closed universe

American  

noun

1. (in cosmology) a hypothetical expanding universe that contains sufficient matter to reverse the observed expansion through its gravitational contraction.

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closed universe Scientific  

1. A model of the universe in which the curvature of space is roughly spherical, entailing that the universe has finite size. An object moving in a straight line in a closed universe would eventually return to its starting point. According to most current cosmological theories, the universe is closed if it is sufficiently dense, and therefore possesses enough gravitational force to stop or reverse the expansion started by the big bang (resulting in what is called the big crunch).

2. Compare open universe See Note at big bang

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closed universe Cultural  

1. If there is enough matter in the universe to stop the expansion associated with the big bang, we say that the universe is closed. In a closed universe, the current period of expansion will be followed by a period of contraction (sometimes called the Big Crunch) as the gravitational force pulls matter back in. Searching for matter to “close” the universe is a major task of modern cosmology. (See also dark matter, flat universe, and open universe.)

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Example Sentences

Instead of learning from those outside this closed universe, you have to stay in it or face attack.

From Washington Post

“I don’t want to say that I believe in a closed universe,” he said.

From Scientific American

"I don't want to say that I believe in a closed universe," he told Live Science.

From Fox News

For Degas, according to Loyrette, it was “a closed universe,” “a microcosm of infinite possibilities, allowing all kinds of experimentation.”

From Washington Post

No, the cause — to use a word Othello memorably repeats — lies in the precisely defined personalities of everyone who inhabits the play’s closed universe.

From New York Times