:22:56,349
that leaked
out of a nuclear reactor
439
00:22:56,351 --> 00:22:58,985
is gonna fall apart
much quicker,
440
00:22:58,987 --> 00:23:00,954
making it more dangerous.
441
00:23:00,956 --> 00:23:03,690
And then this Universe
we're in --
442
00:23:03,692 --> 00:23:06,726
you know, we've been here
for almost 14 billion years,
443
00:23:06,728 --> 00:23:08,995
but that doesn't mean
it's gonna be around forever.
444
00:23:11,032 --> 00:23:13,166
Freeman:
On the conservative side,
445
00:23:13,168 --> 00:23:17,003
Max thinks we could have
20 billion years left,
446
00:23:17,005 --> 00:23:19,372
but that depends on
supersymmetry particles
447
00:23:19,374 --> 00:23:21,675
actually existing --
448
00:23:21,677 --> 00:23:24,077
the same particles Neal Weiner
is hoping to see
449
00:23:24,079 --> 00:23:29,549
and the LHC
has so far failed to find.
450
00:23:29,551 --> 00:23:32,986
Without supersymmetry
to stabilize empty space,
451
00:23:32,988 --> 00:23:36,489
it could all end
in just one billion years --
452
00:23:36,491 --> 00:23:38,792
the blink of a cosmic eye.
453
00:23:42,496 --> 00:23:44,431
I'm just laughing because...
454
00:23:47,001 --> 00:23:49,769
...at the end of
"Life of Brian,"
455
00:23:49,771 --> 00:23:53,573
one of my favorite
Monty Python movies, they say,
456
00:23:53,575 --> 00:23:56,910
[British accent] "We come from nothing.
We go back to nothing.
457
00:23:56,912 --> 00:23:59,145
What have we lost?
Nothing!"
458
00:23:59,147 --> 00:24:00,146
[ Laughs ]
459
00:24:02,583 --> 00:24:07,287
Nothing could be the beginning
and the end of the Universe,
460
00:24:07,289 --> 00:24:11,424
but there's another way
of looking at nothing.
461
00:24:11,426 --> 00:24:15,662
The Universe
could be a giant bubble.
462
00:24:15,664 --> 00:24:18,932
Everything that is...something
463
00:24:18,934 --> 00:24:20,834
fits on the surface.
464
00:24:20,836 --> 00:24:25,505
And the inside
is just a waste of space.
465
00:24:28,817 --> 00:24:32,120
When we look at the twinkling
starlight in the night sky,
466
00:24:32,853 --> 00:24:35,787
it's hard to understand
the vast distances
467
00:24:35,789 --> 00:24:38,356
that separate us
from those stars --
468
00:24:38,358 --> 00:24:43,261
the trillions upon trillions
of miles of emptiness.
469
00:24:43,263 --> 00:24:46,498
But that's not the way
the ancients saw it.
470
00:24:46,500 --> 00:24:50,268
To them, the stars
were just points of light
471
00:24:50,270 --> 00:24:53,972
on a black shell
that surrounded the Earth.
472
00:24:53,974 --> 00:24:57,242
Outer space did not exist.
473
00:24:57,244 --> 00:24:59,044
Now some bold thinkers
474
00:24:59,046 --> 00:25:02,747
are embracing this period
of this idea again --
475
00:25:02,749 --> 00:25:07,152
a thousand years
after the idea was abandoned.
476
00:25:09,588 --> 00:25:13,458
Gerard 't Hooft won the
Nobel Prize in Physics in 1999
477
00:25:13,460 --> 00:25:17,095
for his work in establishing
the standard model --
478
00:25:17,097 --> 00:25:22,067
the basic foundation
of particle physics today.
479
00:25:22,069 --> 00:25:26,438
You could call him one
of the kings of modern physics.
480
00:25:26,440 --> 00:25:30,475
But you could also call him
high lord of nothing.
481
00:25:30,477 --> 00:25:34,045
Well, almost nothing.
