 Lerner's 1991 book, The Big Bang Never Happened Eric J. Lerner (born 1947) is currently the executive director of the Focus Fusion Society and president of Lawrenceville Plasma Physics, Inc. in West Orange, New Jersey,[1] which describes itself as a technology research, consulting and communications firm. He is an independent plasma researcher and advocates plasma cosmology,[2] a controversial alternative cosmology. Connected to this, Lerner wrote a popular science book, The Big Bang Never Happened (1991), which criticized the research and theories regarding the Big Bang model as of 1991. Year 1947 (MCMXLVII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1947 calendar). ...
Executive director is a title given to a person who is the head of an executive branch of an organization or company. ...
Map of West Orange Township in Essex County West Orange is a township in Essex County, New Jersey, United States. ...
Hannes Alfvén suggested that, by scaling laboratory results by a factor of 109, he could extrapolate magnetospheric conditions. ...
According to the Big Bang, the universe emerged from an extremely dense and hot state (bottom). ...
Personal history
Lerner was born in 1947 in Brookline, Massachusetts. He received a BA in physics from Columbia University[3] and did graduate work in physics at the University of Maryland, College Park without completing a degree.[4] He has studied cosmic plasma phenomena and laboratory fusion devices, especially the dense plasma focus, and is the author of a popular account of plasma cosmology, The Big Bang Never Happened (1991). Lerner describes himself as a life-long political activist, having been a participant in the 1965 Selma March,[5] one of the committee members that helped organize the 1968 Columbia Student Strike,[6] a current member of the NJ Civil Rights Defense Committee,[7][8][9] and the Workers Democracy Network.[10] Settled: 1638 – Incorporated: 1705 Zip Code(s): 02445, 02446, 02447, 02467 – Area Code(s): 617 / 857 Official website: http://www. ...
Bachelor of Arts (B.A., BA or A.B.), from the Latin Artium Baccalaureus is an undergraduate bachelors degree awarded for either a course or a program in the liberal arts or the sciences, or both. ...
Physics (from the Greek, (phúsis), nature and (phusiké), knowledge of nature) is the science concerned with the discovery and understanding of the fundamental laws which govern matter, energy, space, and time. ...
Columbia University is a private research university whose main campus lies in the Morningside Heights neighborhood of the Borough of Manhattan in New York City. ...
The University of Maryland, College Park (also known as UM, UMD, or UMCP) is a public university located in the city of College Park, in Prince Georges County, Maryland, just outside Washington, D.C., in the United States. ...
A plasma lamp, illustrating some of the more complex phenomena of a plasma, including filamentation. ...
A phenomenon (plural: phenomena) is an observable event, especially something special (literally something that can be seen from the Greek word phainomenon = observable). ...
A Dense Plasma Focus (DPF) is a plasma machine that produces, by electromagnetic acceleration and compression, short-lived plasma that is so hot and dense that it becomes a copious multi-radiation source. ...
Hannes Alfvén suggested that, by scaling laboratory results by a factor of 109, he could extrapolate magnetospheric conditions. ...
Activism, in a general sense, can be described as involvement in action to bring about change, be it social, political, environmental, or other change. ...
1965 (MCMLXV) was a common year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1965 calendar). ...
John Lewis (on right in trench coat) and Hosea Williams (on the left) lead marchers across the Edmund Pettus Bridge,March 7, 1965 The Selma to Montgomery marches, which included Bloody Sunday, were three marches that marked the political and emotional peak of the American civil rights movement. ...
1968 (MCMLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1968 calendar). ...
In early March 1967, a Columbia University SDS activist named Bob Feldman reportedly discovered documents in the International Law Library detailing Columbias institutional affiliation with the Institute for Defense Analyses (IDA), a think-tank affiliated with the US Department of Defense. ...
Scientific activities The relevance of particular information in (or previously in) this article or section is disputed.
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Please see discussion on the talk page considering whether its inclusion is warranted. Lerner is a critic of the Big Bang theory and advocates an infinitely old Universe. Lerner has proposed non-mainstream alternative mechanisms to explain quasars, structure formation,[11] the microwave background,[12] and the origin of light elements[13], all based on his plasma cosmology approach. He claims that the intergalactic medium is a strong absorber of the cosmic microwave background radiation with the absorption occurring in a fog of narrow filaments.[14][15][16] He has suggested that data on the surface brightness of galaxies contradicts the predictions of expanding-universe models.[17] Image File history File links Diamond-caution. ...
