In the very early Universe, gravity may briefly have become a repulsive, rather than an attractive, force. The ensuing period of ultra-rapid expansion — called 'inflation'—could account for some of the fundamental features of the Universe, such as the remarkable smoothness of the 2.7 K cosmic microwave background (CMB) radiation and the origin of large structures such as galaxies and galaxy clusters. But an analysis by Ferreira, Magueijo and Gorski, published in The Astrophysical Journal Letters, may put a dent in inflation's armour.
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