482
00:25:34,047 --> 00:25:39,084
Because this barren rock
is his own private asteroid
483
00:25:39,086 --> 00:25:42,987
floating 100 million miles
from Earth.
484
00:25:42,989 --> 00:25:44,923
The international
astronomical union
485
00:25:44,925 --> 00:25:49,394
had decided to name the asteroid
"9491 't Hooft."
486
00:25:51,330 --> 00:25:55,166
I was, of course, very flattered
and honored by the event,
487
00:25:55,168 --> 00:25:57,368
but one little thing struck me,
488
00:25:57,370 --> 00:26:01,439
and it was that they changed
the spelling of my last name.
489
00:26:01,441 --> 00:26:07,212
It now became "Thooft,"
with a capital "T"
490
00:26:07,214 --> 00:26:09,714
and then "hooft"
just spelled right after it,
491
00:26:09,716 --> 00:26:11,316
without apostrophe.
492
00:26:13,486 --> 00:26:16,554
Freeman:
Gerard planned revenge --
493
00:26:16,556 --> 00:26:18,556
a poetic revenge.
494
00:26:18,558 --> 00:26:23,795
I decided that the asteroid
would require a constitution,
495
00:26:23,797 --> 00:26:27,999
and one of the first items
in the constitution
496
00:26:28,001 --> 00:26:32,237
is that all future inhabitants
of this asteroid
497
00:26:32,239 --> 00:26:35,907
would have to live
without apostrophes.
498
00:26:35,909 --> 00:26:40,145
Anyone entering the territorial
zone of the asteroid
499
00:26:40,147 --> 00:26:42,213
with a laptop, for instance,
500
00:26:42,215 --> 00:26:45,517
that carries a key
with an apostrophe in it,
501
00:26:45,519 --> 00:26:48,419
that key of the laptop
would have to be removed.
502
00:26:48,421 --> 00:26:51,523
Freeman:
As King of his asteroid,
503
00:26:51,525 --> 00:26:55,093
Gerard is free
to ban apostrophes.
504
00:26:55,095 --> 00:26:59,697
But as a Nobel laureate,
he knows they still exist.
505
00:26:59,699 --> 00:27:04,202
In fact, Gerard believes
that anything that is something
506
00:27:04,204 --> 00:27:07,972
can never truly
be removed from the Universe.
507
00:27:07,974 --> 00:27:12,944
It's a principle called
the conservation of information.
508
00:27:12,946 --> 00:27:14,145
You might think
509
00:27:14,147 --> 00:27:15,947
that the information
people put in documents
510
00:27:15,949 --> 00:27:18,583
is completely lost
once it's like this,
511
00:27:18,585 --> 00:27:20,618
but actually that's not true.
512
00:27:20,620 --> 00:27:24,589
I could dig it up and I can try
to put all the pieces together.
513
00:27:24,591 --> 00:27:26,758
The information is still in it.
514
00:27:26,760 --> 00:27:31,830
Freeman: Physicists like Gerard
believe anything in the Universe
515
00:27:31,832 --> 00:27:34,465
can be described
by a series of bits,
516
00:27:34,467 --> 00:27:37,235
or ones and zeros,
517
00:27:37,237 --> 00:27:42,307
whether it is a piece of paper,
a planet, or a star.
518
00:27:42,309 --> 00:27:44,042
But there is one place
in the cosmos
519
00:27:44,044 --> 00:27:46,678
where this theory
seems to fall apart --
520
00:27:46,680 --> 00:27:48,146
black holes --
521
00:27:48,148 --> 00:27:54,319
rapacious voids that pull in
everything that gets too close.
522
00:27:54,321 --> 00:27:56,554
't Hooft:
The black hole is much better
523
00:27:56,556 --> 00:27:58,523
than any of these shredders
here.
524
00:27:58,525 --> 00:28:00,225
In a black hole,
525
00:28:00,227 --> 00:28:03,228
the information
is not only shredded,
526
00:28:03,230 --> 00:28:05,230
it completely disappears.
