Scientists learn 68 percent of the universe simply doesn't exist

Scientists have been searching for something that never existed.

Could most of the universe be an illusion? The lion's share of the energy supposedly in the universe may not even exist, says physicists.

LOS ANGELES, CA (California Network) -- According to Einstein, there are only two things in the universe, matter, and energy. Both are interchangeable. This is summed up in his famous equation, E=MC2.

According to the Big Bang Theory of the universe, the universe was formed with matter and anti-matter. The matter and anti-matter canceled each other out, converting their mass into pure energy. But there was also four percent more normal matter than anti-matter. This normal matter is what makes all the things we can see in the universe, from planets to galaxies.

Where did all the energy go? Einstein originally believed the universe would collapse inward on itself, yet it was not doing so. So he invented the "cosmological constant," a sort of "fudge factor" to hold the universe at a constant size. The factor was equivalent to 68 percent of the energy of the universe, which nobody could account for.

Later, observations by astronomer Edwin Hubble proved the universe was expanding. Today, further observations have proved the universe is not only expanding, but it is accelerating. Scientists continue to use a modified fudge factor to explain this in their models. The culprit is dark energy. The problem is, nobody knows what the heck dark energy is, or if it exists.

Now a new hypothesis explains the expansion of the universe, and it doesn't need any fudge factor. And the reason why we haven't found "dark energy" is that it doesn't exist.

The study which supports the hypothesis comes from the Eotvos Lorand University in Hungary and the University of Hawaii. Researchers from the two universities created computer simulations of the universe without the fudge factor. They also took care to model the universe as it seems to appear, that is dense parts where galaxies abound, punctuated by vast bubbles where nothing exists. This model gives the universe a spongelike appearance, which fits observations.

The model matches what we observe. In the model, the universe is expanding, but not uniformly in all directions. The acceleration is faster in some places, slower in others. But it is still accelerating.

The implication of the finding is that 68 percent of the universe, which we have long assumed to exist, doesn't.

If the results are verified and do a better job of explaining what we observe, then we will update our textbooks with the new model. This is how science works and is a strength of the discipline. As understandings improve, we update and upgrade the model. It will also save a lot of time. Scientists can pursue other discoveries, instead of wasting time looking for 68 percent of the universe that apparently doesn't exist.