BEGINNING OF THE BOOK:

CHAPTER: A NEW EPOCH                                             

Where we learn how the Universe’s mysterious and astonishing phenomena can be perceived and interpreted in so many different ways. How we must think differently to make progress to understand the myriad of mind-boggling events. We take a look at some of the mistakes Mankind has made and how mistakes seem part of natural progression.

 

The Universe’s genius, creativity and intelligence

 

-          “Either nothing is a miracle or everything is a miracle” – Albert Einstein.

-          Many phenomena are unexplainable, unfathomable and exceed the limits of human understanding.

-          The characteristics of the Universe are just as mystifying as its creation.

 

The more we learn about our Universe, the more fascinating we find its constituent parts. Of the countless discoveries Mankind has made, many have no obvious explanation.

The Universe’s creative genius is extraordinarily versatile, from nature’s oddly guarded secrets of time, space and matter, through to its mysterious forces. With such a vast expanse of space and time which appears almost infinite, our minds are overwhelmed with the incalculable possibilities of what could exist within it.

We can only begin to appreciate the Universe’s genius by observing phenomena closer to home. Some of them are truly fascinating, so let us take a swift look at a few of the Earth’s remarkable offerings.

Magicians are good at bamboozling us, but did you know that matter has a natural ability to exist in two places at once?

Astonishingly, observations have also been made that prove matter can interact with itself when in two places at the same time!

Many of us dream of an eternal life, but you may not be aware there is a mysterious jellyfish within the oceans of our planet which achieves this by perpetually bypassing death!

Humans have developed and evolved language, but we fail to communicate coherently with the other ten million different species on the planet. Some can sing in frequencies we cannot hear, detect colours that our eyes cannot see and send messages in worlds of scent, electricity and polarised light that we cannot begin to interpret!

Experiences over time help creatures learn, but there are birds such as the Manx Shearwater which leave their chicks behind in burrowed nests on British islands whilst they fly off to South America. Miraculously, sometime later the young birds follow, and, unaided, meet up with their parents six thousand miles away!

All current forms of communication are limited by the speed of light making them exceedingly slow when compared to the size of the Universe. However, nature has remarkably exhibited a mechanism for instantaneous communication over limitless distances!

 

Well there you are!

You are inextricably linked to the eccentricities of the Universe which are compiled here for your appreciation and enjoyment.

The genius of the Universe has produced billions of diverse inexplicable objects and breathtaking cosmic events. But for ourselves its most amazing achievement has been providing us with life.

Is the provision of life an ultimate objective of the Universe?

Is life a natural phenomenon?

Is life just a by-product of the existence of the Universe?

Total turmoil, ultimate tranquillity and complete balance are all experienced within the Universe thanks to its mastermind of creativity – but no one knows what underlying secrets the Universe holds!

Why is it here?

How did it come about?

What fuels it?

How big is it?

Will it ever end?

We can only speculate the answers to these and other similar questions. Exactly how the Universe came about is a true mystery, leaving scientists to endlessly theorise the way in which it materialised.

The creation of life should be perceived as the Universe’s outward expression of its own intelligence and its creative impulse. Its behaviour and practices are observable but often incomprehensible as it stems from an entity so original that it cannot be compared alongside anything else.

It is perhaps with this in mind that prompted Albert Einstein to say, “There are two ways to live: you can live as if nothing is a miracle, or you can live as if everything is a miracle.”

The Universe is artistic, talented, practical and original. It is not bound by limitations, and presents to us a seemingly endless void of space. Its enormous appeal invites us to explore its countless galaxies, but at the same time inhibits us from doing so by its sheer size. It only allows us to contemplate potential theories from our limited viewpoint here on planet Earth. We attempt to decipher its purpose through personal experience and study its wonders via exploration, art, science and philosophy.

Those who seek the Universe’s knowledge and experience are rewarded with a satisfying mental picture of a truly remarkable place. Whilst here, we should all try our best to perceive its wonder. We may not get a second chance!

The Universe has many unusual and mystifying traits to its existence. It appears to have an unfathomable behaviour, but upon closer inspection, individual characteristics become understandable with everything blending together.

Could it be that everything is intimately connected and has a purpose?

With all this in mind, the Universe resembles a profound eccentric with genius, creativity, expression and intelligence. It is for this reason I have entitled this book “The Eccentric Universe”.