527
00:28:05,232 --> 00:28:07,732
Freeman: In the 1970s,
528
00:28:07,734 --> 00:28:10,368
legendary cosmologist
Stephen Hawking
529
00:28:10,370 --> 00:28:13,538
argued that black holes
entirely remove objects
530
00:28:13,540 --> 00:28:15,273
from our visible Universe,
531
00:28:15,275 --> 00:28:19,777
and the information they swallow
is gone forever.
532
00:28:19,779 --> 00:28:22,714
It was a notion
that deeply troubled Gerard.
533
00:28:22,716 --> 00:28:24,115
't Hooft: And I said,
534
00:28:24,117 --> 00:28:28,453
"that doesn't fit with the view
we have about physics."
535
00:28:28,455 --> 00:28:31,689
From the point of view
of what we know about the atoms
536
00:28:31,691 --> 00:28:34,959
and what's inside an atom,
information doesn't go away.
537
00:28:34,961 --> 00:28:36,227
It can't.
538
00:28:36,229 --> 00:28:39,197
It would be against the laws
of physics that we know.
539
00:28:39,199 --> 00:28:42,133
Freeman:
Hawking stood his ground,
540
00:28:42,135 --> 00:28:44,535
and the two debated for years,
541
00:28:44,537 --> 00:28:49,073
until a brilliant insight
turned the tide.
542
00:28:49,075 --> 00:28:52,810
Gerard realized
that if 9491 Thooft
543
00:28:52,812 --> 00:28:54,545
ever fell into a black hole,
544
00:28:54,547 --> 00:28:57,882
it would not disappear
without a trace.
545
00:28:57,884 --> 00:29:01,319
It would ever so slightly
change the black hole.
546
00:29:01,321 --> 00:29:04,822
't Hooft: The black hole
would go into a different state,
547
00:29:04,824 --> 00:29:07,926
so the black hole
would not be the same black hole
548
00:29:07,928 --> 00:29:10,295
as it was before
it ate my asteroid.
549
00:29:10,297 --> 00:29:12,697
It would be
a different black hole.
550
00:29:12,699 --> 00:29:18,369
Freeman: When a black hole
feeds on its prey, it grows,
551
00:29:18,371 --> 00:29:22,106
and so its surface area
gets slightly larger.
552
00:29:22,108 --> 00:29:24,809
And when Gerard calculated
exactly how much
553
00:29:24,811 --> 00:29:28,046
extra information could fit
onto this larger surface,
554
00:29:28,048 --> 00:29:30,715
he discovered
it was just enough to fit
555
00:29:30,717 --> 00:29:34,953
all the information contained
in the black hole's dinner.
556
00:29:36,555 --> 00:29:39,657
The amount of information
you could put in a black hole
557
00:29:39,659 --> 00:29:41,526
is very precisely fine
558
00:29:41,528 --> 00:29:44,963
and is proportional
to its surface area.
559
00:29:44,965 --> 00:29:48,266
It's not
what's inside the surface.
560
00:29:48,268 --> 00:29:50,468
It simply doesn't count.
561
00:29:50,470 --> 00:29:54,138
It's the surface area
that counts, not the volume.
562
00:29:54,140 --> 00:29:58,076
Freeman: This means that
the entire information content
563
00:29:58,078 --> 00:30:00,445
of Gerard's doomed asteroid
564
00:30:00,447 --> 00:30:03,314
and everything else
devoured by the black hole
565
00:30:03,316 --> 00:30:06,684
is imprinted
across its surface area.
566
00:30:06,686 --> 00:30:09,887
And Gerard discovered
that this principle
567
00:30:09,889 --> 00:30:12,724
applies to more
than just black holes.
568
00:30:12,726 --> 00:30:15,293
In fact,
the information contained
569
00:30:15,295 --> 00:30:18,496
inside any three-dimensional
volume of space
570
00:30:18,498 --> 00:30:23,434
must fit onto
that volume's surface area.
