Radon is one of the noble gases in the periodic table. It is the heaviest, naturally occurring one among them. Due to its size, it is the most likely to establish compounds with other elements, compared to the other noble gases. However, its radioactivity easily breaks the bonds that are established between Radon and other elements. Thus, Radon has very few known compounds.

Radon forms in the radioactive decay chain of Uranium, which then forms Thorium, then Radium, and finally Radon. Radon condenses to form a solid that glows with yellow light due to its radioactivity. The half-life of Radon changes depending on the isotope at hand, but the longest half-life detected is around 92 hours.

Radon naturally occurs underground, and does not dissolve much in water or other liquids there. When it leaks above surface in the form of gas, it tends to accumulate in the not-well-ventilated parts of the houses, e.g. basements. Exposure to Radon gas is linked with cancer, and so it is considered as a health hazard. On the other side, the hot springs that contain trace amounts of Radon gas are used rarely to cure heart disease.

The following is an allegorical story in the form of a letter about how Radon develops in nature.

I am the only survivor from a quadruplet. One of my sisters survived only 108 minutes after birth. The death of the second one followed about half hour later. I spent my childhood with my only remaining sister. Our mother was not there either, because she had died while giving birth to us.

As we were growing into our adolescence, we shared many secrets with my sister, be them adventurous or romantic. She was a sister, a close friend, and sometimes a mom. When she died in her flourishing age, I not only lost my third sister but also lost a mom for the second time.

Since then, without bothering myself whether they are friend or foe, I let people approach me. I show affinity to them so much so that I am considered as the most sociable noble. When they start enjoying the beauties displayed on me, I am stressed by my need of privacy and security. And, I easily push everyone away by intimidating them with the very beauties they were attracted to.

So, life has been a bottomless solitude for me… Yes, being alone is part of being noble, and I need my privacy in my ivory tower. But I’d rather not have impenetrable walls between me and people.

What a discrepancy! I have a habit of intimidating people to push them away, but I am complaining from an endless solitude at the same time… Why am I like this? It feels as if there is an unknown person in me, over which I have no control, who is doing things using my body. Should I cry for help: I am stolen!

I thought about this a lot. Was it a psychological inheritance I received from the family? You know that my mother died when giving birth to me and that my sisters followed her. My grandmother also died when giving birth to my mother, and my grand-grandmother died when giving birth to my grandmother. I don’t know if it is this strangeness that makes me instinctively seek solitude, so much so that my husband could not stand me. I told him that our relationship could only survive in the polar cold places, and he said he can stay cold but not in a place where there is no one else. Eventually, our marriage ended, after which I realized that I was pregnant.

But life goes on, you know, whether you are a noble who pathetically seeks solitude, or if your mother died when giving birth to you, or if you are a pregnant mom left to herself… “The great gears of life turn with irresistible momentum. You either keep pace with it, or get smashed in it.” That’s what my mother said in her letter to me. And that letter is all I have of her. Though, however much I would like her to be with me, and share my joys of success and sorrows of failure. Maybe she would reveal precious life lessons to me, or whisper her secrets into my ear. Maybe she would reprimand me sometimes… Not a single moment lived with her, not even a smack… I wished that this not be the lot of my baby, but how?

I thought of Prophet Abraham’s wife, Hagar. Alarmed by her baby’s cries, she had rushed between two distant hills in search of finding some people to come for help. God had replied to her efforts by creating a spring in the middle of the desert, just near her, and guiding travelers there.

Following Hagar’s example, I tried taking refuge near people so that my baby would not be in a lonely world. In order not to disturb them, I chose their least used places. But people cast me out of there, lest I contract some illness. I tried fancy yellow dresses to make myself look friendly. But, instead of becoming friends, they put me in glass chambers. I tried to help people with some of their diseases, but except a few, they shunned me since I was too risky to be adopted into medical practice.

Oh my God, despite all my efforts, my baby was going to come into a solitary world like her mom’s. I knew I was going to be alone when giving birth, and so was my baby. There was a sour smile on my face every time I thought of her…

But maybe… Maybe one day, God would guide travelers here, and she could join them, and prosper wherever she ends up with. Maybe she would have a stable family, and become the mother of many. And I hope, even in her well-established state then, she could still keep her lineage at heart, from our grandest grandmother all the way down to her mother: Uranium, Thorium, Radium, and, me, Radon.

What could I do to make sure that my daughter holds on to her past? Could I write a letter, just like my mother left to me? Maybe that was a good option, since I inherited from my mother all the letters left from mother to daughter starting with the grandma Uranium. Yes, I could abide by the tradition of letters, and tell my daughter how much I loved her even before I could hold her in my arms. I could tell her that she had appeared in my dark night like a bright star, although she was yet in my womb. Maybe this way, she could feel at ease when with people, unlike her mother. She could make real friends and be happy with them, even if I won’t see her once.

Yes, I won’t see you, sweetie. It is what the doctors told while giving me your glad tidings: that I had cancer, and that my body would not sustain a birth. I had to choose between carrying you and a life without you. I chose to live with you, my precious, even if that meant the end of my life when yours bloomed. When you are going to be reading this letter, I’ll be watching you with your aunts. Shine and make us smile with your beauty.

Love,
Your mom Radon

Fuel cells are very promising chemical energy conversion devices. Though the first fuel cell was made by William Grove in 1839, they’re just now being explored as a real energy alternative (1). Let’s take a look at how they work: in a fuel cell, electricity is generated by the reaction of hydrogen and oxygen, which forms water. They are similar to batteries and internal combustion engines (ICEs): just as in a combustion engine, where fuel is oxidized, the oxidization of hydrogen generates energy. They’ll work as long as fuel is provided.

Despite these similarities there are some differences that make fuel cells more attractive than batteries and ICEs. A fuel cell works more efficiently and quietly than engines do. When hydrogen is used as fuel, power and drinking water are produced as by-products (2). Having safe by-products answers our concerns regarding older power sources. A battery is dead if it is not re-chargeable; however a fuel cell can be continually reused.

Fuel cells are generally defined by the type of electrolyte used in the cell, and they operate at different temperatures. Alkaline fuel cells (AFCs), proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs), and direct methanol fuel cells (DMFCs) are called low-temperature fuel cells. Phosphoric acid fuel cells (PAFCs) are an intermediate-temperature fuel cell. Molten carbonate fuel cells (MCFCs) and solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) are called high-temperature fuel cells (3, 4).

They have been mainly used for stationary, transportation, and portable applications. Since the need for electricity in daily life has dramatically increased, reliable and efficient power supplies have become necessary. Over 2,000 stationary fuel cell systems have been built in hotels, schools, and hospitals. Stationary power generation is considered more commercialized among the other fuel cell applications. Today, these systems have reached an efficiency of 40% when a hydrocarbon is used as fuel. Fuel cell systems are also used in telecommunication systems, and these cells provide power between 1 and 5 kW (5).

Fuel cells have been identified as the most probable alternative power source for transportation applications in place of internal combustion engines (ICEs). There are two distinct features of fuel cells that make them a better choice than ICEs. First, their carbon dioxide gas emissions are nearly zero. Second, fuel cells are much more efficient than ICEs – about two to three times (6). Ballard Power Systems have been developing zero-emission-vehicles by using PEMFCs, which have low operating temperatures and a higher power density.

NASA decided to use fuel cells on American spacecrafts in the 1960s. The advantage of using them in spacecraft was that while they were generating electric power, they produced drinkable water for the astronauts. A fuel cell was used as an integral part of the power supply PEMFCs (1kW) in the Gemini crafts and AFCs (1kW) in the Apollo crafts, both of which were a part of NASA’s human spaceflight programs (6).

Portable applications of fuel cells offer electrical power when reaching the electrical grid is not possible. When they are used as power sources outdoors, they help to avoid air and noise pollution (4). Because these portable fuel cells are lighter and more durable than batteries, they have been considered as alternative power sources for mobile phones, laptop computers, and some electronic devices (5). They are also used by the military in battle. A 4 kW PEM generator was built for the U.S. military by Intelligent Energy Ltd., out of Europe (7). Since direct methanol fuel cell systems are much lighter than the indirect systems, they are mostly used as portable power systems.

Although fuel cells have benefits when compared to other power sources, they are not widely used because of their high cost. In 2010, the Energy Information Administration released that the cost of fuel cells is $6.83 per installed watt, which is almost 7 times more expensive than a natural-gas turbine generator plant (8). In 2008, the Honda Clarity produced one of the first hydrogen-powered automobiles; these require very expensive catalysts: platinum (9). A catalyst makes the chemical reactions occur faster. Platinum is still the best catalyst, so this explains the prohibitive cost. A cheaper substitute for platinum is needed for use in automobiles. Another problem is that hydrogen is widely used as fuel for transportation applications. Until there is a sufficient hydrogen infrastructure, car manufacturers will find it hard to mass produce cars that use fuel cells.

Cetin is a freelance science writer.