 

Thankfully we have a planet upon which we may live and thrive, but our comprehension of what we observe is in its infancy. We can relate to what is food, we can make out shapes and how certain things function, but as to where all these things came from originally and how everything initially constructed itself – we have a great deal to learn.

We know so little about where we live.

There is so much more to discover

 

-          The more we learn about our Universe, the more we realise there is to discover.

-          Occasionally we get an innovative person who makes great headway with a truly groundbreaking discovery.

-          It has dawned upon humanity just how truly weird our Universe is.

 

The fact that the Universe exists means one of two things. Either, at one point in the distant past, there was an incredible sequence of events that forced the Universe to materialise, or it has always been in existence. If the Universe has always been here then the creation of complex life would be slightly easier to comprehend. However, if the Universe is just a few billion years old then the creation of complex life may have required some type of fast-track into existence.

Scientists believe from the red-shift observations made within light from distant stars and the discovery of cosmic microwave background radiation left over from the Big Bang that the Universe came into existence roughly thirteen point seven billion years ago. What existed before this time is a total mystery, and where the energy came from to create it is completely baffling.

The human race’s understanding of the Universe has progressed considerably over the centuries, but there is still so much more to discover. It was only in the early 1990’s that other planets orbiting other stars were detected. Prior to this, scientists were still debating whether the Sun possessed the only planetary solar system throughout the whole Universe. Now that astronomers have observed an abundance of planets orbiting other stars, it seems daft that the topic was debated at all. It makes great sense that there are other planets. It also makes great sense that some of these are habitable.

With the discovery of other planets orbiting other stars, in an identical way it feels only natural to consider life as a Universe-wide phenomenon. Although extra-terrestrial life has not been detected yet, many people have a gut feeling that it is out there. Just like those other planets proved to be, this too seems to make great sense.

The panspermia hypothesis was proposed as far back as the fifth century BC by the Greek Philosopher Anaxagoras, and has been upheld by some of the most revered scientists including Sir Fred Hoyle 1915 – 2001.

When considering how life could become a Universe-wide phenomenon, panspermia comes to the rescue. The panspermia hypothesis suggests that life-bearing spores are the carriers of life from one star system to another. It is not beyond the realm of biological possibility for suitably evolved spores to travel dormant for billions of years through deep space. Ultimately the spores would populate throughout the whole Universe.

Asteroids that collide with spore infested planets will send spores spiralling into outer space, just like the wind carries seeds in the air. The spores that land successfully on suitable planets would then relinquish their dormant state to evolve and diversify. Over time they may effortlessly evolve into a variety of different plants and creatures.

The more that life-forms are studied, the more it is understood that there are complex relationships with others. Most interestingly, many have finely tuned adaptations to the Universe’s forces at large – aerodynamics, gravity, electricity and magnetism are all productively utilised by many forms of life. There is absolutely no reason why certain species of spore could not develop similar finely tuned adaptations regarding the fundamental workings of the whole Universe, thus evolving to tackle the complexities of intergalactic travel.

Could this inherent panspermia-style knowledge within a spore be the mysterious way that the Universe spreads life across the cosmos?

Perhaps the debate will continue for a little while yet.

It would make sense to think that when life evolves, it evolves according to the physical rules of the Universe. However, it may be a little more advanced than this. It may also evolve according to the knowledge of the expanse of space and an awareness of the distances between star systems.

We are all unexpectedly born into this miraculous Universe then rapidly confronted with its mysteries. As soon as we arrive here, we cannot walk, we cannot talk, we cannot look after ourselves and the majority of people we see make funny noises and pull funny faces at us. From this time we must make sense of the immediate world around us, determine who our mother is and cry at the appropriate moments to get what we want!

The ‘way of the world’ does not really change much from this point!

As we get older we come to realise we live upon a planet that has been moulded and conjured from historical cosmic events and the wishes and desires of our ancestors; all we can do is seamlessly blend into it. Frankly, life really deserves an accompanying specialist survival handbook of sorts, but alas our ancestors failed to provide us with one! Rather, we have been inadvertently set on the road to planetary destruction which the majority of us seem to be content to follow – even to this day!

Unfortunately many of us still appear quite happy to sign up to work for logging companies, fuel-burning power stations and tuna-netting enterprises or other equally destructive organisations. Furthermore, people cannot easily visualise what the planet was like prior to man’s influence upon it, so it is very difficult to comprehend how devastating our presence has been.

