Stars Could Shine In Many Universes

A commonplace of cosmologists who argue the anthropic principle is the assumption that if any or a few of the constants of nature took on an even slightly different value, life could not have evolved — perhaps even stars and galaxies would not form. Science News reports on a new calculation showing that, to the contrary, star formation could happen in up to one-quarter of universes with different values of three important constants. "In fact, all universes can support the existence of stars, provided that the definition of star is interpreted broadly," said the researcher, Fred Adams. "...calculations suggest that, contrary to some previous claims, stars are not only common in our cosmos but are also ablaze in myriad other universes, where the laws of physics may be drastically different... Had Adams found that the range of parameters that allowed for stars was very small, that would have suggested that the laws of physics in our universe have been 'fine-tuned' to allow for star formation... Instead, Adams' study shows that our universe doesn't seem particularly special in that regard."

Comments

Zug zug

[Anonymous Coward]

I dont read slashdot for 2 days and I missed the fact that there are more than 1 universes... shit!

Re:Zug zug

[MightyMartian]

You watched NOVA and some SA articles, appear to have utterly failed to comprehend what QM is, but don't worry, /. is the perfect place to make believe that a few dozen TV shows and four or five page articles makes you an expert.

QM is in fact one of the most successful scientific theories in history, predicting and explaining a very large number of phenomena. It's responsible for a goodly portion of the technology you're using right now to broadcast to the world the extent of your idiocy.

Re:Zug zug

[crazyeddie740]

Yeah, and "atom" means "indivisible." Therefore, "atom smasher" is an oxymoron, and particle physics is just the product of deranged imagination.

Re:Zug zug

[ceoyoyo]

That's how you know you have a really powerful theory: when it lets you meaningfully ask more questions. When Newton figured out how gravity worked we could suddenly ask all sorts of questions about planets, stars, solar systems, and other interesting bits of the universe. Quantum mechanics does the same thing for our ability to investigate the very small, and parts of reality itself.

Which part of quantum mechanics are you referring to, that predicts other universes? Do you mean certain interpretations of Feynman's sum over paths method? That's not really a prediction, just a convenient what-if explanation for an interesting trick Feynman figured out for calculating probability waves. It's very interesting, but not a requirement for QM to work.

Finally!

[seanonymous]

I can't wait to meet the evil me and see how I look with a pointy beard.

Re:so

[hardburn]

As already pointed out by another reply, this only applies specifically to star formation, which was just one piece that has to be in place for life to work out. Even if this particular one has a 25% chance of happening, there are still a lot of others. Like existing long enough to make heavy elements, or having the right ratio between gravity and electromagnetic forces.

Misunderstanding of the Anthropic Principle

[Pfhorrest]

Proponents of the Anthropic Principle do not claim that universes which cannot support life are rare, or commonplace, or anything of the sort.

The Anthropic Principle merely says that we should not be surprised to find the universe conductive to our existence, even if such conditions are highly improbable, because the fact of our existence logically necessitates that we exist in a universe conductive to it.