Is the Universe Out of Tune? – Glenn Starkman

Date: Thu. September 28th, 2006, 4:15 pm-5:15 pm
Location: Rockefeller 301

It is a widely held view among cosmologists that our standard theory of cosmology — inflationary Lambda Cold Dark Matter — is so successful that cosmology now consists almost entirely of determining the parameters of the standard model to greater and greater accuracy. I will discuss how, at least on the largest scales, this is patently false. The fluctuations that we observe in the cosmic microwave background at the largest scale are far lower in amplitude than those predicted by our model. Furthermore, the little that there is aligns itself in bizarre ways, including aligning with the geometry of the solar system. If we are listening to the cosmic symphony, then not only are the cello and bass playing to quietly, they are playing from the wrong score.