A recent discovery by a group of astrophysicist in Denmark confirmed Einstein’s General Theory of Relativity.   This theory, which was presented by Einstein in 1916, basically states that Matter, Time and Space are independent but they also affect each other.  Any particle or object that has mass will deform the space-time fabric in the same way a bowling ball deforms the surface of a trampoline.  Even photons, basic units of light, are not immune to this effect and when they pass next to a very massive object (i.e. star, galaxy or black hole) the light will be altered and gravity will bend it and change its frequency.  Even today, this is pretty profound stuff that shakes classic Physics to its foundation and it was greeted with extreme skepticism almost a hundred years ago.  But that is how Science works.  All theories should be greeted with a skeptical view until the theory is proven multiple times by independent research. 

This is not the first time science has confirmed this theory.  As early as 1919, Gravitational Lensing (bending of light by gravity) was proven by observing the apparent position of a star close to the sun during a solar eclipse.  The apparent position of the star (as measured against the background of the celestial sphere) differed from its actual position and this proved this portion of Einstein’s theory.  In 2006 two pulsars were observed that verified Gravitational Redshift, Shapiro delay and Gravitational radiation.  Scientists, using the Hubble Space Telescope, have made discoveries like this one showing that the Universe is expanding at a faster rate which also proves a portion of General Relativity. 

So time and time again the independent research proves the theory and the scientific community moved from a position of skepticism to a position of embracing the theory as law.  This is why it is still too early to claim that the ‘science is settled’ on Anthropogenic Global Warming (AGW) which states that man-made CO2 is causing the Greenhouse Effect to abnormally accelerate and warm the Earth.  There are still skeptics out there, including myself, because independent research shows inconsistencies with the theory.  I’ve written about it here and here but I’ve only scratched the surface concerning the fallacies of the AGW theory.  

And as a final thought – If you are practicing Science like this, you are doing it wrong.