Phase Transitions and Exotic Relics

Mercury, May/June 2005 Table of Contents

by Zachariah Cano

Imagine this: You turn the kettle on and get out a mug and a teabag, taking your time as the water heats. As you take the sugar bowl out of the cupboard, you hear a slight rumble from the kettle, as bubbles of steam rush to the surface of the water being heated. Turning around quickly to look at the explosion of sound coming from the television in the adjacent room, the water in the kettle boils, letting off scorching steam in the process.

During the two-minute process of making a cup of tea, the water in the kettle underwent a phase transition: from liquid to gas. This everyday analogy is reassuringly familiar and conceals very subtle yet profound implications for cosmology. 

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