571
00:30:23,436 --> 00:30:28,006
You see that the box
is covered by a grid,
572
00:30:28,008 --> 00:30:31,209
and the amount of information
no longer can be counted
573
00:30:31,211 --> 00:30:33,678
while looking
at the volume of the box,
574
00:30:33,680 --> 00:30:36,214
but by looking
at the surface of the box.
575
00:30:36,216 --> 00:30:41,252
On every side of this grid,
there's one bit of information.
576
00:30:41,254 --> 00:30:46,124
Freeman: Think of a box
the size of the entire Universe.
577
00:30:46,126 --> 00:30:49,027
All of the information
contained inside
578
00:30:49,029 --> 00:30:51,829
fits neatly on a grid
on the surface.
579
00:30:51,831 --> 00:30:56,067
The total information content
of everything that ever was
580
00:30:56,069 --> 00:30:57,502
can be counted there.
581
00:30:57,504 --> 00:31:00,805
Compared with
how much space for information
582
00:31:00,807 --> 00:31:03,207
exists inside the box,
583
00:31:03,209 --> 00:31:05,376
it is practically
nothing at all.
584
00:31:08,847 --> 00:31:11,716
In principle, yes, you can --
585
00:31:11,718 --> 00:31:13,918
it should be possible
586
00:31:13,920 --> 00:31:16,521
to describe everything
happening in the Universe
587
00:31:16,523 --> 00:31:21,259
by concentrating
on a surface surrounding it.
588
00:31:22,661 --> 00:31:26,931
Freeman: If he is correct -- and most
physicists now think he is --
589
00:31:26,933 --> 00:31:30,968
the Universe
is mostly a waste of space.
590
00:31:30,970 --> 00:31:33,237
Because where there is
no information,
591
00:31:33,239 --> 00:31:35,807
there is really...nothing.
592
00:31:37,142 --> 00:31:39,310
But this woman has taken
the concept of nothing
593
00:31:39,312 --> 00:31:41,312
one step further.
594
00:31:41,314 --> 00:31:46,751
In fact, she may have found
another Universe inside our own,
595
00:31:46,753 --> 00:31:49,754
made of absolutely nothing.
596
00:31:55,374 --> 00:32:00,177
If I close my eyes
and nothing makes a sound,
597
00:32:00,179 --> 00:32:04,081
how can I be sure
the world is really there?
598
00:32:04,083 --> 00:32:10,554
Or...if you can't see
or hear me, how --
599
00:32:10,556 --> 00:32:13,824
how do you know I really exist?
600
00:32:13,826 --> 00:32:17,228
The difference
between something and nothing
601
00:32:17,230 --> 00:32:20,264
could be a matter of perception.
602
00:32:29,875 --> 00:32:32,243
Katie Freese
is an astrophysicist
603
00:32:32,245 --> 00:32:33,711
with a competitive spirit.
604
00:32:35,380 --> 00:32:39,083
I think this stems
from my childhood,
605
00:32:39,085 --> 00:32:43,421
because we lived
on the corner of two blocks,
606
00:32:43,423 --> 00:32:45,990
and all the kids
came over to my house
607
00:32:45,992 --> 00:32:50,127
to play baseball and basketball
or whatever,
608
00:32:50,129 --> 00:32:51,462
except it was all boys,
609
00:32:51,464 --> 00:32:53,664
so I was always
playing with the boys.
610
00:32:53,666 --> 00:32:56,033
And as a physicist,
I'm still doing that.
611
00:32:56,035 --> 00:32:58,402
And [laughs] so I think
that's where I developed
612
00:32:58,404 --> 00:33:02,706
this sense of competition
and thinking that it's fun.
613
00:33:02,708 --> 00:33:05,142
Freeman:
When she's not on the courts,
614
00:33:05,144 --> 00:33:07,478
Katie peers
into the heart of matter
615
00:33:07,480 --> 00:33:11,682
and tries to understand
what makes it solid.
616
00:33:13,752 --> 00:33:17,655
When we look at the world around
us, it seems to be really solid.
