Written on 9th of Feb, 2016. Updated on 21st of Jan, 2022.
Cosmology is the branch of physics that aims to study the origin, evolution, and eventual fate of the universe and everything it contains. It is a fascinating and intriguing subject that endeavours to answer some of the biggest questions we can ask: how did the universe begin?, how will it end?, are we alone?
Humankind has always been driven by the need to know more. Some of the oldest known civilisations already looked to the stars and the cosmos to answer their questions. Our understanding of the universe and our place in it is constantly progressing. We now have equations to explain phenomena we could only dream of before, we have credible and testable theories about the origin of the universe, we have technology that allows us to probe the furthest and darkest realms of the universe looking for answers. And the more we find out, the more we realise we have yet to learn.
Somewhere along the way it seems cosmology stopped being open to all and became a secluded discipline, reserved for “those crazy physicists” who understand the equations. This is the case with many sciences; scientists communicate in their own jargon, scientific papers are expensive and difficult to access, and people are often scared away from the world of academia. But understanding the universe is something everyone wants to do, and everyone should be able to. All you need is a bit of patience, a lot of curiosity, and a willingness to learn.
I’m a theoretical physicist: one of “those crazy physicists” who tries to understand the universe. I spend my days battling with equations, writing codes, simulating the universe on my computer, and trying to make academia and science more welcome to everyone. And drinking coffee and eating cinnamon buns. There really is a lot of coffee involved in science. One of my favourite things to do is tell people about the joys and wonders of the universe.
This blog is a companion to the weekly Cup of Cosmology streams, aimed at anyone who likes cosmology; whatever your level is I hope this blog will be useful and ideally enjoyable. I will try to explain cosmological concepts in a clear and concise way, without assuming any background knowledge.
If you are new to cosmology, I hope to provide you with an understandable introduction to one of the most intriguing fields of science. If you are well-versed in the subject, perhaps these posts will be an entertaining review.
I aim to cover a range of topics; cosmology allows us to probe the whole universe; everything from the early stages of the universe to black holes, galaxies, structure formation, dark matter, the death of the universe, and everything in between. Even hypothetical concepts like time travel, wormholes, and parallel worlds can be discussed in the framework of cosmology.
I have never been good at keeping this blog alive. Now that the blog has a new home, perhaps updates will be more frequent. I can’t commit to publishing new posts often, but hopefully there will still be new things added. But I do commit to frequent livestreams.
Science is awesome; it’s rewarding, exciting, tiring, complex, and fun. But most of all science is understandable. Let’s understand it together.
Cup of Cosmology 