The fundamental constants of nature—such as the speed of light, Planck's constant, and Newton's gravitational constant—are thought to be constant in time, as their name suggests. But scientists have questioned this assumption as far back as 1937, when Paul Dirac hypothesized that Newton's gravitational constant might decrease over time.

Now in a new paper published in Physical Review Letters, Yevgeny V. Stadnik and Victor V. Flambaum at the University of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia, have theoretically shown that dark matter can cause the fundamental constants of nature to slowly evolve as well as oscillate due to oscillations in the dark matter field. This idea requires that the weakly interacting dark matter particles be able to interact a small amount with standard model particles, which the scientists show is possible.

In their paper, the scientists considered a model in which dark matter is made of weakly interacting, low-mass particles. In the early Universe, according to the model, large numbers of such dark matter particles formed an oscillating field. Because these particles interact so weakly with standard model particles, they could have survived for billions of years and still exist today, forming what we know as dark matter.

Although these low-mass dark matter particles are weakly interacting, they are thought to still interact with standard model particles to some extent, but it's unclear exactly how much. By using data from experiments that have measured the amount of helium produced during big bang nucleosynthesis (basically the following seconds and minutes after the Big Bang, where the majority of the universe's helium was produced), as well as measurements of the rare element dysprosium and the cosmic microwave background, Stadnik and Flambaum have derived the most stringent limits to date on how strongly such dark matter particles interact with photons, electrons, and light quarks, improving on existing constraints by up to 15 orders of magnitude.

The new limits on the dark matter interaction strength allow for the possibility that an oscillating, low-mass dark matter field coupled to standard model particles causes variations in the fundamental constants. As the scientists explain, this could have important implications for understanding life's origins.

"We have shown that linking dark matter and variation of the fundamental constants of Nature leads to a major breakthrough in the sensitivity of dark matter searches," Flambaum said. "We plan to continue searching for other novel signatures of dark matter that may lead to the direct detection of dark matter for the first time."

A comment from the article:

The way they describe it is similar to the "brane" solution for gravity, that gravity exists in another brane and interacts with matter in this brane, explaining the relative weakness of the force.

If dark matter worked the same way, that would fit, it interacts gravitationally, and possibly very weakly in other fields, but we can't find out what it is, because it's not present with us in this brane, all we have is the evidence of the interactions.

I had to quote most of the article, because almost all it is vital. I underlined the crucial parts doe

Does anyway else have interest in this sort of thing or am I just a gay boi

 

rip http://sep7agon.net/index.php?topic=50905.0

OGMA (this guy was a monster)

“Oh Brother, I never intended to keep our promise”, breathed the standing person. The dark waters of that hopeless ocean witnessed the gusts dance a wild dance, a dance more and more frantic after each dying moment. The wooden beachfront cabin, towering high above the sands below, stood on trembling beams as the tempest bellowed throughout. Three walls and the roof had been engulfed.

Hansen, lying prostrate, wondered how much more he could stand. Legs utterly broken, a certain cohesion occurred in that moment, for the puzzle was complete. Grasping the creases between each plank floorboard with his bloodied fingertips, the wreckage of a man scuttled away from the standing person, and towards the wall with the door, the finishing door.

Morose waves curled, bubbled and released upon the dead shore. Planks littered the coastline, grim mementos of what was being lost. A dismal groan whispered through the gale, and Hansen’s frenzied roll was scarcely enough to evade the wall’s submission. There remained only the door, now. 

“Who do you think knew the Magistrate’s secret? Alicia? Sure, she did too, but that’s why she’s kissing the bottom of the sea. You know, the real behemoth is in us.” Punishing winds resounded in torment behind the brother’s callous, knowing grin.

The ground his greatest ally, Hansen shifted his weary body right to left, dreaming of reaching that door, that sanctuary. Yet the brother laughed at his feeble advances all the while, and so did the storm, too.

“We will both die here, and no one will ever know the secret that will save the remnants of this world. Isn’t that hilarious, brother?”

Closer, closer…

“Hansen?”

Hansen’s shivering palm clasped onto the gilded, precious doorknob. “Fuck your secret.”

Rising up against the wind of the world’s end and the deepest betrayal, he opened the door and walked the dinosaur

If you have seen this movie I'm your friend and you don't have any say in the matter.

Surprised no one made a thread about this yet.

I'm uneasy as it seems to give leverage to corporations that are already well off, and from what I've read about the specifics, I don't know how small business owners of the various countries (namely poorer ones in this context) can compete with larger multinational corporations in regards to agriculture or pharmaceuticals for example.

Does have a more elaborate opinion about TPP?

The disappointments following sincere, diligent efforts?

Why must we try to clutch desperately for the mere threads of this world when we can clasp onto a tapestry of untold magnificence beyond this plane of existence?

T4R

I'd say my mom atm