Let there be light and light and light and light. . .12-5-18

One of the mysteries that religion can help us think about is the size and shape of the observable universe, and especially the question of whether it had a creator, as religion postulates, or whether it just came into being without a creator, a concept many of us find both implausible and bizarre.

But to know much of anything about that universe, we are obliged to turn to science. And sometimes science comes up with answers that are really hard to get our minds around.

For instance, Clemson University scientists have just reported that they have managed to measure all of the starlight ever produced throughout 90 percent of the history of the observable universe. And how much is that?

Their answer: 4,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000, 000,000,000,000,000,000,000,
000,000,000,000,000,000,000 photons. Using scientific language, that's 4×10^84. But you probably knew that.

Because verification is the coin of the realm in journalism, I wish you to know that I have counted out the zeros in the answer and they do, indeed, total 84. You're welcome.

I detect an understandable bit of swagger from Clemson College of Science astrophysicist Marco Ajello and his team, who analyzed data from NASA’s Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope to determine the history of star formation over most of the universe’s lifetime. You can listen to Ajello describe his work here. And if you'd prefer NASA's version of all this rather than Clemson's, you can read that here. Doing that might give you, well, more light.

Here's what Ajello says: “From data collected by the Fermi telescope, we were able to measure the entire amount of starlight ever emitted. This has never been done before.”

I am not sure what one does with this knowledge. I am not sure how it makes life more bearable for the wrongly imprisoned or the homeless or the desperately ill. But I do know that sometimes humanity simply is driven to accumulate knowledge and worry later about whether it has any useful application.

But in some ways a number like 4,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000, 000,000,000,000,000,000,000,
000,000,000,000,000,000,000 is so implausibly specific and round and smooth that it seems to take away from the poetry of the creation stories that various religious traditions offer us, including the well-known story from the first creation account in Genesis (there are two accounts in that book, and they don't match up very well) in which God is quoted as saying, "Let there be light."

What it doesn't tell us there, but which the Clemson folks now assert as true, is that by the year 2018 the stars in the observable universe will have emitted 4×10^84 photons. (You're welcome for thanking me for not repeating 4,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000, 000,000,000,000,000,000,000,
000,000,000,000,000,000,000 again.)

What I can conclude from all of this is simply that the world we have been given as a strange and wonderful gift is complex and fiercely beautiful beyond words. Including the words I just typed. Now and then it wouldn't hurt us to give thanks for that gift.

(The photo here today is from Clemson, shows Ajello and bears this credit line: Pete Martin/College of Science.)

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HOW BUSH USED RELIGION AGAINST PAT ROBERTSON

In the public's generally fond remembrances of former President George H. W. Bush, this interesting story about faith may get lost. So have a look. It's about when Bush played the religion card to beat out Pat Robertson. And in beating out Pat Robertson, 41 did a favor to the nation.