One post tagged with "Cosmology"

Quantum field theory is the best physical theory created by humans. It predicts the anomalous magnetic moment of the electron to twelve decimal places. It also predicts vacuum energy with an error of $10^{120}$ times.

In 1917 Einstein introduced the cosmological constant $\Lambda$ to hold the Universe from expanding. In 1929, after Hubble's discovery, he called it "the greatest blunder." In 1998 two teams of astronomers discovered that the expansion is accelerating — and $\Lambda$ returned. The observed value:

Standard quantum field theory gives $\Lambda_{\text{QFT}} \sim M_P^4$, i.e. unity in Planck units. The discrepancy — 120 orders of magnitude. This is the largest mismatch between theory and experiment in the history of physics.

Each of the existing approaches — supersymmetry, the anthropic principle, sequestering — explains part of the suppression. None explains everything. And none answers the simpler question: why is $\Lambda > 0$ at all?

UHM answers both questions. The positivity of $\Lambda$ is a theorem [Т]. The smallness follows from six proven mechanisms [Т] and a spectral formula [Т]. The final estimate: $\sim 10^{-120 \pm 10}$ [С]. Without fitting.