#27 – Aleph

What did you do at the weekend, Fay Roberts? Well, I did the world’s quickest study of the basics of cosmology and the hypothesised end of the universe, then turned it into 14 bouncy lines of poetry. You?

Depending on your thoughts upon the matter
(On which some of our finest minds have views)
We’ll either crunch or freeze or even shatter
(Although to harsher churches, that’s not news).

If space is closed, then gravity will crush us
But if it’s open, we’ll all rip apart
And entropy will see a mighty hush as
In any shape, the cold could kill our heart.

But here’s the thing: we need to weigh our ’verse
And find out if it’s more or less than one.
I simplify, of course, but please don’t curse
The dark that pulls at us has not yet won.

If omega is greater than the first
We might collapse, then bounce back in a burst!

-FR

The “Big Crunch” Graphic from Wikipedia. The vertical axis either demonstrates expansion or contraction, so it’s difficult to tell whether we’re coming or going (I’ll be here all month, enjoy the salad!).

#23 - A Wider Horizon

Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin – groundbreaking astrophysicist and first woman to head a department at Harvard University (1900-1979)

While waiting for the rest to reach your height
You graded faith to mark it dubious,
Yet labelled inspiration numinous,
And showed how heavenly bodies talk at night.
Where others trudged in darkness, you saw light;
Where they stayed safe you dared the luminous,
Found early on that Fear kills Curious
And learned to keep achievements out of sight.

But those before you taught resilience
And some fires can’t be hidden – that’s the truth:
The skies blaze messages not of this earth.

They finally unveiled your proper worth;
Soft voices hailed the insight of your youth.
You changed the ways we value brilliance.


FR


Incidentally, the Wikipedia entry is pretty dry – I also recommend looking at quotes attributed to her, for example: here, which last is where the title of the poem comes from.

(And yes: I’ve screwed with the proper rhyme scheme because sod Petrarch I’m a creative, that’s why...)