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Sir Arthur Eddington – The Expanding universe

…. it has seemed to me that the most satisfactory theory would be one which made the beginning not too unaesthetically abrupt.  This condition can only be satisfied by an Einstein universe with all the major forces balanced.  Accordingly the primordial state of things which I picture is an even distribution of protons and electrons, extremely diffuse and filling all the spherical space, remaining nearly balanced for an exceedingly long time until its inherent instability prevails …..... the density of this distribution can be calculated; it was about one proton and electron per litre.   There is no hurry for anything to begin to happen.  But at last small irregular tendencies accumulated and evolution gets under  way.  The first stage is the formation of condensations ultimately to become the galaxies; this as we have seen, started off an expansion, which then automatically increased in speed until it is now manifested to us in the recession of the spiral nebulae.

…. Perhaps it will be objected that, if one looks far back, this theory does not really dispense with an abrupt beginning; the whole universe must come into being at one instant in order that it may start in balance.  I do not regard it in that way.  To my mind undifferentiated sameness and nothingness cannot be distinguished philosophically.  The realities of physics are unhomogeneities, happenings, change