Caption: an interview dialogue
- Are dark matter models unsuited to explain observations? [the “dark matter models” and “to explain observations” parts are poorly edited onto the image, overlaying the original text]
- In my view, they are unsuited.
- Why?
- That’s my opinion, don’t ask me why.
End of caption
Dark matter is the mainstream among physicists, but internet commentators keep saying it can’t be right because it “feels off”.
Of course, skepticism is good for science! You just need to justify it more than saying the mainstream “feels off”.
For people who prefer alternative explanations over dark matter for non-vibe-based reasons, I would love to hear your thoughts! Leave a comment!
No, as far as I understand it, it isn’t something we invented. It is rather a placeholder for observations we made. In many different contexts we observe something that is matter but that doesn’t seem to interact with anything else. We call this dark matter. And then there are theories of dark matter that try to explain the observations of dark matter. But dark matter is that what we observe, not a theory or invention.
I think we just differ on the terminology of invention versus observation. What draws the line between a well-supported theory and an observation in the end comes down to how tangible you think the data is.