I think we can all agree the universe is undeniably large. Blogger Evan explores the question of “How big is the universe?” by explaining the multiverse theory.–Alternate Realities Editor Hannah Hall
By Evan Spry
Possibly the hardest question scientists and astronomers have to answer right now is, “How big is the universe?” This is such a difficult question to answer because it is nearly impossible to determine and there are different theories about the nature of our universe. One theory is that the universe is super big but finite, and the other theory is that the universe is infinitely big and ever expanding. If you ask me, the second theory is way cooler and more thought-provoking because it fosters deeper ideas like the multiverse theory, where there are an infinite amount of parallel universes coexisting at the same time.
What is a multiverse?
A multiverse is the blanket term for the hypothetical group of multiple universes that would exist if our universe was infinite. The reason a multiverse would exist is because if the universe was infinitely big, there would have to be a repeat in the formation of matter at some point because there are only a certain number of combinations space could be made up of. If this sounds confusing, physicist Brian Greene has an analogy, “Think of the universe like a deck of cards. Now, if you shuffle that deck, there’s just so many orderings that can happen. If you shuffle that deck enough times, the orders will have to repeat” (npr.org). So if we do live in a multiverse, that means that there would be another universe, however far away, that would be almost identical to our universe. This means that there could be other versions of ourselves living out their lives as we speak!
Stephen Hawking
One name recognized highly by everyone in the scientific community is Stephen Hawking. This is because of the countless scientific honors and awards he’s received over the years. In his last paper before his death, Hawking famously mentioned the existence of the multiverse saying, “We are not down to a single, unique universe, but our findings imply a significant reduction of the multiverse to a much smaller range of possible universes” (space.com). Ever since the 80s, Hawking has been teaming up with other scientists to find the secrets of the universe. It was in these studies that the Hawking-Hartle idea was introduced. This idea described how the universe formed after the Big Bang. Within this theory, more questions arose. Hawking and Hartle had implied that with the creation of the universe, there would have to be an infinite amount of other universes.
In conclusion, there could be another copy of you somewhere else far away in the universe. However, we unfortunately won’t be able to solve this problem any time soon because of the technological achievements we’d have to accomplish before then. I think this is an awesome theory, and I would like to believe that there are an infinite number of Evans running, swimming, or flying around the universe–I just don’t have the evidence yet.
Alternate Realities Editor: Hannah Hall
Sources:
https://astronomy.com/news/2020/12/is-the-multiverse-theory-science-fiction-or-science-fact
https://www.npr.org/2011/01/24/132932268/a-physicist-explains-why-parallel-universes-may-exist
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