References

1. Grove, W. R. (1839). On voltaic series and the combination of gases by platinum. Philosophical Magazine and Journal of Science, Series 3,14, 127-130.
2. Hoogers, G. (2003). Fuel Cell Technology Handbook. Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press.
3. Mekhilef, S., Saidur, R., Safari, A. (2012). Comparative study of different fuel cell technologies. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 16, 981-989.
4. Gencoglu, M. T., Ural, Z. (2009). Design of a PEM fuel cell system for residential application. International Journal of Hydrogen Energy 34, 5242-5248.
5. Andujar, J., Segura, F. (2009). Fuel cells: History and updating. A walk along two centuries. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 13, 2309-2322.
6. Iovine, John. “Fuel Cells.(composition, energy-generating processes and industry developments and innovations).” Poptronics. Poptronix, Inc. 2001. Retrieved May 17, 2012 from High Beam Research: http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-69015426.html
7. Cowey, K., Green, K., Mepsted, G., Reeve, R. (2004). Portable and military fuel cells. Current Opinion in Solid State and Materials Science 8, 367-371.
8. Administration, U. E. (2010, November). Updated Capital Cost Estimates for Electricity Generation Plants. Retrieved from http://205.254.135.24/oiaf/beck_plantcosts.
9. Muller, R. A. (2012). Energy for Future Presidents: The Science Behind The Headlines. New York: W.W. Norton Company, Inc.

By the time you finish reading this sentence, you will have been carried over the earth, passed the sun, and moved through actual space of 1000 kms! In the time it takes you to ponder upon this, you will have moved another 1000 km through real space. Fast isn’t it? This is the speed at which one arm of our galaxy moves through space every second, and we don’t even feel a thing!

The motion of stars in their dedicated orbits, black holes, nebulas, and infinite number of other phenomena in the outer space display spectacular and equally thoughtful exhibitions thanks to Hubble and other new technologies. An increasing number of studies are thus devoted to stars, supernovas and interstellar space in recent years. Our contemplation of the universe deepens as we accrue more knowledge about it. Just as a cell is the functional building unit of the body, the main building blocks of the universe are galaxies. Just like every other living thing, galaxies will not be around for eternity; they form, develop, and cease within the cosmic laws that are put in place by their Creator.

According latest findings, it is estimated that around 100 billion galaxies exist in the observable universe and that there are galaxies 100,000 light years in size. A year has 31,536,000 seconds. Light travels 300,000 kilometers per second, therefore one light year equals to 946,080,000,000,000,000 (quadrillion) kilometers. Apart from the dispersal of stars, intergalactic distances of galaxies are not much bigger than their own galactic size. For example, the big Andromeda galaxy (the galaxy which is the closest to us) appear from the earth as wide as the sun or moon in the sky and can even be noticed with the naked eye. Latest research in astrophysics revealed that stars are not dispersed equally but rather found together in galaxies as an open system that exchanges energy and matter with its surroundings. A big portion of the galactic space is filled with gas and dust clouds which enable such exchanges to take place. This interstellar stage in which stars are born and die bears vital importance in sustaining and maintaining a galactic presence.

Some amazing characteristics of galaxies

Stars with different masses exist in a galaxy. Smallest one can be one tenth of the Sun’s mass whereas the biggest can be 100 times bigger than the sun. The most important feature of a star in a galaxy is its mass. Brightness of stars increase with their mass and this relation is three dimensional (cubic mass). Therefore if a star is twice as big, it is eight times brighter. Another feature is the relation between the age and mass of a star. The bigger the star, the shorter its life. These big stars live shorter compared to smaller ones despite their giant fuel reserves because they consume it very fast. Similar relations can be observed in the human body, which is an index of the universe, such that overweight people who consume more calories than people with less calorie intake eventually consumes more energy and become subject to deterioration in health and faster aging. The lifespan of a star is inversely proportional with its square mass (1/m2). For example, if a star is twice as massive, it lives only for one fourth of the time. Calculations show that our sun has a lifespan of 10 billion years. Compared to this, if a star is 30 times bigger than sun, it will only live for 10 million years.

The timescale of events that are occurring in galaxies can vary from thousands of years up to millions of years. Time required for the creation of a star is perhaps like a day in a galactic scale. This long time frame is considered short when compared with the age of galaxies. Furthermore, verses in the Qur’an (Al-Ma’arij 70:4) open new horizons in this matter and point out to the fact that time can change depending on different ratios and scales; so a day can indeed vary in length from being 1000 years or 50,000 years.

The movement and behavior of galaxies are quite complicated. Such that even if the galaxy formation process is completed, the creation and expiration process of stars within the galaxy still continues. It takes tens of thousands of years for a gas cloud to collapse inwards under its own gravitational force and become a star under normal conditions. Even five-ten billion years after the creation of a galaxy, it amazes scientists that there is still plenty of gas to remain in the interstellar stage, enough for a star to be born. On the other hand there are galaxies in which star formation is much faster than our Milky Way galaxy. These galaxies are called “starburst” galaxies and new stars are created in variable speeds over a long period of time. The uniqueness that is observed in the specific characterization of animal and plant species can also be witnessed in the creation of stars at different speeds, making spiral galaxies even more mysterious. This is because while a steady and balanced speed in the creation of stars is maintained in spiral galaxies, all the gas and dust available is consumed for the formation of stars in other galaxies. In a galaxy where stars continue to be created, the regions where large stars are created can be observed better compared to other regions in the night sky.

Spiral galaxies

Galaxies are generally divided into three groups: irregular shaped, elliptical, and spiral. Irregular shaped galaxies are composed of many young stars, gas and dust clouds without a definite shape. Elliptical galaxies are made up of old stars and limited number of gas and dust clouds. They are created in different shapes such as round, flat or like a baseball. Spiral galaxies are in the shape of a disc composed of spiral arms extending out of the center as they rotate. Solar system is located inside such a spiral-like galaxy. In these types of galaxies, stars contain spiral signatures. Bright spiral arms found in many images taken of galaxies generally show star forming regions and not the locations of the stars themselves. That is why the exceptional quality of spiral galaxies is hidden in the continual formation and expiration process of stars. Spiral displays which show star creation regions do not revolve along other stars in the galaxy. However spiral galaxies do exhibit a special rotation. Observations point out that spiral signature within the galaxy deteriorates gradually and reshapes in a slower fashion than the galaxy rotation speed. With these new findings, it is possible to say that it is more appropriate to understand galaxies as dynamic systems which change in time instead of being static under the constant and instantaneous intervention and control of the infinite power and wisdom of the Almighty.

One of the most impressive features of spiral galaxies is that the regions where stars are created in the main spiral contain new sublevel spiral patterns. Just like clouds, it is possible for different spiral forms to be created. Sometimes very symmetric spiral arms or rectangular stick-like formations via extensions of spiral arms along with regular spiral looking shapes are generated. Despite this spiral variety, when observed from outside, stars are seen to be surrounding a flat disc and forming together as a giant globular halo. This halo was generated billions of years ago from short and longer aged stars. It is the dimmer region of the galaxy yet this halo is considered to contain most of the galactic material. Stars are located in a fashion that resembles a disc in this halo of dust and gas. The layer of dust slowly rotates around an axis that passes through the center of the halo. This rotation is not coincidental; it is controlled in such a way that the speed of stars nearby do not differ in the rotation speed of the whole disc any more than 10%. In other words, the disc does not have a constant speed. It exhibits flexibility and variations from within. Stars and gas clouds are made to revolve in similar average speeds no matter how far they are away from the center. These notions are confirmed with the use of motion laws that Newton discovered and named after himself.

Numerous types of stars from different age and mass groups exist in the disc section of a galaxy. The age of stars is determined by analyses of the light spectrum that they emit. According to the results from these analyses, the creation speed of stars has been found nearly constant around the disc section in a spiral galaxy. In many galaxies, disc material has been discovered to be around 10% gas and dust cloud and that 80-90% of the rest remains outside the disc in an invisible form, unlike stars and gasses. This is because it absorbs the majority of the light to be reflected. This kind of material is called “dark matter.” It is thought to be a very old black hole, with expired stars or an extremely cold dust cloud or a combination of these. Aside from this, it has been discussed that they are created from neutrinos or undiscovered particles. According to common notion, dark matter as generated by expired stars in the galaxy does not have any relation to the movement of spiral galaxies and their kinetic behavior, it only has gravitational effects.

Gas cloud in the disc is not dispersed proportionately; instead, it is collected in a thin layer. Furthermore, it is understood that these clouds are composed mainly of carbon, silicon, iron and many other elements, and these particles get ripped from surfaces and flown around via star winds or thrown towards interstellar space. Surprisingly, the interstellar space is a scarcely populated place. Even in areas that are considered to be empty, one atom exists in 1,000 cm3, and it can vary from one million atoms to a couple hundred per cm3 in denser regions. The density of interstellar spaces from the highest to the lowest can vary within a factor of a billion. This ratio is much greater than the density difference between air and a piece of rock.

Systems established without thermal equilibrium

Interstellar space is not in a state of thermodynamic balance. Very sizable molecular clouds are constantly shaped and get scattered into the medium. This way material exchange is carried out in between different phases on a smaller scale. Maintenance of a system where different components are preserved in a stable state with no equilibrium is a mystery to all. This elusive phenomenon has been studied by both physicists and chemists for the last 40-50 years. Data obtained so far recommends that two processes are particularly used to establish and maintain stable compounds away from an equilibrium state. The first is that such systems should include material recycling mechanisms between different components. Second is the regulation of processing speed with feedback. These two events should be executed with a balanced fashion so that the amount of material in each composition does not change. Thus, these two phenomena are executed in the most finely calibrated manner in spiral galaxies that can never be possible out of coincidence.