Some extremely large areas of land have long since been subject to deforestation and handed over to complex agricultural practices which are now well established. Huge towns and cities have been built where thriving forests once stood. From these already deforested areas where massive populations now live, people learn of modern day deforestation activities around the globe and consider it atrocious!

In 1820, half the United States of America was covered in forest; now there is virtually none left. Developing countries see that the United States benefited greatly from this deforestation and view any attempt to deny developing countries the same opportunities as hypocritical. They argue that the poor should not have to bear the cost of preservation when the rich created the problem in the first instance.

For those currently cutting the trees down, they only see it as a means of economic survival - continuing what human beings have been doing for years. However, there are planetary limits to this activity - especially when we have technological improvements making it easier to cut the trees down.

It is thought that if deforestation continues – which by all accounts it will – there will be very little forest left in just two or three decades. To put all this very sad news into perspective, it has been estimated that a fifth of the entire world’s rainforest was destroyed between 1960 and 1990. Rainforest once covered fourteen per cent of the world’s land surface, but within a fifty year period from 1960 this was reduced to just six per cent – and so this trend still continues.

Unfortunately, human beings have an insatiable appetite for decimating forests – the trees are cut down for several reasons. According to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, UNFCCC, subsistence farming is responsible for forty-eight per cent of deforestation, commercial agriculture is responsible for thirty-two per cent of deforestation, logging is responsible for fourteen per cent of deforestation and the need for fuel woods is responsible for five per cent.

The general consensus of opinion is that it is too late to reverse the devastation inflicted upon our planet and as time goes by the situation seems to just get progressively worse.

Governments have left addressing the difficulties of the planet for far longer than is sensible. Their compromise to keep the age old status quo in tandem with introducing environmental policies has in the main left these policies suffering greatly. Within just two hundred years, the Earth’s human population has increased dramatically and we have reduced our wonderful planet, teeming with diverse life, into one which is struggling. Jeopardised species, unsustainable food chains, mass pollution, our garbage culture, the plundering of the planet’s resources and dreadful wars are but a few of our difficulties.

 

But there is hope!

In any discipline or walk of life there are always one or two people who lead the way. This may be because they are the most innovative, the first to discover something, the founder of an idea, the fastest, or the person with the most knowledge. Within this book we will identify some of the more successful and sometimes the less successful innovations of people, species, nature and the Universe. All these at one time could have been construed as a slightly freakish, weird, bizarre or altogether rather eccentric phenomenon.

When looking at the World and the Universe around us it becomes clear that the success of one freak invention, discovery or natural phenomenon ultimately develops into normality. This book celebrates the eccentric nature of these successes and analyses the questions and answers to, “What, why, how, and by whom?”

We will take a general look at the somewhat baffling aspects of the Universe and how humanity is just beginning to get a hold on precisely how weird it is.

It would appear that the more we learn about our Universe, the more we find there is to discover. This book reveals the way in which humans try to form an understanding of the Universe and how it is becoming increasingly important for eccentric views to be tolerated and taken seriously if progress is to be made.

 

For the survival of the planet and to continue the advancement of human knowledge, we must all adopt a healthier and more compassionate approach towards the Earth’s resources. Some people and organisations like Greenpeace have begun to get environmental issues onto world government agendas. For those that think this is a step in the right direction, unfortunately there may not be enough people determined to make the appropriate impact – but we shall soon see.

Alternatively, perhaps the world is heading in the direction that it is supposed to be at this time. The people living in their little bubbles that are controlled by governments are perhaps in for a real shock – again, we shall soon see.

Maybe the Universe has seen enough - had we treated the planet better, perhaps more of its secrets would have been revealed to us and the human race would be free to explore the Universe properly. It would make sense that intelligent races have to prove themselves before being granted the ability to go forth and multiply. If the Universe nurtures a prolific creature that is greedy and destructive then it will have failed in its mission.

Whilst most of us deep down know that the planet is being treated horrendously by humanity, we do very little about it. Unfortunately the solution to the situation is a collective one rather than an individual one.

To prevent further destruction of the planet and to progress our understanding of the Universe, we must think in a very different way.

We must think differently

 

-          We all see things in a different way, one person may see true beauty in an animal, another will see it as food.

-          We must think differently otherwise we will never get to understand the inner secrets of the Universe.

-          Perhaps a new approach will begin to solve the many unanswered questions that have arisen, bringing about a new epoch of thought.

