10 Craziest Scientific Theories

Crazy is such an ugly word but how else can we describe these concepts? They each try to explain some
aspect of our universe in a manner that just seems bizarre. Granted, most things in the universe are odd already, and
we havent even begun to fully understand a fraction of it, but theres something particularly disturbing about these
theories. They express ideas that are too mindboggling and inconceivable, even for fellow scientists. While none of
them have been verified or completely dismissed, we should still speculate because in a universe as crazy as ours,
we just never know what might be true.

10. Ekpyrotic Universe

The ekpyrotic scenario provides an alternative to the widely accepted Big Bang theory. It suggests that,
unlike the Big Bang that began from singularity, our universe is one of a pair of universes that collided. The effect of
the collision resets the universe. From there, it expands for billions of light years (the way we imagine the Big Bang
occurring) until it contracts back to the Big Crunch. The speed and energy of that reduction creates another massive
collision and the universe is reborn. The cycle continues for infinity.
Did you catch the crazy part? This theory states theres another universe out there. Thats not too strange
considering we accept the possibility of parallel universes. But if the ekpyrotic scenario is correct, our twin universe
is right next to us in another dimension, separated by a distance less than the diameter of an atom. Thats close, even
for siblings.
9. White Holes
White holes, unlike their black hole neighbors, have not been studied because they only exist in an extremely
hypothetical situation. In fact, theres not even a clear understanding what a white hole could be. Is it the other end
of a black hole? Is it a wormhole? Is it something else entirely?
Generally, white holes are thought to spit out matter, much like black holes eat matter. For this to happen, the
matter that passes through a black hole would have to be protected during the voyage, avoiding the process of
merging into singularity. No white holes have ever been detected, up to this point, and no black holes have been seen
without an event horizon (the guarding force around a black hole that prevents us from seeing them) that may show
us just how matter passes through. To do that, white holes would have to break a few laws of physics and reinstitute
some ideas that have been discarded; thats asking a lot. Until then, white holes are best left for hypothetical ideas or
naughty jokes.

8. Dark Energy is Murder

According to Professor Lawrence Krauss, every time we look at dark energy, were killing the universe. Now
dark energy, as you may recall, makes up 70% of the universe. It answers for all the invisible peculiarities we see in
deep space. Its also one of the most perplexing concepts thats becoming more accepted nowadays. Why wouldnt
we try to explore it?
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He suggests that the Big Bang was initiated when strange high energy with repellent gravity decayed into
zero-energy; it went from a false vacuum to an ordinary vacuum causing the universe to happen. Now in quantum
mechanics, there is whats called the quantum Zeno effect. It states that if an unstable object is observed regularly, it
will never decay. Krauss argues then, that under the same principle, if dark energy is continuously observed, we are
keeping it unstable and reducing the universes lifespan by forcing it back to that state when it was a false vacuum.
With our interest so high in the invisible dark energy that makes up the universe, it seems unlikely that astronomers
will stop studying it. If Krauss is right, were doomed.

7. Matrix Universe
Does anyone remember that little movie that came out a few years ago? The protagonist could stop bullets
and see time slow down as he fought his enemies. It was called the Matrix. Did you catch it?
If you havent, (been living under a rock much?) go check it out, because it might provide the ultimate
answer to the universe: we live in a computer program. It surely seems like science fiction to say that one day
computers will become so powerful that they will be able to simulate consciousness, but as technology advances,
that crazy thought could become reality. In a simulated world, we could be trapped in the mundane until death or
live out fantasies and never even realize were hooked up to a machine. Hell, for all we know, were in a matrix
universe right now. Time to start a rebel team and escape, dont you think?

6. Universe is a Hologram
On the subject of the unreal, theres another theory that suggests were not in an elaborate computer program
but that much of what we think is the universe is nothing more than a hologram made by the universe itself.
The idea is when we look at the night sky, were seeing a wall with an image on it (that includes all the
galaxies and stars). This holographic principle might explain why the universe appears grainy on the most basic of
energy scales. Remember that a holographic image is created when an object is bathed by the light of a laser and a
second laser jumps off the firsts reflective surface (which is then recorded). A third light illuminates the image to
reveal the holograph. If changes to gravity waves is caused by patterns of light, than it would simulate what is,
essentially, the process of creating a holographic image. If this was proven, then it would change most of what we
think we know about the universe.