Plasma, one of the phases of matter, is about a couple million degrees Celsius. However, it is a much diluted phase; only one atom exists in a volume of 1,000 cm3. Temperatures rising to these levels are made possible by the energy provided from supernovas. A supernova explosion releases such energy into the space that it forms a hot gas cloud and this starts to expand. This gas cloud releases its electrons into its surroundings as it dissipates. A phase of diluted hot plasma in a bumpy shape is generated as gas cloud expands throughout the matter. One of the reasons that interstellar space took so long to be discovered is because we are still located in a hot bubble. This bubble has a magnitude of 300 light years. Studies so far have mapped this bubble and discovered it to have an irregular shape.

Aside from this, recently a new neutron star was discovered and this star is thought to be remnant of a supernova explosion that created this bubble. It should not be surprising that we are located in such a hot bubble because this only occupies 70% of our galactic disc volume. A supernova is created once every 30 or 40 years in our galaxy. Supernovas have the task of supplying the energy needed to keep the entire interstellar space under a constant pressure. It is an incredible phenomenon to ponder that a habitable planet exists in the depths of a cold space.

Interstellar spaces resemble an ecosystem from a standpoint of events that are taking place inside it. Each galaxy could be viewed as a dynamic system where stars are constantly born and extinguished in the presence of a determined cycle of energy and matter. Events that are executed with Divine wisdom in these heavenly systems (galaxies, stars, interstellar spaces) testify in their own languages to their Creator who fashioned them in the form of an art with wisdom and generously. Galaxies behave as if they are living organisms; they are born like humans and they die like humans. Continual composition and decomposition of galaxies with their contents stand as major proof to the cosmos of present and absent worlds. The heavens and the earth, the stars and galaxies all make up the Divine canvas painted and repainted on the easel of God’s command: “Be and it is.”

References

• Smolin, Lee. 1997. The Life of The Cosmos, Oxford University Press, New York.
• Syed, Ibrahim B. 2003. “Understanding String Theory,” The Fountain, Issue 41, January-March 2003.

If we try to fill a glass of soda without letting it overflow, we usually notice the bubbles or froth of the drink. As we fill the glass, bubbles form on the surface and these tiny bubbles grow. Reaching a certain size, the bubbles escape from the liquid surface, and vanish into the air. If we put our finger, or a straw into the soda-as most of us did as children- we immediately notice that tiny bubbles of gas form on the object immersed in the glass. Just like in the freezing of water or in the escape of gas from soda, a precise energy exchange occurs at the initial stage of any phase transformation. Completion of any phase transformation – freezing or condensation (clouds transforming to rain)- is impossible without such precise energy exchange. The fact that all these phase transformation occur with precise energy calculations in the best possible temperature ranges to support life is a clear proof that nothing in the universe was created by mere coincidence, and that everything occurs by the command of the Almighty.

We know that everything in the universe obeys the minimum energy principle. If we want to freeze water, all we have to do is to cool it to a temperature below 0°C, and the transition from water to ice begins. Water molecules tend to gather together to form clusters. When five to ten of these molecules bond together, however, a difficulty is encountered. The formation of solid-liquid, solid-gas, or liquid-gas interfaces requires a specific amount of energy. In the beginning, the surfaces of these clusters are quite large as compared to their volumes such that the energy they receive to form an interface is much greater than the energy they release; therefore the state of minimum energy is not reached. To explain this to you in another way: let us assume that we manufacture beads for the production of costume jewelry and garments, and the surface of the beads requires treatment. If the beads we manufacture are smaller than the specific size, they will be more expensive to treat, and therefore will not cover the costs, so only producing beads exceeding the specific size will be profitable to the manufacturer. The main aspect here is actually the size of the beads, so if manufacturing beads which exceed the specific size is simpler and more profitable, rejecting the beads smaller than these specifications would be inevitable.

As in this example, because of their high energy value, the molecular clusters formed initially (embryos) return to a liquid form. Then once again the particles begin to bond, but again the result is the same. An embryo must grow to a certain size for its surface area to decrease in comparison to its volume and thus reduce its energy. This is only feasible when many atoms bond, for only when a sufficient number of atoms join together does the embryo transform into a nucleus, and then begin to crystallize and eventually become solid. The process called homogeneous nucleation is only possible under certain conditions: the liquid must be at a temperature of around –40 C^o for both the transition in the balance of energy, and for the water molecules and atoms to become solid and bond to form a nucleus. If we contain pure water totally motionless in the deepfreeze at approximately –8 C^o, we will have supercooled water that has not yet transformed into ice; the temperature between the nucleation and the freezing points, is called supercooling. Supercooling is a metastable condition where liquid or gas remains supercooled without actually becoming frozen, but the slightest intervention or movement can cause the substance to transform into a solid. The tiny bubbles of carbon dioxide in soda is also in a metastable condition, for as soon as the bubbles have the opportunity, they escape from the liquid and vanish into the air. If we immerse a straw or finger into a glass of soda, this forms an added surface, which also facilitates a solid-gas interface, and if we add a teaspoon of sugar to the soda, this induces the drink to froth and bubble at great speed. Water boiled in a saucepan actually nucleates on the wall of the container.

Supercooling is a metastable form of the substance. Every substance or solution has a specific temperature value for cooling. For instance, liquid copper transforms into a solid at 1083 C^o. Homogeneous nucleation requires the bonding of 310 atoms, and supercooling to approximately 236 C^o.

Under normal conditions, substances which have more than one type of molecule undergo phase transformation known as heterogeneous nucleation. In this case, the atoms form primarily on the walls of a container on particles of impurity, or minute solid particles in the liquid, and this significantly reduces the surface energy barrier for nucleation. So for a moment let us return to the bead example. We have discovered that instead of directly manufacturing smaller beads, it would reduce the costs of decorating the surface of the beads to coat and treat larger beads, so the beads are being produced in this way, thus reducing losses.

Supercooling can occur at temperatures even as high as 2–3 C^o, and this is very important. The condensation of water or supercooled water droplets in clouds must reach a specific size and weight in order to fall to the earth as raindrops. Here, the solid microscopic particles combine to form nuclei. Even if the clouds are much lower in temperature, rain cannot form without nuclei. Particles of salt which escape from the sea, sand that rises from the desert, the sulphate released from the ashes of volcanic activity or minute atoms of dimethyl sulphate emitted by certain planktons are driven into the atmosphere by the wind and form nuclei. As the Almighty, the Creator of the universe revealed in Al-Hijr, verse 22 of the Qur’an: “And We send the winds to fertilize, and so We send down water from the sky, and give it to you to drink (and use in other ways)” indicating that one of the duties of the wind is fertilization. Even the particles in smoke released irresponsibly by humans from industrial chimneys, or from car exhausts form nuclei that eventually transform into rain.

During the foundry process, solid substances are added to liquid metals for certain purposes, such as enabling metal to set more rapidly, or increasing the metal’s durability. When liquid metal is cooled, its atoms form nuclei on microscopic solid impurities. These nuclei increase in size and assemble into groups called grains. The irregular zone between these groups is known as the grain boundary. The grain boundary forces the compressed atoms to move and weld, thus increasing the durability of the metal. This method known as infusion or grain contraction ensures an increase in the formation of nuclei, and also in the durability of the metal. Cloud seeding, a topic which mainly comes to light when there is a lack of rain, is actually inducing the clouds to form artificial nuclei that will in turn produce rain.

Some creatures on earth protect themselves with mechanisms bestowed by their Creator, and one of these creatures is the wood frog. As the water in its cells begins to freeze, the antigel protein found in its blood surrounds the formation of nuclei, and prevents the nuclei from increasing in size. The frog remains frozen and motionless until the temperature increases. If we touched a wood frog in this condition, its cells too would freeze suddenly, and the frog would die. It is impossible for a frog to know how to cool to the point of freezing, and nucleate. It is also impossible for a frog to adapt to such a mechanism because this would require practice and experience, which would of course be deadly. Therefore, is the frog’s ability to freeze, and its process of nucleation not a clear indication of the providence and blessing of God the Almighty?

One of the most important reasons for the last two world wars was the sharing of energy sources. 60 years on from the last world war, the world is now very close to confronting the same problem. There has been an enormous rise in energy demand since the middle of the last century. This increase has resulted from both rapid industrial development and population growth. As shown in Figure 1 and 2, the world population is 4.8 times greater, and the total energy requirement has increased more than 30 fold from between 1850 and 2000. Many studies have demonstrated that while global demand increases by at least 2-3% per year, the current oil fields are depleting at an average of 3-5% per year. If this demand continues at this rate, we will reach a point of crisis in oil sometime after 2010, and the same will be true for natural gas somewhat later, between 2020 and 2030 [1, 3]. The basic energy source of the world, hydrogen, is a new hope for solving the energy problem. It is likely that this century will be the century of the fuel cell. This technology uses hydrogen as fuel, and offers the prospect of supplying the world with clean, sustainable electrical power.

Hydrogen, which is the simplest element in space, was discovered in the 16th century and its inflammable property was understood in the 18th century. Ninety percent of the known universe consists of this simple element. Hydrogen is colorless, odorless, nonpoisonous, and 14.4 times lighter than air. In its liquid phase it has a temperature of -252.77 °C. It is the fuel of the sun and other stars, hence the main energy source of the universe. Hydrogen is not found as a free element in nature, but rather it is found as a compound, particularly as water. Hydrogen has the largest energy amount per unit mass among known fuels. The energy of 1 kg of hydrogen equals 2.1 kg of natural gas and 2.8 kg gasoline. However, its volume per unit energy is higher. It is 1.33 times more efficient compared with fossil fuels as an energy source. When hydrogen is used to produce heat or propulsion, only liquid water or water vapor emerge, making it an extremely clean energy source.