617
00:33:17,657 --> 00:33:20,591
It looks solid, it feels solid,
but it's not.
618
00:33:20,593 --> 00:33:24,161
This tennis ball feels solid,
619
00:33:24,163 --> 00:33:26,163
but when I cut it open...
620
00:33:28,467 --> 00:33:30,134
...it's empty --
621
00:33:30,136 --> 00:33:32,503
just like most of matter.
622
00:33:35,340 --> 00:33:37,975
So, if we think about
one grain of the sugar
623
00:33:37,977 --> 00:33:39,577
that's on my fingertip,
624
00:33:39,579 --> 00:33:42,513
and if that were equivalent
to the nucleus,
625
00:33:42,515 --> 00:33:45,015
then it would take
this entire big tennis court
626
00:33:45,017 --> 00:33:46,150
to make up the atom,
627
00:33:46,152 --> 00:33:47,852
and in between the sugar,
628
00:33:47,854 --> 00:33:50,621
the single grain
that makes the nucleus
629
00:33:50,623 --> 00:33:52,356
and this entire tennis court,
630
00:33:52,358 --> 00:33:53,991
there's absolutely nothing.
631
00:33:53,993 --> 00:33:56,026
It's empty.
632
00:33:58,063 --> 00:34:01,765
Freeman: The solid world
around us is merely an illusion.
633
00:34:01,767 --> 00:34:03,667
What makes things feel solid
634
00:34:03,669 --> 00:34:06,537
is nothing more
than the repulsion of electrons
635
00:34:06,539 --> 00:34:09,707
that exist
on the outer shells of atoms.
636
00:34:09,709 --> 00:34:13,010
And if you
did not feel this force,
637
00:34:13,012 --> 00:34:17,681
you could pass
right through solid matter.
638
00:34:17,683 --> 00:34:19,416
In the past two decades,
639
00:34:19,418 --> 00:34:21,886
astronomers
have discovered light
640
00:34:21,888 --> 00:34:24,922
bending around
gargantuan invisible masses
641
00:34:24,924 --> 00:34:27,525
surrounding every galaxy.
642
00:34:27,527 --> 00:34:31,362
They believe these masses
are made of dark matter.
643
00:34:31,364 --> 00:34:32,796
They call it dark
644
00:34:32,798 --> 00:34:36,600
because we cannot see it,
feel it, or touch it.
645
00:34:36,602 --> 00:34:39,203
It passes right through
our solid world
646
00:34:39,205 --> 00:34:42,173
as if it was not there at all.
647
00:34:42,175 --> 00:34:43,741
As far as dark matter goes,
648
00:34:43,743 --> 00:34:46,443
we know that it does not have
electric charge.
649
00:34:46,445 --> 00:34:48,012
We would know.
650
00:34:48,014 --> 00:34:50,548
I mean, these things would be
bombarding you, and you'd know.
651
00:34:50,550 --> 00:34:52,816
There are probably billions
of dark-matter particles
652
00:34:52,818 --> 00:34:54,618
passing through
our bodies every second.
653
00:34:54,620 --> 00:34:57,221
Freeman:
Katie believes that dark matter
654
00:34:57,223 --> 00:35:00,658
is made up of particles
just as heavy as regular matter,
655
00:35:00,660 --> 00:35:02,626
but they are only affected
656
00:35:02,628 --> 00:35:05,829
by what scientists call
the weak force --
657
00:35:05,831 --> 00:35:09,767
a force so puny,
its effect is barely detectable
658
00:35:09,769 --> 00:35:12,937
by our most sophisticated
equipment.
659
00:35:12,939 --> 00:35:15,172
In my right hand,
I have a tennis racket,
660
00:35:15,174 --> 00:35:17,608
and in my left hand,
I have a glass of sugar,
661
00:35:17,610 --> 00:35:19,543
and we're gonna use these
as props
662
00:35:19,545 --> 00:35:22,413
to explain weak interactions.
