How Many Multiverses Are There?

History of the Universe・2 minutes read

Edward Quinn's historical atlas illuminates humanity's progress and knowledge from ancient times to the modern era, intertwined with the evolution of cartography and scientific exploration. The multiverse theory and string theory landscape offer intriguing prospects for exploring different universes with varying physics and properties, sparking debates among physicists about the nature of reality and scientific validity.

Insights

  • The historical atlas completed by Edward Quinn in 1828 serves as a visual representation of human knowledge, starting from ancient times and progressing through significant historical events, symbolizing enlightenment and the unveiling of the world's mysteries over centuries.
  • The exploration of the universe through telescopes and scientific advancements, culminating in Edwin Hubble's discovery of galaxies beyond the Milky Way in 1924, has expanded our understanding of the cosmos, leading to revelations about the accelerating expansion of the universe, the existence of multiverses, and the intricate balance of physics necessary for life to exist, sparking ongoing debates and theories among physicists.

Get key ideas from YouTube videos. It’s free

Recent questions

  • What did Edwin Hubble discover?

    Galaxies beyond Milky Way.

Related videos

Summary

00:00

"Unveiling the Cosmos: From Ignorance to Expansion"

  • In 1828, amateur cartographer Edward Quinn completed his historical atlas, published posthumously, illustrating the world's knowledge as a light dispelling ignorance and revealing continents and civilizations.
  • Starting in 2348 BC with the Bible, the atlas mirrors European expansion, progressing through the Exodus of the Israelites and the rise of the Roman Empire, unveiling more of the world by the early 19th century.
  • The clouds of mystery in the universe have gradually dissipated over the last few hundred years as telescopes have allowed us to explore stars, galaxies, black holes, and planets, even glimpsing the afterglow of creation and predicting the universe's future.
  • Scientists, armed with complex equations and advanced tools, continue to push the boundaries of knowledge, delving into theoretical physics and exploring multiverse theories to unravel the deepest questions about the cosmos.
  • The European Space Agency estimates approximately 10^24 stars in the observable universe, forming vast filaments and clusters, while Under Lucky Stars offers personalized star maps as unique gifts, verified by NASA astrophysicists.
  • In April 1920, a significant debate at the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History in Washington, DC, between astronomers Harlow Shapley and Heber Curtis centered on the universe's size, with Curtis arguing for a vast cosmos of individual galaxies.
  • Edwin Hubble's work at the Mount Wilson Observatory in California, aided by the 100-inch Hooker telescope, led to the discovery of Cepheid variable stars in the Andromeda galaxy, proving the existence of galaxies beyond the Milky Way.
  • Hubble's findings in 1924 confirmed that Andromeda was a galaxy in its own right, settling the debate on the universe's size and expanding our understanding of the cosmos.
  • The discovery of the accelerating expansion of the universe in the late 1990s due to dark energy revealed that galaxies are moving away from each other at an increasing rate, leading to a future where most galaxies will be beyond our observable universe.
  • Astronomers estimate there are around two trillion galaxies within our observable universe, with almost 99% already beyond our cosmic horizon due to accelerated expansion, hinting at a future where exploration beyond our local stars becomes increasingly limited.

19:15

"Exploring Multiverse Theories: Levels, Inflation, Complexity"

  • In the level one multiverse, every possible variation exists in the infinite, but we are confined to our observational universe.
  • There are three more levels in Max Tegmark's multiverse, each stranger than the last.
  • The fine-tuning of our universe's physics is crucial for life to exist, with gravity and electromagnetism finely balanced.
  • Tiny changes in nuclear forces or dark energy levels would render the universe uninhabitable.
  • The idea of inflation, proposed by Alan Guth, explains rapid universal expansion and the formation of galaxies.
  • The new theory of inflation, introduced by Andre Linde, Andreas Albrecht, and Paul Steinhardt, involves the inflaton field and eternal inflation.
  • The eternal inflation leads to the continual formation of individual universes within the multiverse.
  • The formation of universes through bubble nucleation determines their properties, including the laws of physics.
  • Most level one multiverses would lack complexity and life, making our universe a statistical fluke in the level two multiverse.
  • Various theories propose different multiverse concepts, including cyclic universes, cosmic natural selection, and the ecpirotic universe.

38:44

"Exploring Multiverse Theories in Fundamental Physics"

  • The original hope for a theory of everything was a pure and unique explanation for fundamental physics.
  • M theory predicts that the early universe was featureless and simple, with fundamental physics crystallizing as it cools.
  • The string theory landscape presents uncountable ways for physics to crystallize, resulting in different fundamental physics.
  • The number of solutions in the string theory landscape is uncertain, possibly 10^500 or infinite.
  • Physicists suggest that multiple universes exist as brains in the bulk of multi-dimensions in m theory.
  • Differing universes in the string theory landscape have varying physics due to the crystallization process.
  • The multiverse concept in m theory and eternal inflation leads to a mix of desolate and lucky universes.
  • Level 2 multiverses offer contrasting possibilities within an infinite multiverse.
  • Quantum mechanics revealed light's dual nature as both particles and waves, leading to the wave-particle duality.
  • The Copenhagen interpretation of quantum mechanics introduces the wave function collapse issue, prompting the proposal of many worlds theory.

58:03

"Multiverse Theories: Mathematical Reality and Parallel Worlds"

  • In the Copenhagen interpretation of quantum mechanics, a coin toss leads to a split in the universe, with one universe resulting in survival and the other in execution, showcasing the concept of multiple worlds.
  • The Level 4 multiverse theory by Max Tegmark suggests that reality is purely mathematical, existing as mathematical structures encompassing all possibilities, akin to a super powerful computer program.
  • The multiverse concept is a mix of scientific and almost science fiction ideas, with discussions often leading to debates among physicists regarding its validity and scientific scrutiny.
  • Despite ongoing mysteries and unanswered questions, the potential for exploring parallel worlds and hidden universes within the multiverse remains a tantalizing possibility for future scientific developments.
Channel avatarChannel avatarChannel avatarChannel avatarChannel avatar

Try it yourself — It’s free.