The inflationary universe

The new inflationary cosmological model discussed here in terms of grand unified theories (GUTs) seems to offer solutions to all the problems associated with the big bang model, such as the existence of magnetic monopoles. Before the first 10-30s of the existence of the universe, a brief period of extraordinarily rapid expansion occurred according to the ''inflation'' model. Successes of the big bang model include the three standard testable predictions, but relate to time a second or two after the big bang, namely red-shifts of distant, receding galaxies, measured in the 1920s, the existence of a microwave background radiation, confirmed in 1964, and the abundance of light atomic nuclei such as Helium, Hydrogen and Lithium. Two problems posed by the big bang theory are the horizon problem which seeks an answer to the large-scale uniformity of the universe and the question of energy density which leads to questions about whether the universe is closed, open, or flat. In this new inflationary model the phase transition is driven by random fluctuations of the Higgs fields, thus overcoming the flaw in the original model. (U.K.)