The Multiverse isn’t just a staple of science fiction; there’s real-life science behind it, too. Here are 10 facts to expand your mind.
Bring up the concept of the Multiverse, and you’re likely to get a variety of responses. Some will look to it as an idea full of hope: the hope that there’s a version of you out there that made a bolder choice, had a better outcome, or avoided a critical blunder at some point along your life path. Maybe, out there in the Multiverse, is a version of you with a better life, a fatter wallet, a superior job and career, or a version who didn’t suffer the great losses, illnesses, or setbacks you’ve had to reckon with. On the other hand, maybe there are versions of you out there that have suffered far worse than you, including versions where you haven’t made it alive and well to the present day. The Multiverse, at least as most people think of it, is full of our hopes and fears as much as it is of any flavor of physics.
And yet the Multiverse itself comes from physics! Originally there were just two concept for the Multiverse:
- one that arises from the many-worlds interpretation of quantum mechanics,
- and one that arises from the fact that out there, beyond the limits of our observable Universe, is “more universe” that’s forever beyond our reach, perhaps even an infinite amount of it, and perhaps where parts of it are very, very different from the Universe we inhabit and recognize.
I had the pleasure to film a video with Big Think about The secret of the multiverse, and to go along with this video, I’ve compiled a story highlighting 10 facts that challenge the way you think about the reality that arises from the Multiverse. Enjoy the video, and the 10 facts, below.