663
00:35:23,515 --> 00:35:25,583
The strings are representing
regular matter
664
00:35:25,585 --> 00:35:27,384
with a lot of space
in between them,
665
00:35:27,386 --> 00:35:29,486
so when the grains of sugar
go through,
666
00:35:29,488 --> 00:35:31,355
most of them just pass
right on by
667
00:35:31,357 --> 00:35:34,458
without having
any interaction whatsoever.
668
00:35:34,460 --> 00:35:37,561
Freeman:
Katie believes that in one day,
669
00:35:37,563 --> 00:35:39,930
of the few billion particles
of dark matter
670
00:35:39,932 --> 00:35:41,432
that pass through your body,
671
00:35:41,434 --> 00:35:43,033
only two or three of them
672
00:35:43,035 --> 00:35:45,936
will ever interact
with the atoms inside you.
673
00:35:45,938 --> 00:35:48,138
And when they do,
674
00:35:48,140 --> 00:35:51,308
it is only through
the weak force.
675
00:35:51,310 --> 00:35:53,644
Highly sensitive experiments
around the world
676
00:35:53,646 --> 00:35:56,213
have been trying to detect
these rare interactions
677
00:35:56,215 --> 00:35:57,748
for over a decade,
678
00:35:57,750 --> 00:36:01,318
but the experiments
do not agree with one another.
679
00:36:01,320 --> 00:36:05,823
Freese: One of the experiments has been
seeing a signal for 10 years,
680
00:36:05,825 --> 00:36:09,326
and it's a statistically
very significant result.
681
00:36:09,328 --> 00:36:11,829
But the problem is that
some of the other experiments
682
00:36:11,831 --> 00:36:14,231
are in disagreement because
they're not seeing anything.
683
00:36:14,233 --> 00:36:16,834
The question is,
what's going on?
684
00:36:16,836 --> 00:36:18,802
Freeman:
As a scientist competing
685
00:36:18,804 --> 00:36:21,639
in one of the biggest
theoretical games in physics,
686
00:36:21,641 --> 00:36:25,909
Katie is beginning to worry
about an emerging possibility.
687
00:36:25,911 --> 00:36:30,047
Dark matter may not
even feel the weak force.
688
00:36:30,049 --> 00:36:31,649
Freese:
What a horrible thought.
689
00:36:31,651 --> 00:36:34,785
Nobody said the dark matter
had to weakly interact,
690
00:36:34,787 --> 00:36:37,821
so then we really
have a problem.
691
00:36:37,823 --> 00:36:40,357
Then I don't know
how we're ever gonna detect it.
692
00:36:40,359 --> 00:36:43,127
How can we discover it?
693
00:36:43,129 --> 00:36:45,362
That would be
really discouraging.
694
00:36:45,364 --> 00:36:47,431
[ Chuckles ]
So let's hope not.
695
00:36:49,734 --> 00:36:52,002
Freeman:
If this is the case,
696
00:36:52,004 --> 00:36:55,539
our Universe is divided
into two worlds --
697
00:36:55,541 --> 00:36:59,677
one of matter
and one of dark matter.
698
00:37:07,786 --> 00:37:11,455
And they will always
be nothing to each other.
699
00:37:16,961 --> 00:37:20,397
Like a tennis game where
the rackets have no strings.
700
00:37:30,008 --> 00:37:34,044
The most important contribution
to the mass in the Universe
701
00:37:34,046 --> 00:37:37,247
could really
basically be nothingness.
702
00:37:39,050 --> 00:37:41,785
So nothingness would rule.
[ Laughs ]
703
00:37:41,787 --> 00:37:45,055
Freeman:
But is there or was there
704
00:37:45,057 --> 00:37:48,625
ever such a thing
as absolute nothing?
705
00:37:48,627 --> 00:37:52,930
No energy, no matter,
no time or space.
706
00:37:52,932 --> 00:37:54,498
The answer to this question
707
00:37:54,500 --> 00:37:59,403
might reveal the ultimate origin
of our cosmos,
708
00:37:59,405 --> 00:38:03,707
and this scientific pioneer
thinks he has found it.