Hydrogen can be used with fuel cells to produce electricity. At the present time, the cost of this method is 3 times more expensive when compared to other fuels. Fuel cells use hydrogen, or hydrogen containing compounds to produce electrical energy and heat. A fuel cell has no moving parts and makes no noise when operating. A single fuel cell contains three layers, as shown in Figure 3. These are the anode-electrode layer, the membrane layer, and the cathode-electrode layer.

There are three types of fuel cells; Polymer Electrolyte Membrane (PEM), Direct Methanol Fuel Cell (DMFC), and Solid Oxide Fuel Cell (SOFC), each named after the material used as fuel. The PEM fuel cell is fueled by pure hydrogen. In the anode, hydrogen is split into its basic elements, a proton and an electron. While the proton migrates through the membrane of the fuel cell, the electron travels around the membrane and goes to the cathode, creating an electrical current. In the cathode-hydrogen proton the electron reacts with oxygen to form water, which is rejected as waste. The basic system is the same for the DMFC and the SOFC fuel cells. The DMFC is fueled by a mixture of methanol and water. Before reaching the anode electrode, the methanol is split into CO²and hydrogen. The SOFC fuel cell can use different kinds of fuels that contain methane and hydrogen. All the reactions are shown in Table 1. One fuel cell can produce 0.6 of a volt. To get enough power, several fuel cells are piled in a stack. The space between fuel cells is filled with gas that helps to distribute the hydrogen and oxygen gas to the membranes.

Although hydrogen energy is a new source, the production of hydrogen is not a new concept. Every year, 500 billion m³ of hydrogen is produced, stored, transported, and utilized in the world. Initially, hydrogen was used for the production of ammonia, but today hydrogen utilization has expanded tremendously to incorporate applications in chemical and petroleum refining, metallurgy, the hydrogenation of edible fats and oils, space and weather programs, fuel cells, and the manufacture of high quality electronic components. The most important consumer is in the petroleum- chemistry industry.

Hydrogen can be obtained by using different methods. Hydrogen can be produced from electricity, using electrolysis to split water into hydrogen and oxygen. Reforming is another method that produces hydrogen. In this method, hydrogen is extracted from a gas with a high concentration of methane, such as natural gas. This process uses hot steam to obtain hydrogen from the methane. When methane gas is mixed with hot water vapor, the gas is split into carbon monoxide and hydrogen.

Although hydrogen can be stored as a gas or liquid, storing and handling hydrogen is difficult as compared to gasoline. While gasoline is a liquid, hydrogen is a gas. At atmospheric pressure at sea level (pressure at sea level is 1.0 atm = 1.01325 bars), hydrogen has a volume 3,100 times greater than gasoline. To decrease the volume of the hydrogen, pressure is used. Hydrogen can be stored under pressure up to 700 bars. At this pressure, hydrogen has a volume 6.4 times greater than that of gasoline.

Another method for storing hydrogen is in the liquid phase. In this phase, hydrogen has a volume 3.6 times greater than gasoline. Liquid hydrogen can be stored under high pressure in steel tubes. Hydrogen should be cooled to -252.77 °C to become liquid. The cooling process requires energy. 25% of hydrogen energy is used for the cooling process. The largest liquid hydrogen tank is at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. It contains up to 3,400 m³ liquid hydrogen.

Hydrogen can also be stored in metal hydrides. When cooling is applied, the hydrogen atoms diffuse inside the metal hydrides. To release the hydrogen, the reverse process, heating, is needed. Due to the large storage necessary, aluminum and boron hydrides have been used extensively over the last 10 years. In particular, boron hydrides are important as they can be used in liquid conditions. Metal hydride storage is very safe because of the low pressure and the fact that there is little free hydrogen inside the storage tank. Another advantage of this way of storing is that metal hydrides hold hydrogen at very low volumes.

It seems that hydrogen may be the major energy source in the future. Eventually, it will be used to supply the energy needed in the economy, being used for transportation, central and distributed electric power, and combined heat and power for buildings, and industrial processes. However, hydrogen technology is currently in the pre-production stage of development. Hydrogen energy is not cheap when compared to other energy sources at this time. There are some challenges that need to be overcome, such as producing, storing, and using hydrogen efficiently before we use hydrogen instead of fossil fuels. However, hydrogen is the key to solving the energy problems of the world. Hydrogen is available in every country, everywhere. Using hydrogen as an energy source will prevent many conflicts between countries. This energy source will help address concerns about energy security, global climate change, and air quality. It seems that the views of Jules Verne, quoted at the beginning of this article, will be realized one day in the future. And people will thank God not only for water, but also for the hydrogen in it.

References

1. “Energy Wars” by David Chapman – a director of Bullion Management Services the manager of the Millennium BullionFund (www.bmsinc.ca).

2. Cook B., ‘An Introduction to Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Technology’, Heliocentris, 2001.

3. www.un.org

4. www.census.gov

5. www.worldenergy.org

6. www.fuelstore.com

7. www.minihydrogen.dk

Hi, I am still alive. Yeah, I was talking about how we serve an aircraft. By adjusting our distribution, we provide the necessary forces for the aircraft to fly and maneuver. Some of us help the engines burn their fuel; and the heat released from this combustion is again used to provide thrust to the aircraft. Although the duties we perform may sound harsh, it is our pleasure to do them; because this is what our Lord wants from us: to serve humans. The only contention we have is the way we are treated by humans. As all other creatures in this universe, for the continuation of all the services we provide, we need some food for survival. Your fellow engineers call this food “air resistance,” which disappoints us. They are talking as if we are stealing their property from them without any return. They do not give credit to the continuous service we provide. Moreover, they delineate the lift force as something that they came up with, disregarding our major role in it. I, and my other fellow air particles, hope that one day you will learn to consider us as living organisms just like you; then you will change your vision of your and our lives.

Sincerely,

Air Particle

Reading these sentences of the air particle changed my vision of science about which I have been learning for the past 18 years. The new vision I have now has sent me on a journey in which I have started to criticize and, if necessary, amend the scientific understanding of nature. So it is my intention now to convey some of the milestones of my journey. Aside from a personal discourse, you can also consider the following discussion as a conversation between your heart and the air in your lungs. The air is very close to us; it functions in our bodies at every moment. But on the other hand, we are very distant from it as we fail to use our hearts to communicate with it. We consider it to be an unconscious slave, and therefore do not respect it. Even if the air particle cries out to us, we do not hear it, because we consider it to be inanimate.

This situation is the result of what we have been taught over the past few centuries. The materialist philosophy, with the scientific advancements of the 19th and 20th centuries, concluded that we humans are alone in this universe to make our way, and that our survival is dependent on the strength we display in the conflicts that make up life. Is it only the understanding of life that exhibits the characteristics of the materialist philosophy? One’s perception of reality depends on the paradigms that are built in one’s mind. Therefore, a person raised in the atmosphere of materialist philosophy develops a perception accordingly, which tells us that it is possible to find the materialist paradigms not only in the positive sciences but also in all of the fruits of the same mentality: individual and social life, scientific models, religious philosophy, etc.

Individual and social life

A contemporary thinker from the materialist age, although himself not a materialist, Nursi summarizes the materialist philosophy’s view of the individual life as follows.¹ According to the materialist philosophy, every thing that exists in this universe stands as a separate entity on its own, and its life has a meaning only for itself. The formations in the universe are results of a deterministic succession of events in the macroscale and non-conscious coincidences in the microscale. Hence, life is another accident which we experience. In terms of the continuity of life, the past is a completely lost domain of time, and the future is constantly under the threat of a sudden death that will bring life to a halt. As a result, the present is the only slice of time that humans can enjoy; hence the phrase “carpe diem – seize the day.” Being the sole zone of influence, the value of the day is only as great as its benefits to the individual.

In terms of social life, the value of individuals for each other is measured by their mutual interest. The continuity of friendship is therefore based on the continuity of interest.² Each individual and every part of nature in general,³ by considering its own existence as the ultimate criterion, tries to optimize things according to its own self. This motive ultimately leads to the destruction of the bonds that keep a society intact. In order to re-establish the connection, a relation based on action-reaction is considered between the individuals. This consideration suggests “do unto others the way they do unto you,” instead of “do unto others as you would have them to do unto you.” The emphasis on the individual ego along with the action-reaction principle leads to the result that “might is right”; i.e. “get the power to have the right,” instead of “be righteous to have the power.”

The ideal gas theory and the Ideal Individuals’ society

The ideal gas theory was primarily developed based on two famous laws of Newton: the 1st law, defining the inertia of an object, and the 2nd law, which relates the force acting on a body to the consequent acceleration. The purpose of the ideal gas theory is to explain the relationship between various gas properties (e.g. pressure, temperature) under stable conditions. Although the development of the formulation continued with the emergence of quantum mechanics, the core of the theory, which was based on the deterministic view, was completed between the 17th and 19th centuries with contributions from several scientists, such as Robert Boyle, and Gay-Lussac. The ideal gas theory is still in use for many engineering applications.⁴

The following is a sample explanation of the ideal gas theory. The gas molecules fill the space provided for them in a container. This means that they form a continuum between the boundaries of the container. If the boundaries undergo some changes due to heat transfer or wave propagation, the gas molecules communicate these changes to their fellow gas molecules. The ideal gas theory explains the communication among the gas molecules in terms of mutual collisions. Therefore, according to the ideal gas theory, a gas is made of individual molecules that are either traveling with constant speed (inertia) or changing properties due to collisions. The existence of other interactions, such as gravitational, electric, or magnetic, are potential causes of divergence from the ideal gas behavior. Therefore, a real gas will manifest ideal gas behavior only if the inter-molecular forces do not exist or have a negligible effect as compared to the effect of the collisions. From this, it can be concluded that strong collisions form the basis of an ideal gas.

