I don't believe what they're telling me. And I suppose even more than not believing, I don't see a reason to believe.
Dark matter is poetic and romantic. The existence of dark matter could verify the correctness of Newton's Laws -- a set of physics rules created 322 years ago. The solar system adheres to Kepler's Laws of motion, and the galaxy (and others like it) does not; ergo, the galaxy must contain unseen, "dark" matter to also fit Kepler's Laws, right? I don't believe so. I think it's more likely that smarter, more up-to-date formulae can describe the laws of the universe without having to invoke the force exerted by an unseen matter. Isn't it just like humans to invent something irrational (not using the word 'rational' in the Jamesian pragmatic sense) to fill a gap of knowledge?
Let's tear down this cheap excuse for astrophysicists by demonstrating the correctness of alternative explanations. (so say we all!)
I think I bring a useful set of vantage points to this problem. I'm a Computer Science major at Rochester Institute of Technology. As such, I'm able to develop computer simulation software. Secondly, I consider myself a parttime hobby astronomer, and I have a 2" aperture, refractor Meade telescope. I hold a concentration in Astrophysics at RIT, and a minor in Philosophy, with a special interest in the philosophy of science and technology (and, I enjoy writing, which is useful for witty remarks in a blog).
