Category: Einstein

Astronomers discover largest known structure in the universe

On By A.P.In astronomy, Cosmological Principle, cosmology, Einstein, Kebmodee, large quasar groups, Quasars, Space and Time, University of Central Lancashire1 Comment

universe_largest_structure

Astronomers have discovered the largest known structure in the universe – a group of quasars so large it would take 4 billion years to cross it while traveling at speed of light.

The immense scale also challenges Albert Einstein’s Cosmological Principle, the assumption that the universe looks the same from every point of view, researchers said.

The findings by academics from Britain’s University of Central Lancashire were published in the journal Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society and reported on the society’s website on Friday.

Quasars are believed to be the brightest objects in the universe, with light emanating from the nuclei of galaxies from the early days of the universe and visible billions of light-years away.

“Since 1982 it has been known that quasars tend to group together in clumps or ‘structures’ of surprisingly large sizes, forming large quasar groups or LQGs,” the society said.

This newly discovered large quasar group has a dimension of 500 megaparsecs, each megaparsec measuring 3.3 million light-years.

Because the LQG is elongated, its longest dimension is 1,200 megaparsecs, or 4 billion light-years, the society said.

That size is 1,600 times larger than the distance from Earth’s Milky Way to the nearest galaxy, the Andromeda.

“While it is difficult to fathom the scale of this LQG, we can say quite definitely it is the largest structure ever seen in the entire universe,” Roger Clowes, leader of the research team, said in a statement. “This is hugely exciting – not least because it runs counter to our current understanding of the scale of the universe.”

Clowes said the team would continue to investigate the phenomenon with particular interest in the challenge to the Cosmological Principle, which has been widely accepted since Einstein, whose work still forms the basis for much of modern cosmology.

Thanks to Kebmodee for bringing this to the attention of the It’s Interesting community.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/01/12/space-quasars-idUSL1E9CC08B20130112

Scientists decode why Einstein was a genius

On By A.P.In Albert Einstein, Einstein, Science, The BrainLeave a comment

 

Physicist Albert Einstein’s brain had an “extraordinary” prefrontal cortex – unlike those of most people – which may have contributed to his remarkable genius, a new study has claimed.

According to the study led by Florida State University evolutionary anthropologist Dean Falk, portions of Einstein’s brain have been found to be unlike those of most people and could be related to his extraordinary cognitive abilities.

Falk and his colleagues describe for the first time the entire cerebral cortex of Einstein’s brain from an examination of 14 recently discovered photographs.

The researchers compared Einstein’s brain to 85 “normal” human brains and, in light of current functional imaging studies, interpreted its unusual features.

“Although the overall size and asymmetrical shape of Einstein’s brain were normal, the prefrontal, somatosensory, primary motor, parietal, temporal and occipital cortices were extraordinary.

“These may have provided the neurological underpinnings for some of his visuospatial and mathematical abilities, for instance,” said Falk.

The study was published in the journal Brain.

On Einstein’s death in 1955, his brain was removed and photographed from multiple angles with the permission of his family. Furthermore, it was sectioned into 240 blocks from which histological slides were prepared.

A great majority of the photographs, blocks and slides were lost from public sight for more than 55 years. The 14 photographs used by the researchers now are held by the National Museum of Health and Medicine.

The study also published the “roadmap” to Einstein’s brain prepared in 1955 by Dr Thomas Harvey to illustrate the locations within his previously whole brain of 240 dissected blocks of tissue, which provides a key to locating the origins within the brain of the newly emerged histological slides.

http://www.phenomenica.com/2012/11/scientists-decode-why-einstein-was-a-genius.html