Nerdy post

Okay, this post is going to be about something that's been on my mind for the past couple days--I'm not sure why, it just has been. I apologize in advance for anyone left scratching their heads after this, and I'll do my best to make this understandable.

I've been thinking a lot about the matter-antimatter disparity in our universe. I'm wondering how the "Ask an Atheist" group out by the library would answer it--so if you see them, let me know.

Before the full explanation, I'll define a few phrases that I'll be using:

All energy: The sum total of mass and energy in the universe (which, according to Einstein's most famous equation, are the same)

Other uses of the word energy: the pre-Einstein definition of energy--no mass involved

Mass: The total of matter and antimatter in the universe (or highly-concentrated energy)



Now to the explanation of the problem:

Our whole universe was in a hot, dense state
Then nearly fourteen billion years ago, expansion started. Wait....

Sorry, I couldn't resist. Anyway, before the horrendous space kablooie--what Calvin in Calvin & Hobbes calls the big bang--all energy was contained in a small space. Then came the big bang, and all energy rushed out in all directions.

After a short time, energy began to condense into mass. Through conservation of baryon number (the total number of quarks: +1; and anti-quarks: -1) this can only happen by creating a quark/anti-quark pair, which should mutually annihilate and go back to energy. Somehow--as someone with a strong science background, this word makes me want to tear my hair out--conservation of baryon number ceased to be observed, and 1 out of 30,000,000 times--according to what I've read--only a quark was formed.

There have been no experiments to date that have shown how baryon number can change, and the only theories that can be tested with technology available now only cause more questions than answers. All other theories involve ultrahigh-energy reactions, which our particle accelerators are too weak to test.

I know my answer to this problem, and the answer of most of the people that read this: God isn't constricted by physical laws. However, I am interested in hearing an explanation that doesn't mention a higher power.

Now if you don't mind, I need to buy some food, and a new belt--the extra length after it goes around my waist is enough to reach my knees.