Alan Guth
Proposed the theory of cosmic inflation, a modification of the Big Bang theory.
Most quoted
"If you ask where the energy for the Big Bang came from, the answer from inflation is that gravitational energy can be negative, and it can exactly cancel the positive energy of matter."
— from Lecture
"The inflationary universe theory says that the universe began as a tiny speck of false vacuum, which then inflated exponentially to become the enormous universe we see today."
— from Scientific paper/lecture
"The universe is like a giant puzzle, and we're slowly putting the pieces together. But sometimes we find a piece that doesn't fit, and then we have to start all over again."
— from Lecture
All quotes by Alan Guth (423)
We are made of stardust, but that stardust was itself produced in the aftermath of inflation.
The history of cosmology in the 20th century is a series of revolutions, each pushing our origins further back in time and to more extreme conditions.
The future of cosmology lies in more precise observations of the cosmic microwave background and the large-scale structure of the universe.
Contemporaries of Alan Guth
Other Physicss born within 50 years of Alan Guth (1947).