Could our cosmos be a projection from the edge of the observable Universe?
Sounds like a silly question, but scientists are seriously taking on this idea. As it happens, a gravitational wave detector in Germany is turning up null results on the gravitational wave detection front (no surprises there), but it may have discovered something even more fundamental than a ripple in space-time. The spurious noise being detected at the GEO600 experiment has foxed physicists for some time. However, a particle physicist from the accelerator facility Fermilab has stepped in with his suspicion that the GEO600 “noise” may not be just annoying static, it might be the quantum structure of space-time itself…
We could be on the verge of one of the biggest discoveries mankind has ever stumbled across. And in this case we would have, quite literally, stumbled over it. A detector, designed to search for the very big (i.e. gravitational waves propagating from supernovae, spinning neutron stars and colliding black holes), will have accidentally probed subatomic scales, revealing the limits on the fabric of space-time. Alternatively, it could just be noise, so in which case, gravitational wave-hunters can get back to work once they’ve tracked down the mysterious source in instrumental static.
However, scientists are at a loss to explain the noise and have turned to an expert in the quantum world to help them understand what might be going on. The implications could be revolutionary.
The German-British GEO600 is a 600 metre-long gravitational wave detector in Hanover, using lasers to converge on a highly sensitive interferometer. Apparently, it is the most sensitive instrument of its type. Gravitational wave detectors are set up to detect the slight fluctuation in the distance between two points as a ripple in space-time passes through local space. In the case of GEO600, it can detect a fluctuation of an atomic radii over a distance from the Earth to the Sun.
Craig Hogan, director of Fermilab’s Center for Particle Astrophysics, believes that GEO600 may have reached the limit on its precision, it might be limited by the quanta of space-time. The smooth, constant interpretation of Einstein’s view of space-time may need to be modified, as it too may be composed of quantum-scale “points”. As with subatomic particles, the detection of this space-time fine scale could lead to quantum fluctuations in the GEO600 results. “It looks like GEO600 is being buffeted by the microscopic quantum convulsions of space-time,” says Hogan.
But what does this have to do with holograms? For the quantum model of space-time to be confirmed, scientists would need to probe down to Planck length-scales (that’s a distance of 10-35 metres). Gravitational wave detectors may be able to detect tiny distance fluctuations, but they certainly are not capable of probing down to Planck length-scales.
Actually, this may be possible if the holographic Universe theory is correct.
This theory is born from other well known interpretations of the cosmos, in particularly the black hole paradox. As something falls into a black hole, passing the event horizon, the quantum information held in the event horizon can be encoded to reveal information about the interior. Therefore, the information inside the black hole’s event horizon is not destroyed (for details on this, see the Thorne-Hawking-Preskill bet). If the information about the interior of a black hole is encoded in its event horizon, scientists have come forward to point out that perhaps the information inside our Universe is encoded in the Universes horizon (a.k.a. the limit of the observable Universe, 13.7 billion light years away).
If the information is encoded in the horizon of our Universe, could it be that everything within this boundary is simply a holographic projection of this outer “shell”? In which case, the information encoded into the horizon will be held in Planck length-scale bits, and the projection (i.e. us and the space-time we know and love) will be a 3D representation of the Universal Horizon.
Going back to the GEO600; it could be detecting the “quantum fabric” of space-time after all, as the horizon projection will be of scales far larger than the Planck length, possibly up to 10-16 metres. When talking about gravitational wave detectors that can probe down to proton scales (<10-15 metres), suddenly we see that these powerful detectors could be affected by the quantum fluctuations of space-time itself. As the projection is of scales significantly larger than the encoded horizon, the projection would appear “blurry” according to Hogan.
It is hard to understand what this actually means and physicists are currently trying to interpret these findings. If space and time are simply a rendition of encoded bits of information, projected from the horizon of our Universe, does that mean actions carried out in “local space” (i.e. here) are actually actions being carried out 13.7 billion light years away (and therefore 13.7 billion years ago) on the inner shell of the cosmic horizon?