5. Black Hole Babies

We could be the child of a black hole. The idea is, when matter gets pulled into a black hole, it becomes so
dense before reaching singularity, that the black hole might spit it back out and form a universe from that very same
matter.
In other words, a universe with many black holes would have created many baby universes. We still cant
detect exactly where black holes are located in our universe (though we can estimate their location by recording the
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movement of stars and planets around them) but that might just be because were a baby universe, a product of
another universes black hole with insufficient means. This idea supports the possibility of the multiverse where
there could be an infinite amount of universes.

4. Many-Worlds Interpretation
On the subject of an omniverse, the many-worlds interpretation takes a different approach explaining
multiple universes. While I can tell you that this concept of quantum mechanics argues the objective reality of space
but denies the reality of wavefunction collapse (or rather the condensing of physical possibilities into one single
occurrence) but I go cross-eyed just thinking about that. Basically, the interpretation says for every decision we
make, a new universe is born.
When you woke up this morning, did you brush your teeth? Another you may be living in a different
universe where you didnt, while you live in the universe where you did (Im giving the present you the benefit of
the doubt). After that, did you floss? Again, a separate universe exists depending on the outcome of your choice.
Each decision then is played out in full until you come across another decision and another universe branches out
from there. If this is the case, then there are an infinite amount of universes, each accounting for every persons
every decision.

3. Heat Death
The argument uses the second law of thermodynamics by stating that if the universe was infinite, it should
also be infinitely old. Or to make that sound less daunting, a star one hundred light years away could only be there if
the universe was at least one hundred years old (if the speed was constant, more on that later). So if the universe is
infinitely old, heat death suggests everywhere should be the same temperature and there should be no stars in the sky
because they all would have died out (or they should all be at the same cooled temperature).
The explanation: If the universe was infinitely old, then stars should be cool because they warmed their
surroundings, making the temperature across the universe uniform. However, there are stars and the universe doesnt
have an equal temperature throughout (as detected by cosmic background radiation). This idea also only works if the
speed at which the universe is expanding has remained constant because such ideas as cosmic inflation claim
expansion is not always the same. When you have variables such as dark flow and dark energy also pushing and
tugging on matter, heat deaths vision of a starless sky appears dim (slight pun intended).

2. Theory of Everything
The theory of everything will be the ultimate discovery. It would combine quantum mechanics and general
relatively to solve all the riddles around us into a neat little package. It would be able to name all the physical
constants in the universe, whether or not those constants vary over time, locate other fundamental elements in the
unobservable universe (such as dark matter and dark energy), and so on.
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But why mention it here? Well, to have a theory that would explain all the mysteries of a seemingly changing
universe seems insane. Think of a screw trying to fit into hundreds of holes in a wall but every hole is a different
size and shape and possibly in a different dimension or universe. Thats a big achievement but scientists hope to find
a unified answer. The closest possibility we have right now is the M-theory, an extension of string theory.

BONUS Question: Is Hell endothermic (absorbs heat) or exothermic (gives off heat)?

First, we need to know how the mass of Hell is changing in time. So we need to know the rate at which souls
are moving into Hell and the rate at which they are leaving, which is unlikely. I think that we can safely assume that
once a soul gets to Hell, it will not leave. Therefore, no souls are leaving. As for how many souls are entering Hell,
lets look at the different religions that exist in the world today.
Most of these religions state that if you are not a member of their religion, you will go to Hell. Since there is
more than one of these religions and since people do not belong to more than one religion, we can project that all
souls go to Hell. With birth and death rates as they are, we can expect the number of souls in Hell to increase
exponentially. Now, we look at the rate of change of the volume in Hell because Boyles Law states that in order for
the temperature and pressure in Hell to stay the same, the volume of Hell has to expand proportionately as souls are
added.
This gives two possibilities:
1. If Hell is expanding at a slower rate than the rate at which souls enter Hell, then the temperature and
pressure in Hell will increase until all Hell breaks loose.
2. If Hell is expanding at a rate faster than the increase of souls in Hell, then the temperature and pressure
will drop until Hell freezes over.
So which is it?
If we accept the postulate given to me by Teresa during my Freshman year that, It will be a cold day in Hell
before I sleep with you, and take into account the fact that I slept with her last night, then number two must be true,
and thus I am sure that Hell is exothermic and has already frozen over. The corollary of this theory is that since Hell
has frozen over, it follows that it is not accepting any more souls and is therefore, extinct.. leaving only Heaven,
thereby proving the existence of a divine being which explains why, last night, Teresa kept shouting Oh my God.