If gravity waves, in general, are not found, then there's a spectacular conflict between General Relativity and the Hulse-Taylor pulsar system [1]. A direct det

If gravity waves, in general, are not found, then there's a spectacular conflict between General Relativity and the Hulse-Taylor pulsar system [1]. A direct detection with earth-based detectors from a nearby inspiral is quite likely within the next decade; thousands of scientists have bet their careers on it [2]. If early-universe gravitational waves aren't found, then some major theories of inflation and cosmology will require adaptation. In the grand scheme of things, this is still a big deal, but less-so than shattering a core prediction of GR. [1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PSR_B1913+16 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PSR_B1913+16 [2] https://www.advancedligo.mit.edu/ https://www.advancedligo.mit.edu/