Page 31 - The Miracle in the Atom

The Formation Adventure Of The Atom

on, finally leading to the formation of
the material universe. Professor Steven
Weinberg remarks on how critical is the
interaction between these particles: The Hydrogen Atom
If the universe in the first few minutes was
really composed of precisely equal numbers
of particles and antiparticles, they would all
have annihilated as the temperature dropped
below 1,000 million degrees, and nothing wo-
uld be left but radiation. There is a very good
evidence against this possibility – we are here!
There must have been some excess of elect-
rons over positrons, of protons over antip-
rotons, and of neutrons over antineutrons, The Helium Atom
in order that there would be something left
over after the annihilation of particles and antiparticles to furnish the
matter of the present universe. 8
◆ A total of 34 minutes and 40 seconds have passed since the outset.
Our universe is now half an hour old. The temperature has dropped from
degrees expressed in billions to 300 million degrees. The electrons and posit-
rons continue producing energy by colliding with each other. By now, the
quantities of the particles that are to form the universe have been balanced to
allow the formation of the material universe.
Once the rate of the explosion slows down, these particles, almost lac-
king a mass, start to interact with one another. The first hydrogen atom
forms by an electron settling into the orbit of a proton. This formation intro-
duces us to the fundamental forces we will commonly encounter in the uni-
verse.
It is no doubt impossible for these particles, which are products of a de-
sign far beyond human comprehension and have distinct structures resting
on extremely delicate balances, to have come together through coincidence
and to act towards the same goal. This perfection leads many researchers
working on the subject to a very important conclusion: it is a "creation" and
there is a matchless supervision of every moment of this creation. Each par-
ticle that is created after the explosion is supposed to form at a specific time,

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