On the other hand, it could just be noise…
Original source: New Scientist
astroengine.com 
This was an awesome article. I need to read more about the GEO600… measuring differences of an atomic radii from the distance of the earth to the sun… that is an incredible feat!
Oddly enough, this reminds me Plato’s Timaeus in which Socrates presents the argument that we are all projections on a plane of existence. I wonder what he’d say about the GEO600’s possible findings.
But as you say, it could always be just nose and New Scientist doesn’t have a very conservative policy when it comes to going after new stories about the quantum world, publishing things when they’re still in early testing and experimentation stage.
One of their past cover articles wondered if we really do exist when we consider the chaotic nature of quantum particles which can appear, disappear and bi-locate.
Bohm’d out.
Yes everything is Energy and a projection from TIME dimension, but it must be understood exactly what all energies are, time, mass, space, plasma, light, life, thought, every known or unknown form of energy ever conceived, they are all information, grains of information that interact, transmute, expand, constrict, but always build upon themselves, expanding out in all realities. These energies all follow simple underlying constraints, firstly they are all based on pure dichotomies, and the very nature of realities are always what lies between, secondly energy is in a state of evolution, its constitution needs to ultimately transubstantiate into ever more complex forms of information, thirdly all knowledge is connected, a single ocean of unity.We exist in an illusion of the perception of the real, generated from the manifest physical, while the REAL always remains hidden to our perception.http://servantofthelight.comTransfinite ConsciousnessSupreme ExistenceTime Explained
Yes everything is Energy and a projection from TIME dimension, but it must be understood exactly what all energies are, time, mass, space, plasma, light, life, thought, every known or unknown form of energy ever conceived, they are all information, grains of information that interact, transmute, expand, constrict, but always build upon themselves, expanding out in all realities. These energies all follow simple underlying constraints, firstly they are all based on pure dichotomies, and the very nature of realities are always what lies between, secondly energy is in a state of evolution, its constitution needs to ultimately transubstantiate into ever more complex forms of information, thirdly all knowledge is connected, a single ocean of unity.We exist in an illusion of the perception of the real, generated from the manifest physical, while the REAL always remains hidden to our perception.http://servantofthelight.comTransfinite ConsciousnessSupreme ExistenceTime Explained
I am particularly intrigued with the last paragraph. That would suggest that I was born 13.7 billion years ago.
oh come on. Even on Star Trek the halograph had to programmed in to the computer by a human. So are you saying that GOD made a computer all that time ago and programmed in the universe because he was too lazy to make it himself???? Please could this get any sillier?
NO, he’s NOt saying that.
yes it is and we all live in a nutshell with a invisible border and being controlled by colorful soundwaves 🙂
Really like that article do you have any new sources for the geo600 like to read more about this intressting article.
Wow sounds very intressting i definitly gonna read more about the geo600 if i can find anything more. Someone got a tip where i can find more Material or articles like this?
If anybody want to now more about the geo600 on http://www.geo600.org you can find more information about this.
Holographic projection….
It just maybe the case that life, reality as we sense it and indeed not know it, may of already been played out many of thousands of light years away on some event horizon around some black hole or other; if so sensual reality maybe an auto cycle of information played into the infinite depths of space and picked up and played by conducive environments twisting the information received to fit the environment in question to the exclusion of all else but those actors playing out parts already played many times over in an infinite number of ways with an infinite number of outcomes many time before and to follow.
I may be missing some fundamental information here, but if the projection theory is correct and the whole of reality is merely an holographic projection from the cosmic horizon, then any instruments used to try and detect this will itself be a projection from the edge of the universe and therefore it would be unable to detect anything.
Great post! I love your blog! Here is a link to a website I found that has lots of information on it
http://www.ufomystery2012.com it talks about ufo’s, crop circles, planet x, the new world order, and has a ton of information on 2012 too.
But as you say, it could always be just nose and New Scientist doesn’t have a very conservative policy when it comes to going after new stories about the quantum world, publishing things when they’re still in early testing.
And so predestination knocks on our door once again,-)
We don’t know that the projection travels at the speed of light. The speed of light may be because of the way the projections manifest themselves.