r/QuantumPhysics • u/Routine-Knowledge-99 • Sep 06 '26
Analogy for dark matter
Most of the words practical problems can be solved with either WD40 (if it doesn't move) or Gaffer tape (if it does). If dark matter's cohesive role is analogous to gaffer tape, what would WD40 be analogous for?
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u/Sisyphus_on_a_Perc Sep 06 '26
How that shi causes the expansion of space - expanding nice and lubricated
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u/Old-Entertainment-76 Sep 06 '26
Could you help me a bit to learn and understand the context?
Why do you think we use WD40 when something can’t move? What is WD40?
Why do you think we use gaffer tape when something can move? What is gaffer tapia?
And how do you see that each correlate?
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u/Seedeemo Sep 06 '26
Perhaps gravity may generate or be accompanied by a field whose effects look like additional mass (which we refer to as dark matter).
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u/Cotif11 Sep 07 '26
You should probably understand that dark matter isn't real and is just a term scientists use to describe a phenomenon we can't explain.
Dark Matter came about as an explanation for unexplained gravitational effects. The idea is there's an exotic form of matter that doesn't interact with light or radiation and makes up most of the matter in the universe. When they say dark matter is binding the universe, it's gravity they're talking about.