What will happen to the universe?

Hi Students,

Today you will become an expert on your favorite of four theories of the fate of the universe.

Steps for today's work:

1. Choose the theory that makes the most sense to you: Big Freeze, Big Crunch, Big Bounce, or Big Rip.

2. Become an expert on the theory you have chosen.  Resources are listed below.  To become an expert, you must be able to describe the fate of the universe according to your theory in non-technical details.  You must be able to explain the role of dark energy in your theory.  You must be able to explain the strengths and weaknesses of your theory.

3. Write a persuasive essay convincing a peer that your theory is the best of the four theories.  In your essay, you must describe all the theories of the fate of the universe, you must describe yours in detail, you must describe the role of dark energy in your theory, detail the strengths and weaknesses, and explain why you find this theory to be the most convincing.  You must have a thesis statement in your introductory paragraph and a strong concluding statement at the end.  Five paragraphs is the recommended length for this assignment.  Details can be found here.

Resources:

For your writing:

Here are the assignment requirements and details.
Here is the rubric that I will use to grade you.  Please see page 3, the rubric for Argument.

For your research:

Dark Matter
http://map.gsfc.nasa.gov/universe/uni_fate.html
http://news.discovery.com/space/dark-matter-mystery-could-be-solved-in-10-years-140127.htm
http://news.vanderbilt.edu/2013/06/dark-matter/
https://highered.mcgraw-hill.com/sites/007299181x/student_view0/chapter23/dark_matter_interactive.html
BOOKS!

Dark Energy
http://map.gsfc.nasa.gov/universe/uni_fate.html
http://science.nasa.gov/astrophysics/focus-areas/what-is-dark-energy/
http://hubblesite.org/hubble_discoveries/dark_energy/
http://www.symmetrymagazine.org/article/january-2014/toward-a-new-dark-energy-detector

The Big Freeze
http://www.universetoday.com/36917/big-freeze/
http://map.gsfc.nasa.gov/universe/uni_fate.html
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/universe/historysans.html

The Big Crunch / Big Bounce
http://map.gsfc.nasa.gov/universe/uni_fate.html
http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/big-bang-or-big-bounce/
http://curiosity.discovery.com/question/big-bounce-theory
http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-the-big-bounce.htm


The Big Rip
http://hubblesite.org/hubble_discoveries/dark_energy/de-fate_of_the_universe.php#the_big_rip
http://phys.org/news/2011-07-big-rips.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Rip