(November 20, 2016 at 4:51 pm)Rhondazvous Wrote:(November 20, 2016 at 3:25 pm)Alex K Wrote: With the dark energy, the problem isn't so much that they can't find it - there is a free parameter in Einstein's field equation, the cosmo. constant, which regulates dark energy. So from a theoretician's perspective, the mere existence of DE isn't so surprising, nor necessarily demanding an explanation. The trouble is rather that all the virtual particles and the higgs field on paper contribute such a ridiculous amout of dark energy that the actual puzzle is - why is there so little of it! On paper, you need to set the cosmo constant to 120 digits precision to cancel the dark energy coming from all the virtual particles down to the observed value. That seems strange, and that's the open question - is that an artifact of the way we formulate our theory, is it a sign that we don't understand quantum gravity, is it an anthropic tuning, or is it just that way and there's no explanation?"is it an anthropic tuning, or is it just that way and there's no explanation? " = God did it. But we won't go there. Oh hell to the no.
Anthropic tuning doesn't automatically mean God did it, the obvious alternative possibility would be that there are regions with different values of dark energy in the Universe, and we find ourselves in one where the value is small enough such that stars can form.
The fool hath said in his heart, There is a God. They are corrupt, they have done abominable works, there is none that doeth good.
Psalm 14, KJV revised edition
