the stars (maybe)

[P3nT4gR4m]

Alpha Centauri (the nearest stars to Earth.. there are three of them: one roughly the size of the sun and two considerably smaller ones) acts on a 150 pound person with 2.37*10^-11 Newtons of gravitational force.  I don't see how this would affect us in any significant way.

multiply this by the total number of stars in, say, an infinite universe

[AFK]

Alpha Centauri (the nearest stars to Earth.. there are three of them: one roughly the size of the sun and two considerably smaller ones) acts on a 150 pound person with 2.37*10^-11 Newtons of gravitational force.  I don't see how this would affect us in any significant way.

multiply this by the total number of stars in, say, an infinite universe

And you understand why there is a vacuum in space. 

[P3nT4gR4m]

Yeah but an infinite number of stars in each direction = an infinite ammount of gravitational force, therefore the stars keep us in a state of complete equillibrium

until they move 

[Bebek Sincap Ratatosk]

Yeah but an infinite number of stars in each direction = an infinite ammount of gravitational force, therefore the stars keep us in a state of complete equillibrium

until they move 

Or 'splode

[P3nT4gR4m]

When that happens a little part of you dies 

[Triple Zero]

Alpha Centauri (the nearest stars to Earth.. there are three of them: one roughly the size of the sun and two considerably smaller ones) acts on a 150 pound person with 2.37*10^-11 Newtons of gravitational force.  I don't see how this would affect us in any significant way.

for you.

multiply this by the total number of stars in, say, an infinite universe

1. the current theory is that the universe is not infinite.

2. even if it is infinite, gravitation travels by the speed of light, meaning you have a maximum of 46 billion light-years radius to consider. any further away stars can not have influence on us.

3. that's about 3 to 7 × 10²² stars

4. but force of gravity decreases quadratically based on distance and the figure of 2.37*10^-11N is just the influence of the nearest.

5. here my back-of-the-envelope knowledge about astronomy/cosmology stops, someone else help me with the way how quadratic decrease combines with the average number of stars in the visible universe to show the gravitational force of all stars combined is not much larger than, say, the doctor standing next to your mum at the moment of birth.

[BootyBay]

An infinite number of stars at ever-increasing distances would have a finite amount of gravitational pull (the limit of the net gravitational force is finite).

I'm gonna start my own speculative post! lol

[BootyBay]

5. here my back-of-the-envelope knowledge about astronomy/cosmology stops, someone else help me with the way how quadratic decrease combines with the average number of stars in the visible universe to show the gravitational force of all stars combined is not much larger than, say, the doctor standing next to your mum at the moment of birth.

The force from alpha centauri is greater than the force from the doctor at birth actually. I was gonna try and show the same thing lol.

I'm gonna start my own speculative post! lol

My speculative post was going to be on "the fractal dimension of physical space," but I was thwarted by my complete ignorance on the subject. :P

[Triple Zero]

bootybay, what's your background in this kind of stuff?

mine is just knowing a lot of math (from computer science), discussion with physicist friends and having had a relation with an astronomy girl.

[hunter s.durden]

having had a relation with an astronomy girl.

000: Learns through sexual osmosis.

[BootyBay]

bootybay, what's your background in this kind of stuff?

mine is just knowing a lot of math (from computer science), discussion with physicist friends and having had a relation with an astronomy girl.

Knowing a lot of math.

I'm studying topology (just  got to compactness) and analysis currently in hopes of understanding fractal sets.

[Triple Zero]

having had a relation with an astronomy girl.

000: Learns through sexual osmosis.

yeah, i figure might as well have some holy fun on the road to enlightenment ..

bootybay: topology is freaky. i only know a bit about it. it twists the mind

[P3nT4gR4m]

1. the current theory is that the universe is not infinite.

2. even if it is infinite, gravitation travels by the speed of light, meaning you have a maximum of 46 billion light-years radius to consider. any further away stars can not have influence on us.

3. that's about 3 to 7 × 10²² stars

4. but force of gravity decreases quadratically based on distance and the figure of 2.37*10^-11N is just the influence of the nearest.

5. here my back-of-the-envelope knowledge about astronomy/cosmology stops, someone else help me with the way how quadratic decrease combines with the average number of stars in the visible universe to show the gravitational force of all stars combined is not much larger than, say, the doctor standing next to your mum at the moment of birth.

1) current theory sucks donkey balls and, since nobody has proved it yet, I'm sticking with the old traditional theory

2) Infinity fucks up any restrictions since, no matter how small or slow the gravity, when it's multiplied by infinity it becomes, well, infinite

3) that's about 3 to 7 × 10²² stars times infinity!

4) see 2

5) The doctor who delivered me was very fat

[hunter s.durden]

5) The doctor who delivered me was very fat

 

[Triple Zero]

2) means that the part of the universe that can affect you, is finite. otherwise there'd have to be information-transfer faster than light, which is impossible.

5)