Concluding Post

Throughout the semester I would say the 2 most interesting things that I learned about were Einstein's theory of general relativity and dark matter. Before this semester I obviously had heard about Einstein's famous theory however I was unsure about the specifics on why it was so important. I now realize that Einstein greatly enhanced our view of the universe through his equivalence principle (the effects of acceleration and gravity are the same) and how space-time is curved which causes gravity. What interested me the most about dark matter is its potential for energy. We know by Einstein's famous formula E=mc^2 that a small mass has an incredible amount of potential energy, however we do not have the technology to completely convert that mass into energy. However if you combine two particles of dark matter together their entire mass is converted to energy. This is exciting because one day if we can manufacture dark matter or harvest it in some way we can contemplate ideas such as interstellar space travel, and our dependence on fossil fuels may cease to exist. I was surprised by this conclusion but am excited for the possibilities.