The Standard Model - Davy Jones

I realise that many MAS members will have read some of my scribbling.  However, as Face Book offers a wider audience, and many people seem to enjoy reading almost anything on the absorbing subject of astronomy, I thought I might adapt some of my archived work for others to peruse.

One of the columns offered in the now defunct club magazine – Prime Focus – was (tongue in cheek) called "Musings".  I liked that column very much simply because it offered a little more freedom of expression.  Without such freedom – Einstein and his ilk would never have been afforded the opportunity to day-dream – to hypothesize – call it what you will.  Just for the record – this approach in physics is called: "A thought experiment" or, if your name happened to be Einstein..."das Gedankenexperiment".

The first article I offered in that column went something like this:

Musings - hum - never thought of myself as a muse!  However, I'm quite surprised Prime Focus isn't essentially a compendium of musings - considering the universe is such a catalyst for musings generally.   

The word - muse - is these days perhaps more associated with day-dreaming or idle thoughts.  The origin though, is very different, with its roots way back with those - oh so Ancient Greeks.  There were nine Greek Muses; all with excellent family credentials in the gods' department - each associated with a different set of inspirational or philosophical disciplines.

Astronomy - falling well within these parameters - unsurprisingly, has its own dedicated muse, who went by the name of Urania.  Her cloak, naturally, was emblazoned with stars and symbols and her attention was centred at all times on the glorious heavens above. 

Urania, o'er her star-bespangled lyre,

With touch of majesty diffused her soul;

A thousand tones, that in the breast inspire,

Exalted feelings, o er the wires'gan roll—

How at the call of Jove the mist unfurled,

And o'er the swelling vault—the glowing sky,

The newborn stars hung out their lamps on high,

And rolled their mighty orbs to music's sweetest sound.

—From An Ode To Music by James G. Percival

Anyway, that'll be quite enough of that - thank you - it's time I revealed my musings of late.  I think the fairly confident discovery of the Higgs' Boson prompted my current line in musings.  With talk of various models of the universe coming to the fore, one cannot help but ponder, in an uninformed and somewhat crude manner, on the secrets that as yet lay undiscovered.

I have just a sneaking suspicion that whilst the universe in its entirety is indeed an extremely complex affair, once its origins are revealed, the 'processes' which brought it about will essentially be simple.  Funny how anyone can make that type of statement with hindsight (or in ignorance)!

Having exposed my unsubstantiated musings I am obliged to some degree to explain myself with - if possible - a terrestrial equivalence.   After a further extended period of musing - hopefully the following might make a skerrick of sense.

Think of an electricity generating station - coal - hydro - nuclear - gas - geothermal or whatever;  the initial process of generating electricity is much the same whatever the source or mode of generation.  The result is a reasonably clean and simple process that leads to the formation of pure energy in a distributable form; then the electrical energy bursts forth and leaves the plant at almost the speed of light – allow for attenuation caused by cables etc! 

It is now that the process of the conservation of energy begins in earnest, and is played out in a million different ways in our daily lives.  The pure energy aids the production of all the wonders of our modern world.  Not only that, at times it even causes the occasional tragedy.  Take the death of an unwary or complacent human being - an electrician or enthusiastic amateur - who gets themselves killed whilst working with this invisible Wunderkraft.  

All this complexity and drama, however, is developing far from the generating plant.   Once combined with other technologies the original clean and pure electrical energy may even produce yet more undesirable results, such as noxious waste products, or other less obvious pollutants such as light or noise pollution - think Rock Concert. 

Put quite simply: I envisage  the universe to be much the same - that which the enthusiastic, dedicated astronomer will spend hours - often enduring bitter cold nights or balmy mosquito infested summer evenings - to soak up through the eyepiece of equipment (that costs an arm and a leg) may simply be the debris released or created far from the original simple generating source of the pure energy. 

The natural processes of mixing gases - superheating - cooling - swirling - the generation of vast fields of electro-magnetic forces - and the intermingling of massive secondary forces, will obviously bring about many seemingly unexplainable phenomena.  Such phenomena may though in fact have very little to do with the original relatively simple source of production. 

Oh well - it was only a thought...

Whilst totally inconclusive, I have since had further thoughts on this particular subject, which I may at some time share with the world at large.  But Musing – does allow one to clear one’s mind of clutter.