1.1 The Four Interactions Birthed with the Big Bang
Around 13.8 billion years ago, our universe burst forth from a super-hot, dense point of energy in an explosive event we commonly call the “Big Bang.” As the universe expanded, it cooled, and during this transformation, the basic laws of physics and structures began to form, shaping through patterns of coming together and spreading apart.
This expansive and cooling environment gave rise to fundamental particles like protons, neutrons, and electrons. At the same time, the fundamental forces of nature, such as gravity and electromagnetism, came into being.
These four fundamental forces are the building blocks of our universe’s vast interconnected network. Over billions of years, they’ve shaped everything – from the vastness of galaxies to the intricacy of human societies.
The “force” and “interaction” we learned about in school were presented as if they had always been there to explain our world. However, when we delve into the history from the birth of the universe, we begin to see how these four interactions, continually gathering and dispersing, create the conditions for existence. They influence each other, gradually forming the structures that build the world as we understand it today.
Understanding the Four Fundamental Forces of the Universe:
The universe as we perceive it forms a network through four fundamental interactions. These forces cause the universe to fragment and then reconnect, gradually leading the structure of the universe and life itself towards increasing complexity.1) Gravitational Interaction (Effective from 10^-44 seconds after the birth of the universe):
This is the force we observe when an apple falls from a tree. It affects all particles, but its strength is very weak. While it is proportional to mass and dominates on a macro scale (like planets and galaxies), it has negligible influence at the atomic or molecular level.2) Strong Nuclear Force (Effective from 10^-36 seconds after the birth of the universe):
This force holds protons, neutrons, and atomic nuclei together. It’s stronger than the electromagnetic interaction but only functions over an extremely short range, roughly the size of a nucleus. Nuclei are formed based on a balance between the repulsive force of the electromagnetic interaction and the attractive force of the strong interaction. Without the strong force, no nucleus could contain more than one proton.3) Weak Nuclear Force (Effective from 10^-11 seconds after the birth of the universe):
An almost alchemical interaction, this force can change the type of a nucleus. It’s related to hydrogen bombs, nuclear reactors, and stellar nuclear reactions. For instance, it works when converting a hydrogen nucleus (a proton) to a helium nucleus or a proton to a neutron. Without the weak interaction, the variety of elements listed in the periodic table wouldn’t exist. Every element is essentially based on hydrogen.4) Electromagnetic Interaction (Effective from 10^-11 seconds after the birth of the universe):
This is the force behind almost every phenomenon we experience other than gravity. It’s involved in earthquakes, lightning, magnets, chemical reactions, moving objects, breaking wood, throwing balls, and also binding electrons to nuclei to form atoms. Essentially, this is a versatile and surprising force that affects nearly everything outside of gravitational influence.
Next
Comment