This Video About The Scale of Black Holes Will Crush Your Brain

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  • sharpiefan
    Pro-metric Space Cadet
    • Aug 2013
    • 5267

    This Video About The Scale of Black Holes Will Crush Your Brain

    Excerpt
    Black holes are vast, matter-annihilating objects that seem to defy physics by their very existence. They're so weird, that when Albert Einstein's equations first predicted the existence of these beasts, he didn't believe they could actually be real.

    And you can't really blame him, because the idea that we have these singularities of space-time intent on sucking up all the matter around them scattered all around our cosmic backyard is pretty hard to wrap your head around.

    But as people who write about black holes a lot, we figured we were past being shocked by how strange and massive they are.

    That is, until we saw this video from YouTuber morn1415, famous for their size comparisons of the Universe.


    This Video About The Scale of Black Holes Will Crush Your Brain (ARTICLE LINK)

    #include [std-disclaimer]

    Hope the voyage is a long one.
    May there be many a summer morning when,
    with what pleasure, what joy,
    you come into harbors seen for the first time...

    Ithaka, by Cavafy
    (Keeley - Sherrard translation)
  • LeeG
    Senior Member
    • May 2002
    • 72895

    #2
    Re: This Video About The Scale of Black Holes Will Crush Your Brain

    that’s disturbing

    Comment

    • ron ll
      Seattle WA USA (Ballard)
      • Oct 2005
      • 24327

      #3
      Re: This Video About The Scale of Black Holes Will Crush Your Brain

      Originally posted by LeeG
      that’s disturbing
      But the last line is comforting. "Without black holes, we wouldn't be here."

      Comment

      • LeeG
        Senior Member
        • May 2002
        • 72895

        #4
        Re: This Video About The Scale of Black Holes Will Crush Your Brain

        squeezing the Earth to a peanut is a black hole density, squeezing the Earth to 900’ sphere is neutron star density. Ok, black holes take it.

        Comment

        • Tom Lathrop
          Senior Member
          • Dec 1999
          • 5305

          #5
          Re: This Video About The Scale of Black Holes Will Crush Your Brain

          While I don't have a problem believing that black holes exist, there is the nagging thought that the talking heads don't really understand all the science they keep throwing at us. Its very reasonable to think that the gravity at the center of galaxies will be great enough to avoid rules of normal physics but projecting from that is risky and may be just conjecture.

          In fact, I strongly suspect that most of what they claim to know is probably wrong or quite incomplete. Point in fact is that most of what was previously "known" about the makeup of objects like moons in our own solar system has be drastically revised several times as data from space probes is analyzed. If we are wrong so often about cosmic stuff so nearby, how can they be so certain about stuff not even "visible" to any of our instrumentation?
          Tom L

          Comment

          • Gerarddm
            #RESIST
            • Feb 2010
            • 32495

            #6
            Re: This Video About The Scale of Black Holes Will Crush Your Brain

            Literally mind boggling stuff, thanks.
            Gerard>
            Albuquerque, NM

            Next election, vote against EVERY Republican, for EVERY office, at EVERY level. Be patriotic, save the country.

            Comment

            • Harry Miller
              Senior Member
              • Mar 2003
              • 2136

              #7
              Re: This Video About The Scale of Black Holes Will Crush Your Brain

              They spelt the possessive its with an apostrophe. So everything else must be wrong. ��

              Comment

              • BrianY
                Left Wing Extremist
                • Apr 2004
                • 7942

                #8
                Re: This Video About The Scale of Black Holes Will Crush Your Brain

                Originally posted by Tom Lathrop
                While I don't have a problem believing that black holes exist, there is the nagging thought that the talking heads don't really understand all the science they keep throwing at us. Its very reasonable to think that the gravity at the center of galaxies will be great enough to avoid rules of normal physics but projecting from that is risky and may be just conjecture.