Although the ideal gas theory has significant success in explaining gas properties in equilibrium conditions, it has difficulty in explaining the behavior of gases during a flow process. The reason is one of the manifestations of the intermolecular forces: viscosity. In terms of the macroscale properties of gases, viscosity is explained as the resistance of the gas particles against deformation, or in other words, their resistance against flow. This means that during a flow process, the gas particles rip off useful energy from each other and convert it to their own personal energy. That is why we have to burn fuel continuously while driving or flying. So, we consider viscosity as an adverse effect because of its cost, but it is also a problem for scientists because of the complications it causes in formulations.

Having identified the fundamental characteristics of the ideal gas theory, which are inertia, neglect of intermolecular forces, and strong collisions, let’s look at the corresponding image of the same fundamentals in social life.

1) Selfishness: This is the corresponding image of inertia on personal life. Individuals do not share their wealth with others unless they are physically forced to do so. The wealthier they are, the higher their inertia, and the less they are affected by their interactions with others, as they have the power to do as they wish.

Another way to see this is the pursuit of individual interest rather than communal interest. This is a result of neglecting moral values that tie individuals to each other (a neglect of intermolecular forces). Individuals pursue their own benefit regardless of the morality of the means they use to achieve it. In other words, they try to maximize their personal interest despite the poor condition of other people. Ideally, they indulge in this so much so that they do not care about the misery going on in the lives of others, which reflects the level of corruption in their hearts. This state of interaction is depicted by the famous Adam Smith (1723-1790) model5 in economic theory that idolizes individual interest as the source of ultimate good in society;

2) Conflict and clash: This mode of communication among people is the same as the collisions in the ideal gas theory. Every individual is supposed to retain its personal power and wealth as long as possible (inertia). As a result of neglected moral values, there is only one way for these to be transferred to others: to clash. The members of society have to clash with each other to achieve equilibrium. This is how wealth and power are distributed among the members of society. This conclusion is in parallel with the famous theory of the clash of civilizations,⁶ which foresees such a future for humanity.

The materialist understanding of science and consequent religious understanding

One of the very first scientific facts most of us learn is from the Newtonian mechanics, originating from the 18th century. This formulation was able to explain the motion of both particles and heavenly bodies. Newtonian mechanics is based on a deterministic view of nature, which sets everything on a predictable path of change. Witnessing the capability of this theory to explain nearly all of the existing natural phenomena in the heavens and on the earth, many scientists denied the role of God in the universe. This meant that, at best, God created the universe at the beginning and everything has progressed since then on its own. It also meant that God is not capable of changing the fate of the universe, since we can predict the future of natural events successfully.

Later in the early 20th century, with the development of quantum mechanics, the indeterministic, i.e. unpredictable, character of nature on a small scale was revealed. Although this theory broke the strength of the deterministic view, it further inculcated the materialist philosophy. This was to say that God does not and/or cannot interfere with micro-scale events. Urged by his religious sensitivities, Einstein replied: “God doesn’t play dice.” With the support of several experimental results that confirmed the quantum theory, some scientists later argued: “Indeed He does.”

The theory of evolution was the reflection of the same phenomena on biological sciences. This suggested that accidental events at the micro level, which are out of God’s control (!), gave birth to life. So, living beings have nothing to do with God, since they came into being out of His control. The theory of evolution also propounds the “survival of the fittest”; hence, living creatures are reflected as enemies to one another, as the survival of one means the death of the other. Therefore, they are in a continuous clash. What is more, God has nothing to do with this struggle for survival, which He started, but which is now out of His control.

As a result, the deterministic views expulse the concept of God from the macro-scale universe, and the indeterministic views do the same at the micro-scale. Both views, as explained above, are used to free humans from their responsibility to God; or at least, they are used to impair the understanding of God in our minds.⁷

The Reflection of Materialist Philosophy on Science-Fiction

Science-fiction is an art form that was inspired by scientific developments. Therefore, science-fiction is another domain where the impact of materialist philosophy can be observed. The topics of such movies and novels are dangers coming from unknown creatures, or people who are trying to conquer the entire universe at the expense of the lives of millions. Both themes reflect the same characteristics that we have been observing so far: absence of moral bonds between individuals and communication through clashes. The underlying reason for these violent and selfish motives is that every individual living being in the universe is thought to have an instinct to modify things according to its own interests, which again brings us to emphasize the individual ego. In other words, it is assumed that every individual creature idolizes its own ego so much that it can sacrifice everything else for the sake of this ego. This is what is depicted for us by current science-fiction. Therefore, materialist philosophy is not only influencing us today, it is also outlining a horrible future image for humanity through science-fiction.

Model people for new understandings

The above discussion may trigger many questions concerning all human endeavors, such as science, economy, education, etc. Although a materialist perspective of nature and life is presented in this article, there exists a moral understanding of the same phenomena as well; these have been explained and discussed in detail in many articles and books. However, what is missing from the moral view is a modern representation in real life; i.e. actual achievements by those people who both sincerely practice moral values and participate in the advancement of science and technology. Without these achievements, all of the good words about a new and better understanding of nature and life are going to be no more than romanticism or another “once upon a time” story. We hope that the days for the appearance of such scientists are close.

Notes

1. Nursi, S., The Words, “23rd Word”, The Light, Inc., New Jersey: 2005.
2. ibid, “12th Word-3rd fundamental.”
3. ibid, “30th Word-1st aim.”
4. Cengel, Y.A., Boles, M.A., Thermodynamics – An engineering approach, 5th edition, McGraw-Hill, p. 137.
5. Smith, A., Cannan, E., Krueger, A., The Wealth of Nations, Bantam Books, 2003.
6. Huntington, S.P., Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order, Simon & Schuster Adult Publishing Group, 1998.
7. Nursi, S., The Words, “30th Word-1st aim,” The Light, Inc., New Jersey: 2005.

After the sixth phase, the typical characteristic in the universe was a temperature that reached as high as 4,000 C. At that temperature space was not as dark as it is today, rather it gleamed brightly. As matter condensed into gases and cooled down as time passed, the density values increased and the planets that we know today started to form out of the increasingly solidifying matter. The universe, presumably, was still a homogeneous gas cloud of helium and hydrogen when it reached an age of 700,000 years. Yet, the universe did not become a single galaxy by collapsing on a single point; rather billions of galactic centers were created. So, what made the universe wait as a gas cloud in just that state? Why did it not collapse in on a single point?

While cosmology has been asking this question for years, Roger Penrose, a theoretical physicist and black hole expert, tried to compute the first creation power in one of his studies in 1973. Some tiny particles, smaller than a proton, were discovered. Those particles had been formed not by the collapse of the stars, but during the first creation after The Big Bang. Although those tiny black particles were far smaller than atoms, they behaved like black holes and swallowed everything they encountered. Yet it seems that they left their footprints as they passed. It seems as if hydrogen and helium clouds had gathered around those enormous attraction centers and the cores of billions of galaxies had thus formed. The universe was being shaped and was expanding from particles made up of a cosmic soup, a gas cloud. The Qur’an also relates the great transformation that took place in shaping the universe:

Have the unbelievers not beheld that the heavens and the earth were a solid mass, then We separated them; and of water We produced every living thing, will they not believe, then? (21:30)

From Dust and Gas Clouds to Cosmic Systems

Stars, like living beings, grow older and demise. They go through an infancy, then youth and adulthood. Some gas and dust clouds, known as Nebulas lie among galaxies. Nebulas are considered to be the raw material of stars. In our galaxy, the Milky Way, gas and dust clouds are mostly located on the spiral arms that extend outward. An impact, called a shock wave, causes interstellar matter to come together and condense into huge clouds and spheres in space. The clouds that condense during the first formation of stars are so thin that they do not even have gravitational effect. Due to this lack of gravity, it has not yet been fully understood how these gas and dust clouds came together and condensed.

A condensed cloud heats up due to the collisions within it; these collisions increase as the cloud is compressed in a process that lasts millions of years. These collisions cause the cloud to sparkle and gleam. Initially, some rays, such as infrared or radio waves, are emitted.

While the star forms, the outer crust collapses very slowly, whereas the central parts collapse at a much greater rate. As the cloud condenses farther, it emits more light and starts to shine inside the dark, dusty covering that surrounds it. This nuclear cooking-pot, which has a temperature of 10 million C at its core, sparkles. With the flaring of the star, a disk forms around the newly created center. Strong winds, triggered by the powerful hot gases that are emitted from the upper and lower surfaces of the disk, blow in opposite directions; they sweep away most of the original gas cloud that formerly impeded the visibility of the new star. Thus, the star begins to be visible through an ordinary telescope. The energy produced in the center of the star after it has been formed and reaches a certain age, impedes greater collapse. This energy provides the necessary pressure to block the collapse of matter and seeks a way to escape. Hence, the star reaches an equilibrium.

