(n.): The view that we do not know whether God exists. From the Greek prefix “a-” meaning “without” or “absence of” and gnosis, meaning “knowledge.”
Atheism
:
(n.): The belief that God does not exist.
Big Bang Theory
:
Theory developed by physicist Fr.
Georges Lemaître, Ph.D. in 1927, that the universe is expanding outward from a specific point in the past. Galaxies are not moving through a fixed empty space, but rather the space between the galaxies is itself stretching and growing.
Red Shift
:
Phenomenon that is observed from our perspective on earth that as stars and galaxies move
away faster from us, the wavelengths of light they
emit have a longer wavelength and shorter frequency, making the light “shift” towards the red end of the electromagnetic spectrum.
Cosmic Microwave Background Radiation
:
Is the aftershock of the birth of the universe.
Borde-Vilenkin-Guth Proof
:
Proof concluding that any
universe with an expansion
rate greater than zero must
have had a beginning,
meaning it could not have
existed eternally into the past.
Entropy
:
Measure of the degree of chaos or disorder in a system. The principle that systems move from order to disorder, and will only become more ordered due to an input of energy into the system, is explained by the second law of thermodynamics.
Second Law of Thermodynamics
:
Isolated systems always tend to become more disorganized.
Work
:
The force of energy applied to displace an object. Work transfers energy from one form to another
Metaphysics
:
Branch of philosophy that studies the fundamental nature of reality, including space and time; being; necessity, possibility, and change; and identity.
Gravitational Constant
:
A numerical constant that
is used to calculate the gravitational attraction between two objects.
Strong Nuclear Force
:
Binds protons together in the nucleus of an atom.
Ockham’s Razor
:
Principle that we should prefer the explanation with the fewest assumptions, conditions, and requirements, because nature favors elegance over needless complexity.
Informal Inference
:
A conclusion that becomes
more solid through experimentation, involving the accumulation of different kinds of evidence, from larger sample sizes, that converge on the same
result.
