# Why isn't the universe homogeneous?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-isnt-the-universe-homogeneous/820901
**Category:** Factual Questions
**Created:** [September 6, 2018, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-isnt-the-universe-homogeneous/820901 "2018-09-06T19:03:28Z")
**Posts on this page:** 4
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@blood63](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blood63)
#### Post date: [September 6, 2018, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-isnt-the-universe-homogeneous/820901/1 "2018-09-06T19:03:28Z")
If the Big Bang created the universe in a single event then matter would be distributed uniformly. This would make star and galaxy formation impossible. Are there any theories on how this happened?
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### Author:  [@UnwittingAmericans](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UnwittingAmericans)
#### Post date: [September 6, 2018, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-isnt-the-universe-homogeneous/820901/2 "2018-09-06T19:12:34Z")
Yes. Look up Alan Guth and inflation.
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### Author:  [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)
#### Post date: [September 6, 2018, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-isnt-the-universe-homogeneous/820901/3 "2018-09-06T19:13:21Z")
Quantum fluctuations.
> **[Primordial fluctuations](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Primordial_fluctuations)**
>
> Primordial fluctuations are density variations in the early universe which are considered the seeds of all structure in the universe. Currently, the most widely accepted explanation for their origin is in the context of cosmic inflation. According to the inflationary paradigm, the exponential growth of the scale factor during inflation caused quantum fluctuations of the inflation field to be stretched to macroscopic scales, and, upon leaving the horizon, to "freeze in".
> At the later stages of rad...
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### Author:  [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)
#### Post date: [September 6, 2018, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-isnt-the-universe-homogeneous/820901/4 "2018-09-06T20:07:11Z")
Gravity acts as a positive feedback to amplify fluctuations. If one part of the universe is slightly denser, that attracts more matter and gets even more dense.