We cannot observe stars being born in interstellar gas clouds with normal telescopes. This is because the gases in space and within the dust clouds act like the particles in cigarette smoke and absorb the light. Thus, we see the clouds as dark silhouettes on the surface of the star. Formations of stars can only be observed through infrared telescopes. An infrared telescope was first placed on a satellite sent into orbit in 1983. That telescope discovered thousands of young stars hiding in the depths of interstellar clouds.

A condensed gas cloud needs to be of a certain size in order to become a star. If the gathering gas clouds are not large enough, a different situation occurs: a planet is born! The stars and planet systems that orbit the stars are formed in this way. While stars are being formed, the planets are made out of smaller gas clouds.

The Sun is a typical small star that is relatively very young. We can see stars in space that are up to a hundred times as large as the Sun, or ones that are one-tenth its size. When stars are compared to the Sun, the dimmer ones that have a surface temperature of only 3,000 C are at the bottom of the range, while ones similar to the Sun, with a surface temperature of 6,000 C, occupy the middle range. Stars that are much larger than the Sun have a surface temperature surpassing 30,000 C. Contrary to general thought, larger stars live shorter lives, because the denser and the hotter the core is, the more intense are the nuclear reactions that take place.

Thus, these stars have brighter surfaces. A massive star that uses more nuclear power is more likely to run out of fuel sooner. On the other hand, a smaller star that uses its fuel sparsely has a longer life, even though it has less fuel. We know that there is a simple relation between the temperature and the pressure of a gas. If we heat up a gas in an enclosed container, the pressure will increase; if we cool it down, the pressure will decrease. When you think of a star with a temperature reaching millions of degrees Celsius at its center, you can understand how great the pressure is there. We know that heat is being produced through nuclear reactions. Every star is under the influence of an attraction force that approximates and compresses the elements of the atoms it contains. As the mass of the star increases so does the attraction force. This inward force is balanced by the force of outward nuclear explosions. The most significant reaction that ensures the vitality and continuity of the star is the transformation of hydrogen into helium through fusion. Yet, while this happens, the fuel lessens and the reactor will fail to function properly. At this point, the force of the pressure keeping the star in a balance is endangered and the star begins to lose its long struggle against the attraction within its mass.

As stars lose their fuel, they are exposed to different “deaths,” in proportion to their mass. The number 1.44 is the coefficient related to the mass of the Sun. Stars with a mass of less than 1.44 times the mass of the Sun become black or white dwarves, whereas those with a mass of more than 1.44 times the mass of the Sun become supernovas, neutron stars, and eventually black holes. If the mass of a star is more than 1.44 times the mass of the Sun, it will not remain as a dwarf. Its inner temperature and density will increase and the fuel, in the form of iron, nickel, chrome and cobalt, will not be able to burn anymore. Temperature and pressure turn the electrons and protons into neutrons by adhering them to one another. The iron core becomes a huge ball with a diameter measuring 100 kilometers. At a critical temperature the star explodes, emitting a billion times its normal light intensity. This is a supernova explosion. With the explosion, a terrific shock wave and the flow of neutrino (an elementary particle with zero charge and zero mass) spreads. The materials produced in the explosion flow into space as gas clouds.

The Event of the Supernova and the World

As a matter of fact, at one time we were physically part of a star. That star was probably larger than the Sun and was formed right after the creation of the universe, namely in the first few hundred thousand years.

At those times, the universe was almost completely made up of hydrogen. The solar system and the earth had been formed of this element. Hydrogen was the beginning of everything, and whatever material was available in the universe had been derived from the hydrogen atom. Only after being processed in the nuclear furnace for billions of years did hydrogen turn into helium.

Consequently, the star’s life was over. As the fuel in the depots was running out, demise emerged on the horizon. It began in fits and starts, and then when the furnace was about to go out, the mass of the huge star collapsed in on itself. Having increased in size after the collapse, the pressure triggered new nuclear reactions. Thus, a series of elements, ranging from carbon to iron, came to be part of the body. Finally, the star gave its all with an enormous explosion that we call a supernova. A billion-year life ended in just a few seconds. Atom particles at the core of the star melted and turned into neutrons in just a few seconds, and the parts closer to surface were thrown into space at a speed of ten million kilometers per second. It was a magnificent moment in which billions of degrees of heat was produced and in which a great light, as bright as one billion suns, shone. Some of the elements that are heavier than iron were also created during that time.

Supernova means death to a star. The enormous energy once unleashed heats up the outer layers of the star so much that the way is paved for new fusion and energy-absorbing reactions to occur instead of energy-freeing ones. Not only iron, but also other heavy elements, such as gold, lead, and uranium are manufactured in this furnace. These elements are thrown into space together with pre-synthesized and lighter ones, like carbon and oxygen, and combine with the wreckages of other supernovas. During the succeeding millenniums, new star and planet generations are created.

For our planet, fantastic and extraordinary cosmic events, such as supernovas, have been the starting point for the existence of some elements, like oxygen, gold and silver, and ultimately for the creation of life. The sources of carbon and oxygen that are essential to life, the silver and gold rings that we wear on our fingers, the lead plates on our roofs, and the uranium that fuels our nuclear reactors are all results of the death throes of stars that died prior to the birth of the Sun.

As we have seen, a supernova explosion causes matter to move from one point to another. As a result of such explosions, many of the remnants of stars are spread over space and new stars or star systems are created by the accumulation of such remnants. The Sun and the planets in our solar system and surely those in our universe exist as the result of a very early supernova. In this immense universe which houses humanity, the transformation that matter undergoes, and the gradual advance toward a certain destination, all indicate that the Divine Knowledge, Power and Will are intermingled with His Compassion and Grace.

Cosmology is the study of the universe’s beginning, formation, and evolution. Humanity has devised many cosmological theories. For example, ancient Greeks thought the universe was composed of four elements: earth, wind, fire, and water. Now, despite several millennia of effort, modern cosmologists are even worse off.

About 60 years ago, Fritz Zwicky realized that clusters of galaxies consist mainly of matter in some non-luminous form, defined as matter that we cannot see with our telescopes. Now, after decades of accumulated observations, most astronomers believe that as much as 90 percent of this material may consist of objects or particles that cannot be seen. That is, most of the matter in the universe does not radiate light. Previously, people called this phenomenon missing matter. Contemporary researchers prefer dark matter, for it is the light, not the matter, that is missing.

In this article, I discuss evidence that proves the existence of dark matter, possible candidates for dark matter, and the importance of dark matter in understanding the universe’s beginning and end according to the Big Bang theory.

Obsering the invisible

As dark matter emits no electromagnetic radiation (e.g., light, radio waves, and X-rays), it cannot be seen by a telescope. However, we can infer its existence through its gravitational effects on luminous matter. The most obvious example of this is observed when looking at the rotation rates of galaxies. Using the resulting information, scientists can calculate the speeds of stars as they rotate around a galaxy’s center (orbital speeds) in two different ways. The first way is to look at the light coming from stars in different parts of a galaxy. Through a close study of that light’s properties, they can deduce how fast and in what direction (whether toward or away from us) that star is rotating. The second way is based upon gravitational physics. Given that we know how much matter the galaxy contains, we can calculate how fast stars must be orbiting around its center. By accounting for all of the galaxy’s luminous matter (e.g., stars, gas, and dust), astronomers can calculate the star’s orbital speeds.

But there is a problem here: The two results do not agree. The only way to account for this difference is to posit the existence of a large quantity of dark matter in the galaxies. To explain the astronomical observations, this dark matter must surround the galaxy in a large spherical distribution (known as a galactic halo).

Is the gravity of the galaxies seen in this image strong enough to contain the glowing hot gas? Superposed on an optical picture of a group of galaxies is an image taken in X-ray light. The X-ray picture shows confined hot gas highlighted in false red color and provides clear evidence that the gravity exerted in groups and clusters of galaxies exceeds all of the individual component galaxies combined. The extra gravity is attributed to dark matter, the nature and abundance of which is one of the biggest mysteries in astrophysics today. Credit: Richard Mushotzky (*)

Another effect, known as gravitational lensing, gives evidence for dark matter’s existence. This effect occurs when a massive object’s gravity bends the light that is passing by. For instance, when a cluster of galaxies blocks our view of another galaxy behind it, the cluster’s gravity warps the more distant galaxy’s light into rings or arcs, depending on the geometry involved. By observing these rings, one can calculate how much mass should be present inside the galaxy to produce this pattern. Such calculations confirm that clusters contain far more mass than the luminous matter suggests.

Image of the rich galaxy cluster Abell 2218, taken with the Hubble Space Telescope. This cluster shows evidence of multiple lensing images, as well as numerous strong and weak arcs. Using information about the arcs and multiple images allows astronomers to reconstruct the mass distribution, which then gives us knowledge about the distribution of dark matter. (*)

Dark matter defined

Understanding dark matter is a key to other important issues in cosmology, such as how much mass the universe contains, how galaxies formed, and whether or not the universe will expand forever.

The posited explanations for dark matter can be grouped into three main categories:

– Dark matter could be some kind of ordinary matter that emits or reflects too little radiation for our instruments to detect. Such objects are known as massive astrophysical compact halo objects (MACHOs) and may be ultrafaint stars, large or small black holes, cold gas, or dust scattered around the universe.