709
00:38:12,877 --> 00:38:14,978
Only a decade ago,
710
00:38:14,980 --> 00:38:20,450
astronomers confirmed what to
many seemed utterly impossible.
711
00:38:20,452 --> 00:38:23,987
Go back 13.7 billion years,
712
00:38:23,989 --> 00:38:26,823
and there was only darkness.
713
00:38:26,825 --> 00:38:32,962
Then our Universe
exploded into existence.
714
00:38:32,964 --> 00:38:38,201
How could everything
come from nothing?
715
00:38:40,104 --> 00:38:43,706
Gabriele Veneziano
is the father of String Theory,
716
00:38:43,708 --> 00:38:47,010
which has become one of the most
important scientific ideas
717
00:38:47,012 --> 00:38:48,811
in modern physics.
718
00:38:48,813 --> 00:38:53,516
But his latest big idea
challenges the mainstream.
719
00:38:53,518 --> 00:38:55,451
He believes the Big Bang
720
00:38:55,453 --> 00:38:59,289
could not have been
the beginning of everything.
721
00:38:59,291 --> 00:39:01,991
The conclusion
that there was nothing --
722
00:39:01,993 --> 00:39:04,527
I think it was too fast
a conclusion,
723
00:39:04,529 --> 00:39:07,397
so I don't want
to repeat the same mistake.
724
00:39:07,399 --> 00:39:10,867
Freeman: Gabriele believes
that there was something
725
00:39:10,869 --> 00:39:12,869
before the Big Bang.
726
00:39:12,871 --> 00:39:15,571
But, like a city at daybreak,
727
00:39:15,573 --> 00:39:19,309
most of this pre-Universe
was fast asleep.
728
00:39:19,311 --> 00:39:23,446
Veneziano: There were things
propagating in space,
729
00:39:23,448 --> 00:39:26,616
like waves, particles,
730
00:39:26,618 --> 00:39:29,485
but the energy was very diluted,
731
00:39:29,487 --> 00:39:30,887
and furthermore,
732
00:39:30,889 --> 00:39:35,091
this wave or this particle
interacted very, very weakly.
733
00:39:36,694 --> 00:39:41,464
That would be like having very
few people walking in the street
734
00:39:41,466 --> 00:39:45,234
and, furthermore,
not interacting with each other.
735
00:39:45,236 --> 00:39:47,537
They may not talk to each other.
736
00:39:47,539 --> 00:39:50,807
They may not feel each other.
737
00:39:52,543 --> 00:39:54,444
Freeman: Gabriele believes
738
00:39:54,446 --> 00:39:58,414
that the same fundamental
forces of nature we know today
739
00:39:58,416 --> 00:40:00,416
existed in the pre-Universe,
740
00:40:00,418 --> 00:40:02,852
but their strengths
were much lower.
741
00:40:02,854 --> 00:40:05,188
Veneziano:
The strength of all these forces
742
00:40:05,190 --> 00:40:10,493
was given in terms
of what we call a dilaton field.
743
00:40:10,495 --> 00:40:14,630
Freeman: This dilaton field
filled the entire pre-Universe
744
00:40:14,632 --> 00:40:18,034
and controlled
the strength of all the forces.
745
00:40:18,036 --> 00:40:20,903
As it gradually
dialed them all up,
746
00:40:20,905 --> 00:40:23,339
things started to happen.
747
00:40:23,341 --> 00:40:27,010
As time goes on, the density
of people is increasing.
748
00:40:27,012 --> 00:40:28,311
As a result,
749
00:40:28,313 --> 00:40:32,281
the interactions are getting
stronger and stronger.
750
00:40:32,283 --> 00:40:36,586
So, you see people getting
together, talking together,
751
00:40:36,588 --> 00:40:40,923
making clusters of people
together.
752
00:40:40,925 --> 00:40:44,027
Freeman: The ever-growing
pressure increases
753
00:40:44,029 --> 00:40:48,931
and the interactions
intensify until...
