You heard it here first, or last, or anyway here: The universe is a donut

Yeah. A donut. We learned the truth at the Restaurant at the End of the Universe, or else ... somewhere else. Here's the free donut:

The idea that the universe is finite and relatively small, rather than infinitely large, first became popular in 2003, when cosmologists noticed unexpected patterns in the cosmic microwave background (CMB) – the relic radiation left behind by the Big Bang.

- from Zeeya Merali's "Doughnut-shaped Universe bites back", Nature News (28 May 2008)

The hole is the copy behind the paywall (premium content). Sorry. There are quite a few comments though, including,

I believe the universe IS donut shaped. That's because the closest 'other' universe is shaped like a giant cup of hot coffee - and we're headed straight for it.

25 May, 2008 Posted by: Arfy Warfy

I haven't heard much more than Homer Simpson jokes about this one, and I am still trying to catch up with the surfer dude who solved the riddle of the universe last November.

P.S.: I realize that this illustration is Earth as a donut, but look, we must start somewhere.

Humanity killing the universe?

You mean, we are responsible not only for the death of the passenger pigeon, but the whole shebang?

And here we thought global warming was a problem. Who would have realized that humanity is shortening" the universe's life? That's American physicists Lawrence Krauss and James Dent's theory, anyway, as explained by Roger Highfield, Britain's Telegraph's science editor (21/11/2007),

The damaging allegations are made by Profs Lawrence Krauss of Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio, and James Dent of Vanderbilt University, Nashville, who suggest that by making this observation [of dark energy] in 1998 we may have determined that the cosmos is in a state when it was more likely to end. "Incredible as it seems, our detection of the dark energy may provide evidence that the universe will ultimately decay," says Prof Krauss.

Further,

"The intriguing question is this," Prof Krauss told the Telegraph. "If we attempt to apply quantum mechanics to the universe as a whole, and if our present state is unstable, then what sets the clock that governs decay?

"Once we determine our current state by observations, have we effectively determined that the clock is not running at late times? If so, as incredible as it may seem, our detection of dark energy may imply both an unstable universe and a short life expectancy."

And here I thought the universe was way older and more immense and more steady than us.

Actually, I get the distinct feeling from Roger Highfield's account that he does not take the Krauss-Dent theory with the seriousness that its authors might hope. Read it and see if you agree with me.