Inflation versus cyclic predictions for spectral tilt

We present a nearly model-independent estimate that yields the predictions of a class of simple inflationary and ekpyrotic or cyclic models for the spectral tilt of the primordial density inhomogeneities that enables us to compare the two scenarios. Remarkably, we find that the two produce an identical result, n(s)approximate to0.95. For inflation, the same estimate predicts a ratio of tensor to scalar contributions to the low l multipoles of the microwave background anisotropy of T/Sapproximate to20%; the tensor contribution is negligible for ekpyrotic or cyclic models, as shown in earlier papers.