How credible is the Big Bang?

Question

I understand that most Evolutionists believe in the Big Bang Theory. I have studied it myself and it's a fascinating idea, but I have two doubts about it::

1) If matter cannot be created nor destroyed, then what would there have been to go "bang"? And how did it get there in the first place?

2) If energy cannot be created nor destroyed, then what made the supposed "stuff" go "bang"? How did the energy get there?

Please try to be as detailed as possible as I am genuinely looking for an answer, and not trying to back you into a corner.

I have entered this question into the Science section also; I merely noticed that there were people in the Religion section supporting the Big Bang and I wanted to get their opinions as well.

Answer 1

1) This is the fundemental problem with any creation story. If we assume that there is a begining to the universe then there must be a point at which nothing became something - since this doesn't happen (that we have observed) today, it is difficult to imagine how it could have happened. There are a few hypotheses, with varying amounts of empirical support, that have been proposed to deal with this: One that the "Big Bang" was not a unique occurence, but one in a never-ending cycle of "Big Bangs" (our univese will eventually colapse into instelf, then expand again, etc.) but, since the universe is expanding at an increasing rate - I don't by this one. Another hypothesis is that there are other universes, in other dimensions (i.e. that exist parrallel to ours, but shifted slightly along another axis other than x,y, or z) and that the "Big Bang" was the result of a collision or a mixing or other intertaction between these dimensions... therefore what would apear, from our perspective to be a creation of something from nothing is really just a transfer of something from one dimension to another. there are other hypotheses, as well... but, you get the point.

2) Energy and matter cannot be created or destroyed, but they CAN be converted into one another, say, in a nuclear reaction. (E = mc^2) so it takes a lot of energy to make a little bit of matter... and a lot of energy can be gotten from a small amount of matter. but, really 1 and 2 are the same question because the "it" in 1 is energy and matter.

some points to think about, though... these problems are not just persent in the Big Bang theory but in any theory that proposes to explain creation as a unique event that happened once. i.e. if there is a "begining" then there must be some point at which something came from nothing... which is, logically, (as far as we understand the universe,) a problem. for example, if you believe that God or gods created the universe, then you must explain the creation of the God or gods... but perhaps they have always existed or they created themselves... and in that case is it not equally plausible that the universe has always existed or created itself? this is a very interesting question that man, through religion, philosophy and science has been trying to answer since the beinging (no pun itended.)

Answer 2

The big bang has nothing whatsoever to do with evolution except in the minds of creationists. One is an issue in physics and cosmology, the other is biology.
It is true that many who accept evolution also accept the big bang ( or, as Calvin called it, "the horrendouse space kablooie" ), but the only connection is that they are both logical, if incomplete explantions for observed phenomena.
Science can only describe that which is observable ( either directly or via it's effects) hence our ability to posit solutions stops at the big bang. Your two questions are good and important, but they have nothing to do with science and there is no claim to their answer.
The fact that there is something rather than nothing is probably the best argument there is for some sort of god but it does not refute the big bang, It only indicates that when he created a universe the big band was his tecnique.
Evolution on the otherhand, being a much more recent occurance and much more easilly studied since it is ongoing, enjoys such overwhelming evidence that it is close to irrefutable by anyone who is objective.
Creattionists like to pretend that the big band and evolution have some sort of connection in the hope that the doubts about the big bang will rub off on evolution.
Neither of these is necessary. If there is a god who created the universe, his amazing act of creation was in the big bang and he caused life to devolop following an evolutionary process. Neither of these is inconsistant with the existance of god except if he is the limited thing the fundies make him out to be.

Answer 3

First off we observe that the universe is expanding. Everything is getting farther apart from everything else. If we interpolate that motion backwards in time everything seems to have originated at the same point. But the Big Bang theory goes much farther than that. According to Big Bang theory space and time as well as matter and energy came into existence at the Big Bang event. So before the Big Bang there was no space and no time. In face you cannot even talk about what happened before the Big Bang since time didn't exist then. It's weird and incomprehensible, at least to me. But it's fascinating.

If you want to read up on the particulars of Big Bang theory and how it originated a excellent book is "The Fabric of the Cosmos" by Brian Greene.

Answer 4

1) The big bang theory actually describes how the matter began expanding, not how the matter came into existence. The most logical theory would be that the matter which comprises the universe has, in some form or another, always existed.

2) Matter and energy can convert back and forth. If there was one, there was another.

As far as what exactly caused the "bang," that I don't know. But, of course adding "God" into the equation brings up the infamous and fallacious "God of the gaps" thinking, and I don't really want to go there.

Answer 5

Energy can be moved and altered, but it's mostly action and reaction. There's no possible way that a single being, with random intelligence maximum and conscience, would be able to just take 3 000 000 billion tons of rock and create Mercury the planet. There's not one living being that I know of who can get close enough to the Sun to heat the core up to 9 million degrees, or spin objects into orbit. The Moon has it's own gravitation and is thought to be the matter that came from the Earth's surface during it's cooling period, when it was being bombarded by comets and meteors galore.

There is more evidence that the universe was not just created in a known or measurable amount of time with the instruments scientists have than there is evidence of two humans who started the Chinese nationality, Russian language, African tribal music and talked with animals.

Answer 6

David has given a fairly elaborate information for the level of the seeker of clarification... That should suffice the requirement of the question in this column.. By your question I came across this beautiful answer summing up the diverse views of science and the probable link with a supernatural superior being (GOD) that remains unexplained..

OK. For my part I like to add some spice to the discussion that's all.. Some one says in his/her reply that it was all an imagination given in the holy Bible (Genesis). Not so... Even the hoary eastern religion - Hinduism - says the sound (AUM) is the cause of creation and sustenance of this transitory universe subject to creation and dissolution...

You had confused with the early theories about the indestructability of matter or energy... You would have found from David's account that Relativity theory of Einstein had already explained the relationship of matter and energy... so one gets lost only to be changed into other form (matter to energy and vice versa)...

The Hindus call the Whole Universe (Created Form) as "mithya" - an illusory aspect of the Truth (Divinity) that is behind all this game, unseen, unchanging... The great yogis (seekers) are said to have "experienced" that great Master Energy full of Joy.. and they also got the powers of creation transformation and dissolution (sidhis) from that knowledge... They found that Energy of Life as LOVE and JOY and imitated its love and joy in their own interface with the world...

But it can not be proved in science... it is on a different plane... beyond the mental and astral... ("where words fail and the mind returns unable to comprehend the Truth..." says their holy scripture (Veda) - it can only be described by its impact... as a rarest sense of abiding Joy...!

Answer 7

i was listening to coasttocoastam.com and they had a guest interveiw talk about how the system began. There seems to be a belief that each galaxy and form with a bang, but they dont really affect other galaxies. So the age of the universe would not really be the age of any one particular galaxy.

Answer 8

At the moment, we don't know what started everything. We do know some of the things that occurred immediately after the big bang though. We obviously still have a lot to learn, but at least we are looking.

Answer 9

You have discovered the reason God must exist. The big bang had to be caused by something and what put the basic material to cause it there in the first place, plus its just a theory and has been widely discredited I do believe.

God bless you.

Answer 10

Actually, you're asking this in the wrong forum if you really want an honest answer.

Try asking in the science section.