Dark Matter 
Dark Matter
by Yale / Charles Bailyn
Video Lecture 20 of 24
Copyright Information: Yale University 2008. Some rights reserved. Unless otherwise indicated in the credits section of certain lecture pages, all content on this website is licensed under a Creative Commons License. Please refer to the Credits section to determine whether third-party restrictions on the use of content apply. Cite/attribute Resource.
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Date Added: September 7, 2008

Lecture Description

This lecture introduces an important concept related to the past and future of the universe: the Scale factor, which is a function of time. With reference to a graph whose coordinates are the Scale factor and time, the problem of dark matter is addressed again. Cosmological redshifts are measured to determine the scale of the universe. The discovery of the repulsive, anti-gravitational force of dark energy is explained. The lecture concludes with discussion of Einstein's biggest mistake: the invention of the cosmological constant to balance gravity.

Course Index

Course Description


In this course, Yale Prof. Charles Bailyn focuses on three particularly interesting areas of astronomy that are advancing very rapidly: Extra-Solar Planets, Black Holes, and Dark Energy. Particular attention is paid to current projects that promise to improve our understanding significantly over the next few years. The course explores not just what is known, but what is currently not known, and how astronomers are going about trying to find out.



This Yale College course, taught on campus twice per week for 50 minutes, was recorded for Open Yale Courses in Spring 2007.

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