One of my favorite television shows is The Big Bang Theory. The theme song is written by Barenaked Ladies which is one of my favorite bands. For the longest time I could not find the song on iTunes which was very frustrating because it's a catchy little jingle and I wanted it. Well somehow I managed to find it a week or so ago and have been listening to it a lot, to the point where I've memorized every word.
And the part in the song that goes "it's expanding ever outward but one day, it will cause the stars to go the other way..." is just mind boggling. First of all, if space is expanding, what's it expanding into? If the universe didn't exist before the big bang what was there before? Assuming that whatever was there before is what the universe is expanding into then that sort of answers one of our questions. But still, what is it?! The other question that arises is, if it will suddenly stop expanding and stop contracting, why? Will it hit a wall? A wall in space where it can't go any further? Whats the wall attached to? Is it really a big gigantic building another bigger universe (sort of end of Men In Black style)? Baffling.
All this thinking reminded me of reading the first chapter of my Intro to Astronomy textbook my freshman year of college. In this chapter it explored the creation and expansion of the universe and how planets formed and how starts formed and died. Also, that looking into space is really like looking back in time because of the speed of light. That what you see in space is not whats currently out there. A star you see now could have died years ago but the light of it not being there hasn't reached us yet. One really mind blowing piece of trivia is that even with a strong enough telescope (that doesn't currently exist) that because of the speed of light, it is impossible to see past the center of the universe. This is because the light from the other side of the center of the universe has not yet reached us and because of the rate of expansion of the universe based on the speed of light it never will. So theoretically, you could witness the big bang occurring with a strong enough telescope but nothing on the other side of the center of the universe because it... hasn't... happened.... yet. WHAT?!?! I know, ridiculous.
Really makes you think about the possibility of life on other planets. Because let's be honest, why would there be billions of stars which each have dozens or more planets revolving around it, and our little blue sphere be the only one that can support life? And if it is... then why are we so special? But even if we are the only living planet in the universe what purpose do we have? What purpose do I as an individual have? Why does one little argument I have with a friend or family member upset me for so long when really in the grand scheme of things it really doesn't matter! Now I'm not saying this to make you go "WHOA! Life is unimportant I'm going to drop out of school or quit my job and just do whatever because nothing matters!"
No that's not what I'm saying. I'm saying that the next time you break a plate on the floor, or have an argument with someone close to you, or fail a test, or whatever minuscule problem that isn't life threatening to not sweat it. Don't worry about it! You can get over it quickly enough and move on with the rest of your life and it won't mean a thing. By the time you're 35 you won't remember that math test you failed all the way back in 4th grade. And how many times did you have an argument with a friend and you were mad at them for weeks and then when you finally talk to them again neither of you can remember why you're fighting. DUH! Don't let little things like that wear on you. It's not worth the aggravation and stress! Just walk around and take everything in stride with your head held high and a smile on your face. That's my lecture for the day. Take it or leave it. It's just something to think about, and quite mind boggling if you take the time to really do it.
Before I leave you, let me show you one of my favorite clips from The Big Bang Theory (it's the least I could do after embedding the theme song):
It's a scary thought, knowing what goes on in my head. But like it or not, that's what you're going to get. With a heavy focus on sports we'll also look at movies, video games, and whatever I want to talk about. If there's a topic you'd like to see, let me know. But most of all, ENJOY!
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