The word critic comes from the Greek κÏιτικός, kritikós - one who discerns, which itself arises from the Ancient Greek word κÏιτής, krités, meaning a person who offers reasoned judgement or analysis, value judgement, interpretation, or observation. ...
According to the Big Bang, the universe emerged from an extremely dense and hot state (bottom). ...
The word theory has a number of distinct meanings in different fields of knowledge, depending on their methodologies and the context of discussion. ...
The infinity symbol ∞ in several typefaces. ...
Universe is a word derived from the Old French univers, which in turn comes from the Latin roots unus (one) and versus (a form of vertere, to turn). Based on observations of the observable universe, Physicists attempt to describe the whole of space-time, including all matter and energy and...
Artists impression of quasar GB1508 A quasar (contraction of QUASi-stellAR radio source) is an astronomical source of electromagnetic energy, including light, which shows a very high redshift. ...
It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Large-scale structure of the cosmos. ...
In cosmology, the cosmic microwave background radiation (most often abbreviated CMB but occasionally CMBR, CBR or MBR, also referred as relic radiation) is a form of electromagnetic radiation discovered in 1965 that fills the entire universe. ...
Intergalactic space is the physical space between galaxies. ...
In cosmology, the cosmic microwave background radiation (most often abbreviated CMB but occasionally CMBR, CBR or MBR, also referred as relic radiation) is a form of electromagnetic radiation discovered in 1965 that fills the entire universe. ...
In astronomy, filaments are one of the largest known structures in the Universe, thread-like structures with a typical length of 70 to 150 megaparsec that form the boundaries between large voids in the universe. ...
Accelerating universe is a term for the idea that our universe is undergoing divergent rapid expansion. ...
Lerner postulated that quasars are not related to black holes but are rather produced by a magnetic self-compression process similar to that occurring in the plasma focus.[18] Lerner has done experimental work on the plasma focus funded by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in collaboration with the University of Illinois in 1994,[19] and with Texas A&M University in 2001.[20] In addition, he developed an original model of the role of the strong magnetic field effect on plasma functioning, which he believes could make the production of useful energy from aneutronic fusion more feasible.[21] Aneutronic fusion is a (hypothetical) form of fusion power where no more than 1% of the total fusion energy released is carried by neutrons. ...
He has presented this approach to fusion at several scientific conferences including (in the past five years) the IEEE International Conference on Plasma Science, 2002,[22] the American Physical Society, 2003[23] and the XI Latin American Workshop on Plasma Physics, 2005.[24] Lerner was a speaker at both the Fifth (2003) and Sixth (2005) Symposia on Current Trends in International Fusion Research. In the Sixth Symposium the paper was presented with Robert E. Terry, Naval Research Laboratory.[25] Bust of Thomas Edison at the front gate of the Naval Research Laboratory. ...
In 2006 he accepted an invitation, offered at the initiative of fellow Big Bang critic and MOND enthusiast Riccardo Scarpa, to be a Visiting Scientist at the European Southern Observatory in Chile.[26] Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ...
The European Southern Observatory (ESO) is an international astronomical organisation, composed and supported by ten countries from the European Union plus Switzerland. ...
Lerner is also a prolific general science writer, who estimates about 600 articles published, has received several journalism awards from the Aviation Space Writers Association from 1984 to 1993,[27], and holds a 1993 US patent for a "Method for desalination and fresh water recovery".[28]
Reception of Lerner's ideas Lerner received some notoriety with the publishing of his popular-level book in 1991, which disputed Big Bang cosmology. James Van Allen, a space scientist who discovered the Earth's Van Allen belts, mailed a promotional statement to the publisher for inclusion on the back cover of the hardback edition of The Big Bang Never Happened that stated in its entirety: James Van Allen at National Air & Space Museum (NASM), 1981, Photo courtesy of NASM. Explorer I model and Pioneer H probe in background James Alfred Van Allen (September 7, 1914 – August 9, 2006) was an American space scientist at the University of Iowa. ...
Space science, or the space sciences, are fields of science that are concerned with the study or utilization of outer space. ...
Van Allen belts The Van Allen radiation belt is a torus of energetic charged particles around Earth, trapped by Earths magnetic field. ...
- "Eric J. Lerner gives both a provocative critique of the Big Bang and a stimulating account of the insightful and creative, although controversial, cosmology of Nobel Laureate Hannes Alfven."
