The world’s leading scientists engaged in a week-long debate in Stockholm this past week. Stephen Hawking was among the scientists present during the debate, which left many questions unanswered about black holes. The topic of the debate was black holes and if they pose a problem to the basic laws of the universe as science currently understands them.
Many questions during the debate were posed decades ago and still remain unanswered.
Stephen Hawking’s “Hawking Radiation” theory was a big topic of discussion. Black holes are incredibly dense and would swallow anything that moves too close to them – including the stars that form black holes. Under “Hawking Radiation” these same, massive black holes degrade over a long period of time before completely disappearing.
A major paradox is being studied and still remains unanswered following the gathering. Under the basic laws of the universe, black holes seem to defy what we know. Black holes swallow everything that makes a star a star, but when the black hole disappears, where has all of the star’s information gone? Under scientific law, all of this information that makes a star a star shouldn’t disappear.
The week-long debate led to more questions than answers. Physicists state that they have a lot more thinking to do before they can come to a conclusion on black holes, yet they state that the following week’s debate will provide tools for the next generation of physicists studying black holes.
The field remains stagnant mostly because initial work was copied and accepted as true without further debate or question. Much of this work has led to confusion in the field. Physicists that gathered this past week hope that their debated versions will allow the future generation of physicists to pursue new ideas.
Hawking remains in a frail state and did not answer any media questions following the debate.
