Peter Kirby

If the first and second laws of thermodynamics have always held true, and if the universe is a closed system, and if there is now usable energy, it seems to follow that there is not an infinite past of energy in this universe.

Moreover, if the first law is true, energy was not created. This means that there was not a time before when there was no energy and a time after when there was energy.

At every point of time in the universe, there has been and always be the same amount of energy--though decreasing usable energy, again if it's a closed system.

If the past is finite, was there a beginning moment? Not necessarily. Picture this (I made this):



Space-time here has no time 0. It does have a time 0.00001. It definitely does not have a time -1. It is a ray, without a beginning, but just an open-ended earlier end. It makes sense to talk about "2 seconds after the universe began," it is questionable to talk about "the moment the universe began," and it is wrong to talk about "2 seconds before the universe began."

Does anyone have some quotes or diagrams from scientists that explain this better?

best,
Peter Kirby

Mageth

There's Stephen Hawking's The Beginning of Time lecutre.

RTS

Alan Guth's "Inflationary Theory of the Universe" is presently the foremost accepted theory of the origins of the universe which would include ideas on the interaction, compartmentalization and polarization of the energies and matters within the space-time of the universe. A Google search on Alan Guth will yield many interesting sites.