– Dark matter could consist of exotic, unfamiliar particles (i.e., different from such known particles as electrons, protons, and neutrons) that we have not figured out how to observe. These are known as weakly interacting massive particles (WIMPS). Despite the many theories about them, their existence remains unconfirmed. These exotic particles are thought to have very small masses (smaller than atoms), meaning that there would have to be a huge number of them to make up the missing matter. Thus, millions of WIMPs are passing through Earth and us. They interact with ordinary matter only by means of gravity. Since the interaction is very weak, it is difficult to detect them.

Our understanding of gravity needs a major revision–but most physicists do not consider this option seriously.

Dark matter and the universe

The search for dark matter is more than trying to explain discrepancies in galactic mass calculations, for it is closely related to how the universe was formed and will end.

The Big Bang theory, which tries to explain how the universe was formed, maintains that in the beginning, everything was compressed into a single point. Then, a great explosion resulted in the universe being formed. It is still expanding. This theory is based on the fact that all galaxies, when observed with telescopes, are moving away from each other. After this explosion, matter started clumping together to form the stars and galaxies we see today.

The picture shows mankind’s deepest, most detailed visible view of the universe provided by Hubble telescope. Representing a narrow keyhole view stretching to the visible horizon of the universe, the Hubble Deep Field image covers a speck of the sky only about the width of a dime 75 feet away. Though the field is a very small sample of the, it is considered representative of the typical distribution of galaxies in space, because the universe, statistically, looks largely the same in all directions. In this picture, Hubble uncovered a bewildering assortment of at least 1,500 galaxies at various stages of evolution. (*)

One problem with this theory is explaining how the stars and galaxies were formed. If matter initially was distributed evenly in all directions, what caused it to clump together in some regions and form stars and galaxies? Gravity alone cannot cause this in a smooth universe, and so something had to supply the initial gravity that allowed galaxies to form. Physicists suggest that dark matter WIMPs accomplished this task. Since WIMPs only affect ordinary matter gravitationally, physicists say this dark matter could be the seed of galactic formation.

According to the Big Bang theory, there are three possibilities for the universe’s future. In a closed universe, gravity is strong enough to stop the expansion eventually and pull everything back to a single point. In an open universe, gravity cannot stop the expansion and so it will continue forever. In a flat universe, there is just the right amount of mass so that gravity can stop the expansion but not pull it back into one point.

The amount of dark matter that exists is crucial to determining the universe’s fate, because the Big Bang theory posits that the amount of mass in the universe determines gravity’s strength and, by extension, whether the universe will be closed, open, or flat. To quantify this, scientists define a constant, called Omega, as the ratio of the universe’s density to some critical density. A flat universe is said to have an Omega of 1, meaning that its density is equal to that of the critical density. If the density is greater than 1, the universe is closed; if it is less than 1, is be open. Without dark matter, the universe’s observed density is between 0.01 and 0.1. Therefore we live in an open universe. If a lot of dark matter were present, the universe would be closed. If there were just the right amount present, it would be flat.

Conclusion

The discovery of dark matter could affect our view of our place in the universe. If its existence were proven, our world and its inhabitants would be made of something comprising an insignificant portion of the physical universe. This probably would not affect our daily life, but would create a new scientific paradigm. In this sense, the discovery of dark matter would be as revolutionary as finding of extraterrestrial life.

Footnotes

1. Herman, R. and S. L. Larson. Is Dark Matter Theory or Fact? Scientific American (15 June 1998).
2. Rubin, V. Dark Matter in the Universe. Scientific American (March 1998).

* http://www.nasa.gov

Enviromnental damage ramains a growing concern. Despite rigorous energy efficiency programs and research and development (R&D) efforts on cleaner energy technologies in most developed countries, no developing country views these as priorities. And they have a case: Developed countries, which enjoyed high economic growth for decades by ignoring the environmental consequences, are hindering developing countries’ economic growth. On the other hand, representatives from developed countries say that we are all in the same boat and will sink together if developing countries do not pay attention to environmental consequences.

In December 1997, world leaders gathered in Kyoto to address the problem of global warming and to decide which countries should cut emissions and to what extent. Not surprisingly, developing countries objected to any restriction that might limit their economic growth. Such discussions will become more intense in the aftermath of the Kyoto Protocol.

This article will not address the issue of environmental reparations. Rather, it will discuss the energy markets’ current situation and short-term future trends.

Basic Properties of the Energy Systems

Present-day energy systems have several basic characteristics. All policy makers dealing with energy systems should know these basics by heart.

First, energy systems develop slowly because they require significant capital and infrastructure that can be replaced only gradually. There are two important consequences resulting from this fact:

•Intense capital requirements are a strong barrier to average-sized firms. Thus, energy systems are seldom run by private enterprises. In most countries they are constructed and run by the state, and a separate government body deals with energy issues. Energy systems have been dominated by heavy regulations even in most market-oriented economies. The recent trend of deregulation is an exception rather than the norm.

•Even if a state realizes that current energy systems can be improved significantly (e.g., switching to other fuel types or deregulating the market), making changes to a huge, functioning infrastructure is a slow and painful process. It is relatively easy to make changes during the initial stages of an energy system. But as time passes, this becomes more difficult.

As in most cases, good planning is essential. A state must be very careful when building its energy systems, and should pay attention to underlying energy market trends. Important lessons can be learned from the long history of mistakes committed by developing countries. And if a developing country fails to keep up with recent trends, it may find itself trapped by its own hands in an inherently inefficient system for decades.

Second, energy systems are heavily reliant on fossil fuels. Historically, coal has been a prominent energy resource in most countries. Despite its widely acknowledged negative impact on human health and the environment, it still dominates energy systems in such developing countries as India and China. In most countries, oil is the primary energy source.

Oil was one of the most influential key factors of the twentieth century. Just by looking at the traffic on our teeming highways or the modern political landscape, we can understand how profoundly oil has changed the way we live and handle international politics. In the light of the oil crises of 1973 and 1980, the reverse-shock of 1986, and another crisis during the Gulf War of 1990, the need to diversify away from oil becomes abundantly clear.

Environmental concerns also support the case against oil. This is how natural gas, a slightly cleaner fossil fuel, gradually entered the picture. Given the current energy systems’ dependence on these fossil fuels and the fact that energy systems change slowly, oil, coal and natural gas will continue to be dominant for years.

Third, the driving force behind the dynamic of switching from one fuel type to another is economics. Fuel types with smaller unit costs survive in the long run. Oil, for example, now has the lowest unit cost (cost per unit of energy) in most regions of the world.1

Given this, cleaner fuel (e.g., solar energy) still have a long way to go before becoming economically viable. Why would you pay $5 for what you can get for $3? Countries that use non-oil energy resources do this for a number of reasons, such as they do not have natural resources and so transporting oil ends up costing more, or they have abundant natural energy resources of other types. But, in general, economics is the most important issue here.

Introducing New Fuels

What trajectory does the unit cost follow when a new fuel is introduced? Consider photovoltaic (PV) cells. The term photovoltaic refers to a family of technologies that convert light directly into electricity. PV technology is an appealing alternative-it is a renewable, environmentally benign, and domestically secure energy source. It is modular and can be scaled up to meet demand.2 However, unit cost is currently high compared to fossil fuels.

A new technology’s unit cost is believed to follow a learning (or experience) curve as a function of installed capacity. As shown in Figure 1, technologies may experience declining costs due to their increasing adoption by society. This decline may be attributed to several factors:

• Technology innovation and manufacturing improvements: Costs may decline due to a better understanding of the underlying science, progress in related fields, or via learning by doing as well as learning by using.

• Economies of scale: Unit cost is a function of total production. Products produced in large quantities have lower unit costs. Most new fuel types have high unit costs, and demand is too low to encourage large-scale production. It almost seems paradoxical. But there are ways to break this cycle. Regulations encouraging usage of new fuel types may be enforced, consumers who have priorities other than cost may be targeted to expand the current market, or the cost may drop low enough for the technology to become attractive even for low production levels.

In achieving economies of scale, consumer demand should he considered. A major concern for the end-use consumer is convenience. The value of oil would be much lower if gas stations were not located all over the country. The same issue applies to fuel cells and electric cars. They will not be as convenient as conventional cars until the proper infrastructure exists.

Since 1960s, cooperative investments by manufacturers and governments have resulted in the accumulation of experience within the solar industry and the subsequent cost reduction of PV systems. Significant cost reductions have occurred in both the PV modules that house the solar cells, and the ancillary components (known as balance-of-system). Between 1968 and 1998, the global cumulative installed capacity of PV modules doubled more than thirteen times, from 95 kW to 950 MW, while costs ($/Wp) were reduced by an average of 20.2% for each doubling.4

Trends for Different Fuel Types

After this overview of energy systems, lets look at the trends for specific fuel types. Figure 2 is taken from International Energy Outlook 2000 (IEO2000), an annual report published by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA).5 It displays projections of energy usage by fuel type up to 2020. The highlights following the figure are summarized from the reports contents.

Coal: Carbon dioxide is a very effective greenhouse gas and contributes significantly to global warming. Since coal is the most carbon-intensive fuel, global climate change debates focus on reducing its use. Coal use also has significant public health consequences, due to particulate matter emissions. Historically, coal has been a major source of energy. Although it has lost market share to petroleum products, natural gas, and nuclear power in the last decades, it remains a key source of energy, especially for generating electricity. In the IEO2000 reference case, coals share of total energy consumption falls only slightly, from 24 percent in 1997 to 22 percent in 2020 (Figure 3). Its historical share is nearly maintained, because large increases in energy use are projected for developing Asian countries, where coal continues to dominate many national fuel markets. China and India are projected to account for 97 percent of the worlds total increase in coal use.