                In fact, I strongly suspect that most of what they claim to know is probably wrong or quite incomplete. Point in fact is that most of what was previously "known" about the makeup of objects like moons in our own solar system has be drastically revised several times as data from space probes is analyzed. If we are wrong so often about cosmic stuff so nearby, how can they be so certain about stuff not even "visible" to any of our instrumentation?
                They are as certain it is possible to be at this point in time. That doesn't mean that everything they "know" is 100% true or that they know 100% of everything there is to know. In science "knowing something is true" actually means "the preponderance of evidence available to us at this time makes it highly likely that X is true"

                Black holes are observed indirectly by observing the behavior of visible matter around them. Like watching the water swirl around a drain without actually seeing the drain itself. How do "they" know they're right? If the observations of this visible stuff match up with the predictions of how it should behave if their assumptions about the nature of the unobservable black hole are correct, then they know they're right.
                Last edited by BrianY; 04-02-2018, 01:45 PM.
                I rather be an American than a Republican.

                Comment

                • Tom Lathrop
                  Senior Member
                  • Dec 1999
                  • 5305

                  #9
                  Re: This Video About The Scale of Black Holes Will Crush Your Brain

                  Originally posted by BrianY
                  How do "they" know they're right? If the observations of this visible stuff match up with the predictions of how it should behave if their assumptions about the nature of the unobservable black hole are correct, then they know they're right.
                  That addresses my last sentence. They also believe that "normal" physics breaks down in the ultra ridiculously unimaginably high gravity in the black hole. My concern is, how do they predict the action if they don't know the physics. Math can predict mathematically possible outcomes based on the given assumptions but what are the assumptions? Not all possible math outcomes are real possible outcomes.

                  Granted that these people are smarter than me but that does not mean that they are always right as witness the number of times they are wrong about nearby stuff or even stuff on this blue ball. I'm still a follower of their work and words but not slavishly without question.
                  Tom L

                  Comment

                  • PeterSibley
                    Senior Member
                    • Dec 2001
                    • 70993

                    #10
                    Re: This Video About The Scale of Black Holes Will Crush Your Brain

                    Originally posted by Gerarddm
                    Literally mind boggling stuff, thanks.
                    What he said ! +1
                    '' You ain't gonna learn what you don't want to know. ''
                    Grateful Dead

                    Comment

                    • Durnik
                      Out 'n About
                      • Feb 2011
                      • 11563

                      #11
                      Re: This Video About The Scale of Black Holes Will Crush Your Brain

                      You're in good company, Tom.

                      J. B. S. Haldane
                      My own suspicion is that the universe is not only queerer than we suppose, but queerer than we *can* suppose.

                      Comment

                      • gypsie
                        NSW Australia
                        • Jun 2010
                        • 8153

                        #12
                        Re: This Video About The Scale of Black Holes Will Crush Your Brain

                        Holy Crap Value = 100

                        It's all fun and games until Darth Vader comes.

                        Comment

                        • JimD
                          Senior Mumbler
                          • Feb 2002
                          • 29713

                          #13
                          Re: This Video About The Scale of Black Holes Will Crush Your Brain

                          So if a black hole crushes my brain, how small would it be? Golf ball size? Even smaller? What if my head got sucked into a black hole but not my body? Would I look like this?

                          There is no rational, logical, or physical description of how free will could exist. It therefore makes no sense to praise or condemn anyone on the grounds they are a free willed self that made one choice but could have chosen something else. There is no evidence that such a situation is possible in our Universe. Demonstrate otherwise and I will be thrilled.

                          Comment

                          • Bob (oh, THAT Bob)
                            I fix stuff.
                            • Feb 2007
                            • 10222

                            #14
                            Re: This Video About The Scale of Black Holes Will Crush Your Brain

                            A recent episode of PBS Nova has tons of new info about black holes (I think some less than five years old). Hosted by the hot astrophysicist Janna Levin.

                            Take a mind-blowing voyage to the most powerful and mysterious objects in the universe.
                            sigpic When you can take the pebble from my hand, it will be time for you to leave.

                            Comment

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