inflationary-universe

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noun Astronomy.

a version of the big bang theory in which the universe underwent very rapid growth during the first fraction of a second before it settled down to its current rate of expansion.

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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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World English Dictionary

inflationary universe

—n
	a variation of the cosmological big-bang theory in which the early stage of the evolution of the universe is postulated to include a period of accelerated expansion

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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00:10

Inflationary-universe is always a great word to know.

So is quincunx. Does it mean:

an arrangement of five objects, as trees, in a square or rectangle, one at each corner and one in the middle.

a stew of meat, vegetables, potatoes, etc.

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American Heritage

Cultural Dictionary

inflationary universe definition

A period early in the big bang during which the universal expansion proceeded at a much more rapid rate that it did before or since. Cosmologists believe that most of the matter in the universe was created during the period of inflation.

Matching Quote

"All the scientists hope to do is describe the universe mathematically, predict it, and maybe control it. The philosopher, by contrast, seems unbecomingly ambitious. He wants to understand the universe; to get behind phenomena and operation and solve the logically prior riddles of being, knowledge, and value. But the artist, and in particular the novelist, in his essence wishes neither to explain nor to control nor to understand the universe. He wants to make one of his own, and may even aspire to make it more orderly, meaningful, beautiful, and interesting than the one God turned out. What's more, in the opinion of many readers of literature, he sometimes succeeds."

-John Barth

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