However, in general Lerner's ideas have not been acknowledged or adopted by cosmologists or astronomers. The general response of cosmologists to Lerner's dispute with standard cosmology is negative. For example, Paul Davies reviewed his book for the New York Times and panned it. The newspaper published a rebuttal by Lerner which was itself criticized by Arno A. Penzias, winner of the 1978 Nobel Prize for Physics: Hannes Olof Gösta Alfvén (May 30, 1908; Norrköping, Sweden - April 2, 1995; Djursholm, Sweden) was a Swedish electrical power engineer. ...
Paul Charles William Davies (born April 22, 1946) is a British-born, internationally acclaimed physicist, writer and broadcaster, who holds the position of College Professor at Arizona State University. ...
The New York Times is an internationally known daily newspaper published in New York City and distributed in the United States and many other nations worldwide. ...
Arno Allan Penzias (born April 26, American physicist. ...
List of Nobel Prize laureates in Physics from 1901 to the present day. ...
- "The sizes of the vast ribbons of galaxies that Eric J. Lerner refers to come straight out of the Big Bang model itself.... Contrary to Mr. Lerner's claim, therefore, the 'simple mathematics' he cites rests upon, rather than contradicts the Big Bang model."[29]
Subsequent to this, Davies himself responded to Lerner's criticism of his review: - '"It seems to me that the theory proposed by Mr. Lerner has serious problems in relation to thermodynamics. This is merely my professional opinion, for what it is worth. Others can judge for themselves.... I accept that Mr. Lerner's book reports work that is largely due to Hannes Alfven, but this does not render it immune from criticism."[30]
Victor J. Stenger, Univ. of Hawaii Professor Emeritus of Physics and Astronomy, criticized Lerner's book in a 1992 edition of the popular magazine, Skeptical Inquirer. He stated that, "The big bang may be wrong, but Lerner can't seriously expect to prove it in a popular book." He also wrote: The Skeptical Inquirer is a magazine of the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal (CSICOP) dedicated to debunking pseudoscience. ...
- Lerner uses the kinds of arguments one often hears in public discourse on science, but rarely among professional scientists themselves. For example, he argues that plasma cosmology is in closer agreement with everyday observation than Big Bang cosmology, and hence is the more sensible. A look through a telescope reveals spirals and other structures similar to those observed in the plasma laboratory, and as cosmologist Rocky Kolb has remarked, in your bathroom toilet as well. Following Lerner's line of reasoning, we would conclude, as people once did, that the earth is flat, that the sun goes around the earth, and that species are immutable."[31]
Edward W. Kolb, usually known as Rocky Kolb, is a cosmologist at Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory and a professor at the University of Chicago. ...
Partial list of papers and articles - Publications in IEEE Transactions on Plasma Science'
- "Two World Systems Revisited: A Comparison of Plasma Cosmology and the Big Bang", IEEE Transactions on Plasma Science, Vol 31, Issue: 6, Part 1, (Dec. 2003)Full text
- "Galactic Model of Element Formation]," IEEE Transactions on Plasma Science, Vol. 17, No. 3, April 1989, pp. 259-263. Full text
- "Magnetic Vortex Filaments, Universal Invariants and the Fundamental Constants," IEEE Transactions on Plasma Science, Special Issue on Cosmic Plasma, Vol. PS-14, No. 6, Dec. 1986, pp. 690-702. Full text
- Industrial Physicist articles
- Popular level articles and opinion pieces
- "Bucking the big bang". New Scientist. Vol. 182, no. 2448, pp. 20. 22 May 2004.
- "The Case Against the Big Bang" in Progress in New Cosmologies, Halton C. Arp et al, eds., Plenum Press (New York), 1993 Full text
- "The Cosmologists' New Clothes]". Sky and Telescope, V. 83, No., 2/Feb., pg 124, 1992.
PDF is an abbreviation with several meanings: Portable Document Format Post-doctoral fellowship Probability density function There also is an electronic design automation company named PDF Solutions. ...
Notes - ^ See Personnel listed on the Web site for Lawrenceville Plasma Physics, Inc.
- ^ H. Ratcliffe, "The First Crisis in Cosmology Conference" (PDF), Progress in Physics (Oct 2005)
- ^ Columbia Alumni Directory, 1988 edition, p.211.
- ^ Biography at the Space Show
- ^ Veterans of the Civil Rights Movement website, as confirmed by the subject
- ^ A Memorandum from the Strike Education Committee, archived by Columbia University, clearly listing Eric Lerner as one of their members.
