Holy Shit, Guys.

"Evan, Pope Of Jalopnik by Self-Appointment" (evanmcm)
12/21/2013 at 21:55 • Filed to: astrophysics

I'm struggling to pick the pieces of my mind up off the floor here while I write this.

I just read the entire timeline of far future events on Wikipedia, mostly because I was looking to get away from reading a book on entropy and the second law of thermodynamics. It basically blew my mind.

You can find it here: !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!!

Its unbelievable stuff. Not because it is actually, well, unbelievable , but because it is just so unbelievably big, in every way. Numbers, years, forces, masses, time, distance, speed. It's almost too much to take in. To add to it, this album was playing in the background:

It was almost too profound for words. It just makes you really realize how many forces are at work beyond what we know now, or what we even deal with in day to day life. I used that picture for a reason. The 65 AMG cars are still some of the most powerful cars you can buy in terms of torque, and produce enough force to literally almost rip your face off. They are absolutely, incredibly, unbelievably insane for a factory built, warrantied, and daily-drivable vehicle. Yet 738 pound feet of torque is literally nothing compared to the forces at work on even a small scale across the planet. To say nothing of the interstellar forces at work in the universe. But to us, its an obscene amount of power. Almost more than we know what to do with, at least with 2 driven wheels, and certainly a damn site more than we need.

Every once in a while, I take some time to think about this. Even a Veyron SS, delimited, and on the longest, straightest road in the world, won't break 270 mph. Again, that's insanely fast for us. But in the grand scheme of things, its not even moving. Its not even worth getting out of bed for.

It's almost scary to think about how ceaselessly powerful the laws of physics are, and how things really will continue in the way that they must, whether we like it or not. I am a religious person, but I can appreciate how insignificant we really are in the scope of the universe as a whole. Its somewhat sad to think about that someday, all this will actually end, because it has to. But, it's also profoundly amazing that all this even exists.

Sorry if that was too long, just felt I had to share. Anybody else here dabble occasionally in astrophysics? It's quite interesting, I think.

DISCUSSION (18)

McChiken116 - Patrick H. > Evan, Pope Of Jalopnik by Self-Appointment
12/21/2013 at 21:57

If I ever need to have an existential crisis, I do dabble in the future of the universe

matt > Evan, Pope Of Jalopnik by Self-Appointment
12/21/2013 at 21:59

The universe is pretty rad.

The Opponaut formerly known as MattP123 > Evan, Pope Of Jalopnik by Self-Appointment
12/21/2013 at 22:07

I love watching space related documentaries.

Kinja'd!!!

Evan, Pope Of Jalopnik by Self-Appointment > The Opponaut formerly known as MattP123
12/21/2013 at 22:25

I could literally watch Hawking's stuff on Netflix all day and not be bored at all.

Evan, Pope Of Jalopnik by Self-Appointment > McChiken116 - Patrick H.
12/21/2013 at 22:25

I'm not even sure which comes first...reading about the vastness of the universe or the existential crisis.

Evan, Pope Of Jalopnik by Self-Appointment > matt
12/21/2013 at 22:26

Yes. Yes it is. 100% agreed.

The Opponaut formerly known as MattP123 > Evan, Pope Of Jalopnik by Self-Appointment
12/21/2013 at 22:26

Anything space related... I love it. It's just so fascinating and really makes your mind wander and dream.

Evan, Pope Of Jalopnik by Self-Appointment > The Opponaut formerly known as MattP123
12/21/2013 at 22:28

Yeah I agree. Its like a door into another world.

matt > Evan, Pope Of Jalopnik by Self-Appointment
12/21/2013 at 22:28

Kinja'd!!!

Like sometimes I'll try to read up on some stuff but my brain doesn't let me.

Jayhawk Jake > Evan, Pope Of Jalopnik by Self-Appointment
12/21/2013 at 22:36

The scary thing? The 'will have likely' events such as supervolcanos and meteor strikes aren't predictions of when they will happen, they are statements that they could happen literally any day now, but within x number of years the probability is near 1 that they will have occurred.

The Yellowstone caldera could erupt tomorrow, or in 100,000 years.

Telumektar > Evan, Pope Of Jalopnik by Self-Appointment
12/21/2013 at 22:42

like... into the Universe?

Man, that timeline just blew my mind. At first I wasn't that impressed but after Earth becomes unable to sustain life stuff gets pretty trippy.

Thanks

TurboSloth > Evan, Pope Of Jalopnik by Self-Appointment
12/21/2013 at 23:04

This made me disappointed

100,000 – 1 million years: According to Michio Kaku , time by which humanity may be a Type III civilization , capable of harnessing all the energy of the galaxy.

Michio Kaku , in a lecture, said that the Star Wars fictional universe is considered as Type III.

Michio Kaku suggested that humans may attain Type I status in 100–200 years

MAN. WE'RE NOT EVEN TYPE I YET? CMON HUMANITY, GET YO SHIT TOGETHER. I WANT TO SEE LIGHTSPEED AND REENACT SOME STAR WARS SCENES BEFORE I DIE.

Evan, Pope Of Jalopnik by Self-Appointment > TurboSloth
12/21/2013 at 23:42

That's what I'm saying. I hope to God that this joint project by Google and guys like Peter Thiel to figure out how to expand our lives many times over works out, I'm trying to see some shit. I wouldn't mind living for a thousand years, so long as at least my close friends are able to stick around with me. There'd be some seriously cool stuff.

Evan, Pope Of Jalopnik by Self-Appointment > Telumektar
12/21/2013 at 23:43

Yeah that's really when it starts to really test the boundaries of what you're able to process. No problem at all. Now I'm not the only one curled up in a ball in the corner of my bedroom thinking about fiery death and black holes.

Evan, Pope Of Jalopnik by Self-Appointment > Jayhawk Jake
12/21/2013 at 23:45

This. I hate that shit. "So, we think this could definitely happen in the future." Alright, so...when? "Well, honestly, it could be happening right now, but its not. So really, its best to just expect in your lifetime. By the time you're old, the probability will likely be closer to 1 than not. Have a nice life." Alright thanks guy.

Evan, Pope Of Jalopnik by Self-Appointment > matt
12/21/2013 at 23:46

I was waiting for this haha. It really can start to get....heavy...after a while.

PS9 > Evan, Pope Of Jalopnik by Self-Appointment
12/22/2013 at 00:16

All fundamental particles will break down in only 10 200 years? Holy shit, guys. I gotta get my shit together before I disintegrate!

Evan, Pope Of Jalopnik by Self-Appointment > PS9
12/22/2013 at 00:38

Basically, through the law of entropy (which I'm reading a wonderful book on right now), all "heat" or energy in the universe will be equalized. To the point where literally only Protons and Neutrons will be left flying around space randomly. And that will be it. It actually makes mathematical sense, when you think about it. But its still crazy.