The Mind of God

READER DISCOVERIES

11. Dark Matter Update, p. 158, 264

With the developments of modern science, many have developed the attitude that we have a good handle on the nature of reality. Recent astronomical observations might challenge that assertion. It is currently thought (2003) that the ordinary matter we are acquainted with accounts for only 5% of the universe's total mass and energy. The remainder is called "dark matter," and "dark energy," or "negative gravity." Scientists are not sure what it is. Some physicists are even re-thinking the existence of the "ether," an invisible mass that was once thought to occupy what we now call empty space. The new version of the ether is theorized to consist of particles that fluctuate in and out of existence, creating pressure that is expanding the universe. The situation is perhaps best summed up by Sean Carrol, an astronomer from the University of Chicago: "We should be humble about dark energy. We haven't a clue as to what is going on." (Mysteries of the Dark Universe Confound Scientists by Robert S. Boyd Knight Ridder, July 1, 2003)