The universe is made up of billions of swirling galaxies, with stars orbiting so fast that the gravitational force should be unable to counter the centrifugal forces tearing them apart. Galaxies should therefore explode, but, oddly, they don’t! Mike discusses his new, alternative model involving a combination of relativity and quantum mechanics, and explains how this ‘quantised inertia’ also predicts a new method of launching satellites without rockets. Mike has a degree in physics, a PhD in physical oceanography and is now a Lecturer in Geomatics at the University of Plymouth. He has published numerous papers on quantised inertia, and a book called ‘Physics from the Edge’. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at