Oil: Oil use will grow in absolute terms, but even optimistic oil supply scenarios predict that its share in the fuel mix will decline gradually. Despite efforts to reduce reliance on Middle Eastern oil, as well as advances in technical capability, new oil reserves are not compensating for depleted ones. The experts estimates of vast oil reserves in the Caspian and Tarim basins proved to be somewhat high, and the latest probes have been partially disappointing. According to EIA estimates, the share of the Persian Culf supplies is likely to increase in the coming years. Economic theory says that prices rise as supply declines. Oil prices have been quite volatile and can be expected to remain so in the future, principally as the result of unforeseen political and social circumstances. Without attempting to predict any crisis, the IEO2000 forecast shows a gradual rise in world oil prices. Oil currently provides a larger share of world energy consumption than any other energy source and is expected to remain in that position throughout the forecast period. Its share of total energy consumption declines slightly, however, from 39 percent in 1997 to 38 percent in 2020, as countries in many parts of the world switch to natural gas and other fuels, particularly for electricity generation. World oil consumption is projected to increase by 1.9 percent annually over projection period. Most of the growth in oil use is projected for the transportation sector, where few alternatives are currently economical.

Natural Gas: Natural gas remains the fastest growing component of global energy consumption. Over the IEO2000 forecast period, its use is projected to more than double in the reference case, reaching 167 trillion cubic feet. The natural gas share of total energy consumption increases from 22 percent in 1997 to 29 percent in 2020. It also accounts for the largest increment in electricity generation. Combined-cycle gas turbine power plants offer some of the highest commercially available plant efficiencies, and natural gas is environmentally attractive because it emits less sulfur dioxide, carbon dioxide, and particulate matter than either oil or coal.

World Energy Consumption Shares Type: 1970-2000

In the industrialized world, natural gas consumption has the largest projected increase among the major fuels, increasingly becoming the choice for new power generation because of its environmental and economic advantages. Its incremental use in developing countries is expected to supply both power generation and other uses, such as town gas and fuel for industry. Despite concerns about the extent of natural gas reserves worldwide, current proven reserves suffice for this markets steady development without a substantial price increase.

Nuclear Power: The prospects for nuclear power are uncertain, despite a projected growth rate of 2.5 percent per year in total electricty demand through 2020. In the IEO2000 reference case, global nuclear capacity is projected to increase to 368 gigawatts in 2010 and then gradually fall to 303 gigawatts in 2020. Aggressive plans to expand nuclear capacity, mainly in Asia, lead to a near-term increase. However, plant retirements in America and other countries exceed total new additions worldwide, and produce a decline later in the forecast. The International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis [IIASA] is one of the authorities on energy issues.

IIASA projections [which extend until 2100] hold a slightly pessimistic view of nuclear energy. Nuclear energy production has stagnated for several decades, and IIASA suggests that this will continue. Currently, nuclear energy is prominent in only a handful of countries. Not many nuclear plants are being built, and existing ones are being dismantled. With large up-front capital costs, plant safety, and recycling nuclear material after dismantling issues, this option is becoming less and less attractive. Public opposition, already strong in the US and Europe, is growing in Asia. Nuclear safety issues moved to the forefront in Asia in 1999 after several leaks at nuclear power plants in South Korea and China, and the serious accident in a reprocessing facility in Tokaimura, Japan. Such events are likely to raise concerns about Asias aggressive plans for nuclear capacity expansion. IIASA predicts that if a safer and cheaper new generatinn of nuclear plants is introduced, nuclear powers ultimate share in fuel mix will grow. Otherwise, it eventually will come to an end.

Renewables: The development of renewable resources is constrained in the IEO2000 reference case projections by expectations that fossil fuel prices will remain relatively low, and that, as a result, renewables will have a difficult time competing. Failing a strong global commitment to environmental programs, such as the limitation and reduction of greenhouse gases outlined in the Kyotu Protocol, it is difficult to foresee significant and widespread increases in renewable energy use. Modest growth in renewabte energy is projected to continue, maintaining an 8 percent share of total energy consumption. Nevertheless, in the long run, as other fossil fuel types become more expensive due to depletion and R&D efforts push the unit cost further down, new opportunities will emerge. Even conservative estimates predict that the worlds energy will rely considerably on renewables before 2100.7

Conclusion

In this article,we highlighted several basic characteristics of energy systems, and drew attention to some underlying trends for particular fuel types. Based on this information, we can say that:Energy systems are capital-intensive and hard to change once they have been built. Therefore, developing countries should track energy system trends closely and build their energy systems according to their future needs. The most important factor influencing the decision of which energy source to use is economics. Until a resources unit cost is competitive with others, it will not enjoy widespread acceptance and usage. Fossil fuels will dominate energy markets in the short run. The shares of coal and oil in the fuel mix will remain relatively constant until 2020, while the market for natural gas will expand rapidly. Nuclear power will survive only if a new generation of safer and cheaper reactors is introduced. Renewables will be the ultimate choice of the future. Currently, however, they cannot compete successfully on cost with conventional fuels.

Footnotes

1. Although the cost of extraction rises as the amount of oil remaining underground decreases, extraction technology also advances and pushes the cost down. Transporting oil from the field to the marketplace is added to the extraction (or purchasing) cost.
2. Christopher Harmon, Experience Curves of Photovoltaic Technology (March 2000). The entire report is available on IIASA web site: http: www.iiasa.ac.at/Publications/Documents lR-00-014.pdf
3. Netherlands Energy Research Foundation (ECN at Petten), “Endogenous Technological Change in Energy System Models.” Paper presented at the 1999 IIASA conference.
4. IIASA-WEC. 1998.
5. International Energy Outlook 2000 is available on the EIAs Web site: http: www.eia.doe.gov/oiaf/ieo/index.html.
6. N. Nakicenovic, A. Gruebler, and A. McDonald, Global Energy Perspectives (Cambridge. UK: 1998).
7. Experts differ over what exactly is included in this category. For practical purposes, renewables cover all energy sources except coal, oil, natural gas, and nuclear. Therefore this group includes, but is not limited to, hydroelectricity, wave, wind, biomass, and solar energy.

A team lead by Robert Costanza, the director of the Institute of Ecological Economics at the University of Maryland have determined the cost of services we receive in nature. Among the countless processes associated with the miraculous sustenance of life on earth, such as provision of water, air, nutrition from the soil and animals, maintenance of atmospheric composition at the optimal proportions and concentrations of oxygen, nitrogen and carbondioxide gas, the following are indispensable to our existence: 

• The hitherto undiscovered remedies to fatal diseases locked up in the leaves, petals or the bark of unrecognized plant species in the tropical forests.

• The continual succession of day and night whereby, during daylight, mass production of oxygen through plants provides the gas needed for respiration by animals.

• The apparent life-giving effect of rain, where once drought and famine stricken landscapes are transformed to magnificently lush greenery in a few days.

• Above all, the magnitude and rate of energy emanating from the sun cannot be priced since it is next to impossible to attain, if ever, a fraction of it on Earth.

If we stop and ponder for a moment about the services provided through the manifestation of life, we will realize that even our own bodily systems are a service at our disposal. Our bodies function, literally, without our voluntary intervention at any point from conception until our last breath. This is surely a marvel for those who see, but a miracle for those who understand. Certainly this obvious and aweinspiring fact of our state could not be ignored or even priced in monetary terms. A more crucial question we must address, however, is this: in the light of such priceless service for the maintenance of our lives what will be the repercussions for the abuse of such a valuable trust?

As stated by one marine biologist at Oregon State University: ‘This calculation is sufficiently startling that it should make us wake up and pay closer attention.’ (New Scientist, No. 2082, 17 May 1997).

Additionally, we must also ask why such gracious and extraordinary services are put at the disposal and under the dominion of mankind? If we consider ourselves to be the ‘most evolutionarily advanced species’, then the processes which we call ‘nature’ should have absolute power, knowledge and intelligence that is beyond our comprehension in order for them to be able to understand our needs, let alone provide for us. Can we claim that the trees we are able to cut down with such ease, have knowledge comparable to ours that they bear fruits which are not only a pleasure for our sight and taste, but also a dietary need? Or can we claim that the environment which is so vulnerable to human tampering is the direct source of life?

Hence, the so-called ‘natural phenomena’ are incapable of knowing how to support human life with its ultimate biological, social and psychological complexity. Therefore, these inanimate processes must be pre-programmed to exist and are reproducibly sustained with impeccable accuracy. Their existence is certainly out of our control.

The existence of man must therefore be for a very definite and special purpose. Man thrives and develops throughout his life through the means provided to him. These means, on which he is absolutely dependent, are also the means over whose function and disposal he has limited power. How should he then value these riches, and use them in the way they are intended to be used, for the purpose they have been created for?

Endowed with lofty faculties like the mind and the intellect, his essential duty entails his conscious obligation to take on the immense responsibility to recognise and understand the subservient world around him. Through disciplining and training himself he must express due respect and gratitude in direct response to the generous bounty representing his life, given to him by the One other than those processes. His responsibility is immense, but in which lies a huge recompense. He has been created in a way that he may deserve the benefits, but will he make himself deserving of it?