754
00:40:48,933 --> 00:40:50,166
Things blow up.
755
00:40:57,174 --> 00:40:58,608
Freeman: For Gabriele,
756
00:40:58,610 --> 00:41:01,177
the Big Bang
was not a sudden beginning,
757
00:41:01,179 --> 00:41:02,845
but rather a tipping point.
758
00:41:02,847 --> 00:41:04,914
If he is right,
759
00:41:04,916 --> 00:41:08,885
he will have dispensed
its most puzzling paradox --
760
00:41:08,887 --> 00:41:12,321
getting something from nothing.
761
00:41:12,323 --> 00:41:15,625
Proving there was never
nothing in the Universe
762
00:41:15,627 --> 00:41:18,361
may not be as difficult
as you think.
763
00:41:18,363 --> 00:41:21,831
Because if space and matter
have always existed,
764
00:41:21,833 --> 00:41:24,867
the Big Bang should have sent
colossal gravitational waves
765
00:41:24,869 --> 00:41:26,769
rippling through them,
766
00:41:26,771 --> 00:41:29,272
and the aftershock
of those waves
767
00:41:29,274 --> 00:41:32,875
may still be detectable today.
768
00:41:36,146 --> 00:41:38,748
If we could see
gravitational waves,
769
00:41:38,750 --> 00:41:42,952
we could go back much,
much earlier,
770
00:41:42,954 --> 00:41:45,955
ideally very, very close
with the Big Bang.
771
00:41:45,957 --> 00:41:49,158
Or if there was something
before the Big Bang,
772
00:41:49,160 --> 00:41:52,195
we can even go back
to looking at the Universe
773
00:41:52,197 --> 00:41:53,796
before the Big Bang.
774
00:41:53,798 --> 00:41:58,568
Freeman: If gravitational waves left over
from the pre-Universe exist,
775
00:41:58,570 --> 00:42:00,470
they should be ever so slightly
776
00:42:00,472 --> 00:42:04,307
stretching and squashing
the spaces around us.
777
00:42:04,309 --> 00:42:06,075
Engineers from around the world
778
00:42:06,077 --> 00:42:08,878
are submitting designs
for a new spacecraft
779
00:42:08,880 --> 00:42:11,814
sensitive enough
to detect these distortions.
780
00:42:11,816 --> 00:42:16,552
Veneziano: The important thing is that
there are experimental ways
781
00:42:16,554 --> 00:42:18,921
to talk about these things.
782
00:42:18,923 --> 00:42:22,024
I mean, they're not
just pure science fiction.
783
00:42:22,026 --> 00:42:24,894
I mean, you can put this model
to a test.
784
00:42:24,896 --> 00:42:27,196
Freeman:
Gabriele's mission
785
00:42:27,198 --> 00:42:31,501
to prove that nothing
does not exist and never did
786
00:42:31,503 --> 00:42:34,303
may be on the verge of success.
787
00:42:35,906 --> 00:42:38,074
The ancient Greeks
thought of nothing
788
00:42:38,076 --> 00:42:41,477
as a logical impossibility.
789
00:42:41,479 --> 00:42:45,948
The moment you think about
nothing, it becomes something.
790
00:42:45,950 --> 00:42:48,751
Modern scientists
have spent centuries
791
00:42:48,753 --> 00:42:51,187
thinking about nothing,
792
00:42:51,189 --> 00:42:55,391
and what they've learned
proved the greeks were right.
793
00:42:55,393 --> 00:42:56,859
There may be enough energy
794
00:42:56,861 --> 00:42:59,996
rippling through nothingness
to destroy us,
795
00:42:59,998 --> 00:43:03,066
entire Universes
may be made of it,
796
00:43:03,068 --> 00:43:08,271
And it is most definitely
not nothing.
797
00:43:08,304 --> 00:43:12,304
== sync, corrected by elderman ==
798
00:43:12,354 --> 00:43:16,904
Repair and Synchronization by
Easy Subtitles Synchronizer 1.0.0.0
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