Can the Universe hold all of mathematics? [more inside]
posted by DU on Jun 23, 2009 - 107 answers

Does expansion of the universe decelerate orbits of planets and/or rotation of galaxies? [more inside]
posted by knave on Jun 16, 2009 - 11 answers

Attention music lovers: I’m looking for music to accompany a gorgeous planetarium show about philosophy, cosmology, perception and the known universe. [more inside]
posted by Jennifer S. on Feb 24, 2009 - 43 answers

Is it possible to be bad at math and understand the structure of the universe? [more inside]
posted by diogenes on Aug 20, 2008 - 19 answers

Where did the universe come from in the first place? [more inside]
posted by mjewkes on Jul 12, 2008 - 40 answers

What are some topics in astronomy or cosmology that you find fascinating and mind blowing? [more inside]
posted by tomcochrane on Jul 3, 2008 - 17 answers

How is the universe 156 billion light years across if it is only 13.7 billion years old?
posted by plexi on Mar 12, 2008 - 17 answers

Is there an existing philosophical or cosmological model that regards the universe as a living thing with the observed patterns and "laws" of the universe being a reflection of an inherent model analogous to the genetic models of living things as we know them? My own uneducated philosophical meanderings have led me to this idea and I am wondering about developed theories or philosophies that follow similar lines. [more inside]
posted by beegull on Dec 7, 2007 - 12 answers

If wanted to arrive at the point in space where the big bang occurred, in which direction should I start traveling?
posted by wigglin on Aug 29, 2007 - 32 answers

Are there any great lecturers/public speakers in the realms of cosmology, astronomy and physics? [more inside]
posted by dydecker on Jun 4, 2007 - 21 answers

"A human is halfway in size between an atom and the known universe"... This is a paraphrased quote I have come across several times. I like it. Who said it first? How true is it in the most literal sense? And, finally, what errors arrive in postulating a universe, or an atom, which can be measured AT ALL from our singular, relativistic, perspective? [more inside]
posted by 0bvious on Feb 18, 2007 - 14 answers

Can you help a reasonably smart layperson (who is not very good at math) understand how the word "information" is used in physics? [more inside]
posted by grumblebee on Feb 15, 2007 - 35 answers

I am looking for sources that give the weight of the earth, volume of all the oceans, total acreage on the planet, total current population and guestimated total weight of said population. [more inside]
posted by goalyeehah on Aug 21, 2006 - 11 answers

Is it cosmic coincidence that the moon spins once on its axis in exactly the same time it takes to orbit the earth (hence the dark side we never see from earth) or is there some reason why this should be more likely?
posted by humuhumu on Jan 25, 2006 - 23 answers

Can anyone recommend any good recent articles or papers on whether the universe is infinite or finite? I've heard that scientists suspect that the universe is flat, which lends credence to the infinite-universe hypothesis. I've decided I don't know enough about this. Nothing too technical, please, though I'd prefer something more complex than an article from a newspaper science section.
posted by painquale on Jan 12, 2005 - 20 answers