Dark matter and entropy

[exchemist]

I found this w.r.t. the fate of Leptons at the heat death.

• Electrons: These are stable and are expected to persist indefinitely.
• Neutrinos: These are also stable and, due to their very low mass and weak interactions, will simply drift apart.
• Muons and Tau particles: These are heavy, unstable leptons that rapidly decay into electrons and neutrinos over very short timescales, long before the heat death scenario.

Indeed. But there would need to be something +ve to balance charge as well. And I still don’t see the justification for assuming protons would decay.

 

[Pinball1970]

quasi-metaphysical speculations

There is a short discussion on Protons and "matter" at 10.30 in the video

It is pop science so meant to be entertaining rather than 100% scientifically robust.

David Attenborough starts it off and has contributions from Sean Carroll, Neil DT, Laurence Krauss and Brian Cox.

I know it is not your thing but I like the format.

 

[exchemist]

There is a short discussion on Protons and "matter" at 10.30 in the video

It is pop science so meant to be entertaining rather than 100% scientifically robust.

David Attenborough starts it off and has contributions from Sean Carroll, Neil DT, Laurence Krauss and Brian Cox.

I know it is not your thing but I like the format.

But this is just speculative, gee-whizz bullshit, surely? The Wiki article on proton decay states that the proton should be stable according to the standard model. According to Wiki, the only things suggesting it may not be stable, in spite of what the standard model predicts, are GUT models that don’t work. I really think we need something better than that before assuming proton decay is a real thing.

(By the way, Brian Cox, Neil De Arse Tyson and Krauss are 3 pop-sci guys I find generally glib, too pleased with themselves, and unconvincing. Carroll I don’t know about. And you’re right: I hate the style of the video .)

 

[Pinball1970]

But this is just speculative, gee-whizz bullshit, surely?

Billions and trillions of years into the future will have elements of speculation yes.

decay states that the proton should be stable according to the standard model.

They are still building huge expensive swimming pools under the mountains though.
I do not have a horse in the race but I kind of want a proton to decay now.

(By the way, Brian Cox, Neil De Arse Tyson and Krauss are 3 pop-sci guys I find generally glib, too pleased with themselves, and unconvincing

Yes, add to that Kaku and Brian Greene.

And you’re right: I hate the style of the video

Tsh.

 

[Wizard of Whatever]

About dark matter: Some theorists have proposed it is made up of a new type of neutrino.

 

[exchemist]

Billions and trillions of years into the future will have elements of speculation yes.




They are still building huge expensive swimming pools under the mountains though.
I do not have a horse in the race but I kind of want a proton to decay now.



Yes, add to that Kaku and Brian Greene.



Tsh.

Yes but the huge swimming pools are like tests of GR, designed to put bounds on any deviation from the model. They will never prove the proton is stable experimentally. All they can do is push the “half life” of any decay mode there might conceivably be out to longer and longer times.

 

[TheVat]

My (worthless) intuition is that a proton, being a bound state of valence quarks, should be assumed capable of decay unless proven otherwise. "All composites must die" is my motto. Kind of like Valar Morghulis. But the lower bound of proton decay estimates is around 10E30 years, so it's not like we're about to find out. A free neutron however has a mean lifetime of 15 minutes. I thank the neutron for being less coy.