 

There are roughly ten million species of creature on Earth, of these the human race is the only one that can leave lasting legacies. Our ability to build bridges, houses, skyscrapers, stadiums and dams has excelled and etched lasting constructions all over the world from which future generations may benefit. This is a revolutionary ability that no other creature, not even the dinosaurs managed to achieve.

Many people wish to leave their mark on the planet, whether this is to be an architect of a great cathedral, a famous actor, an author of a book or any other noteworthy achievement. Desires, wishes, experiences, looks, confidence, character, motivation and attitude are just some of the attributes that make people who they are.

The Universe’s astonishing phenomena can be interpreted by different people in countless ways. An artist may look upon a supernova as a beautiful subject for its colourful detail and intriguing shapes, whereas an astronomer may be more interested in cataloguing it, determining its age and establishing its distance from Earth. There is no right or wrong way to think, but according to Albert Einstein it would appear we need to think differently if we are to understand more and make significant progress.

Despite us all living within the same intriguing Universe, our individual cravings for knowledge differs considerably. Some people do not seem to care about the intricacies of the Universe about us, and others will dedicate their entire lives to it; from the poor orphans in the back of beyond who are too desperate to contemplate any deep questions, to Albert Einstein who worked out all the answers, then told us what the questions were!

We all have our position within this realm of potential thought and it is about time we knew a touch more. It is interesting, it can be riveting and we can all contribute.

Imagine how differently an eccentric professor may be thinking when in his dimly-lit garage producing crazy inventions that might change the world. He shakes with excitement as he switches on the machine for the first time, his hair unkempt, and sparks fly as the contraption whirs into life. We know he has been thinking differently!

Alas, ‘hair unkempt and sparks flying’ is not me! But I am told my original views and eccentric thoughts may well be of interest to many people, and one day may be of value to society. I have therefore documented them here for everyone’s judgement.

No matter how difficult a problem is, with the appropriate amount of analysis and dedication there should surely be a way forward. But with some problems, to achieve this, we need to think differently.

Much of our understanding of the Universe has transpired as a result of addressing topics in seemingly counter-intuitive ways. Discoveries are made by looking at things in different ways, ignoring what may appear as commonsense solutions and developing less plausible solutions in an almost eccentric fashion. As you will see, eccentric ideas often strike home as the ultimate way forward.

Einstein, referring to problems, famously said, “We can’t solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them.”

Therefore we need a new approach to tackle the unknown. A new train of thought is required to determine answers to our unanswered questions. This will mean looking at topics from different perspectives, extrapolating knowledge in directions previously alien to us, considering numerous alternatives and not being worried about being wrong.

Einstein also said, “The thinking that we are has brought us to where we have already been. In order to go somewhere else, we must think in a different way.”

He is simply saying that we have arrived at where we are in the world today by thinking in the fashion we have in the past, but in order to make future progress with knowledge, we must think differently.

There are numerous ways of looking at everything. For example, when looking closely at an insect, your mind can conjure up two extremes. The first extreme is that you see a rather strange-looking creature which you cannot wait to squash because you think it might bite you and suck your blood. Anyway, it gives you the creeps. The second extreme is that you see a beautifully-latticed creature with a myriad of mind-boggling survival tactics, an unimaginable process of reproduction and an inconceivable point of creation.

In a way, Albert Einstein was alluding towards this type of thought.

Do not let your inner inherent initial instinct become prevalent within you, allowing you to grab the leather fly swat and “Squish”. You must think deeper, more logically and more constructively about the beauty within the Universe and then the answers will flow. Just like your inner instinct when looking at a creepy crawly insect, let your mind grasp the whole as best it can - rather than some derisory initial thought.

Incidentally, for those of you who reach for the leather fly swat to exterminate the insect, perhaps next time you should consider the billions of years it took for the insect to evolve before simply swiping it.

We must all adopt a fresh approach to solve the unknown.

Are we about to enter a time with a new epoch of thought?

Perhaps it will be better to contemplate new views, ideologies and concepts with a modified approach.

Maybe we should take a lesson from airline pilots - so long as the approach is correct, we will have a much better chance of success!

 

It only takes a special second look at something by someone who thinks differently to spot that a concept or idea is not quite right. For years people thought horse’s legs moved in pairs, as a consequence artists drew hunting scenes with horses splayed out like wide-open stepladders. Some thought the world was flat. Many thought it would be impossible to build flying machines. Many thought that man stepping foot on the Moon was impossible.

Just by thinking differently people have made both small and giant leaps forward.