- ^ NJ Civil Rights Defense Committee
- ^ See "Jails must stop using dogs near immigration detainees" SignOnSanDiego.com December 7, 2004.
- ^ See "Immigrant detainee breaks fast in Passaic" NorthJersey.com March 16, 2005
- ^ See "Lectures discuss international banking", The Daily Targum, March 28, 2000.
- ^ "Magnetic Vortex Filaments, Universal Invariants and the Fundamental Constants," IEEE Transactions on Plasma Science, Special Issue on Cosmic Plasma, Vol. PS‑14, No. 6, Dec. 1986, pp. 690‑702.
- ^ "Force-Free Magnetic Filaments and the Cosmic Background Radiation", IEEE Transactions on Plasma Science, Vol.20, no. 6, Dec. 1992, pp. 935-938.
- ^ "Galactic Model of Element Formation," IEEE Transactions on Plasma Science, Vol. 17, No. 3, April 1989, pp. 259‑263.
- ^ "Radio Absorption by the Intergalactic Medium," The Astrophysical Journal, Vol. 361, Sept. 20, 1990, pp. 63‑68.
- ^ "Confirmation of Radio Absorption by the Intergalactic Medium", Astrophysics and Space Science, Vol 207, 1993 p.17-26.
- ^ "Intergalactic Radio Absorption and the COBE Data", Astrophysics and Space Science, Vol.227, May, 1995, p.61-81
- ^ Evidence for a Non-Expanding Universe: Surface Brightness Data From HUDF Proceedings of the First Crisis in Cosmology Conference, AIP proceedings series 822, 2006, p.60-74.
- ^ "Magnetic Self-Compression in Laboratory Plasma, Quasars and Radio Galaxies," Laser and Particle Beams, Vol. 4, Pt. 2, (1986), pp. 193-222.
- ^ JPL Contract 959962
- ^ JPL Contract 960283
- ^ Prospects for P11B Fusion with the Dense Plasma Focus: New Results Invited presentation, 5th Symposium "Current Trends in International Fusion Research: A Review" March 24-28, 2003, Washington, D.C. Arxiv
- ^ http://www.ece.ualberta.ca/icops2002/programtest/3B.htm#_3B05::
- ^ Magnetic effects and prospects for pB11 fusion
- ^ XI Latin American Workshop on Plasma Physics, Conference Programme, Mexico City, 5-9 December 2005.
- ^ 2005 Fusion Symposium, Program, Advances Towards pB11 Fusion with the Dense Plasma Focus
- ^ [1] Retrieved November 10, 2006.
- ^ Lerner estimates he has had about 600 articles published, in article such as Discover,[2] and Industrial Physicist,[3].
- ^ US Patent #5,207,928)
- ^ Letter to the Editor June 18, 1991
- ^ New York Times (Late Edition (East Coast)). New York, N.Y.: Sep 1, 1991. p. A.4
- ^ Stenger, Victor J. (Summer 1992). "Is the Big Bang a Bust?". Skeptical Inquirer 16 (412).
March 28 is the 87th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (88th in leap years). ...
This article is about the year 2000. ...
The Skeptical Inquirer is a magazine of the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal (CSICOP) dedicated to debunking pseudoscience. ...
External links and references - Focus Fusion Society
- Eric Lerner, "The Big Bang Never Happened"
- Edward Wright, "Errors in the "The Big Bang Never Happened".
- Eric Lerner, "Dr. Wright is Wrong -- a reply to Ned Wright's "Errors in The Big Bang Never Happened"
- "An Open Letter to the Scientific Community"cosmologystatement.org. Published in New Scientist, May 22, 2004.
- Focus Fusion poses overwhelming competition to $10 billion Tokamak - Interview with Eric Lerner. (OSEN; Nov. 2, 2005) (also at PESN)
- Eric Lerner biography
- Lawrenceville Plasma Physics, Inc.
New Scientist is a weekly international science magazine covering recent developments in science and technology for a general English-speaking audience. ...
Film - Universe: The Cosmology Quest, (2004) directed by Randall Meyers. On Internet Movie Database). On Google Video (Part I | Part II)
- Co-written by, and including contributions by Eric Lerner. This film's first few lines claim that a "growing number" of astronomers doubt the Big Bang -- a charge that is unverified. This source should be viewed as the perspective of Eric Lerner and not a documentary on mainstream science.
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