I was asked a while back by fellow blogger, Priyesh Bohra, about what my thoughts were on how the universe came to be after he read my post The Article of Astronomical Proportions. I promised him I’d work on an entire post dedicated to the matter and apologise to him for taking so long to get around to it. Better late than never I suppose.
What I’m going to do is break it down into some of my favourite hypotheses and then explain my thoughts on each. I’ll try to refrain from too much scientific jargon and keep it as “Professor Brian Cox simple” as I possibly can. If I get the chance I may try to conjure up a theory of my own just for fun. So without further ado, let’s get cracking!
The Big Bang Theory – It’s the most widely accepted model in science today and is indeed the model I believe to be true. This theory states that the universe began from essentially nothing. For some reason; a reason that has never and probably will never be found; there was a random fluctuation in this nothingness that caused something the size of a subatomic particle (known to some as the “god particle”) to inflate into something unimaginably vast in a fraction of a second. This was done by something called negative-pressure vacuum energy. It created all that we know and take for granted in our known universe today.
The universe is estimated to be around 13.8 billion years old because so far we have seen only objects that are around 13.8 billion light years away from us in whatever direction. That seems to state that only light visible to us can be seen if it sits within that distance. Any light further out cannot be seen because it hasn’t reached us yet.
I think this theory is the most plausible. While the ‘random fluctuation in the nothingness’ is certainly very sketchy and draws scepticism at every turn, I think the theory itself holds about as much potential truth as we’re able to grasp at present until further research is done.
Ekpyrotic Theory – I like this theory. I probably like this one more than any other and I’d love it if it were true. In essence, it states that there are innumerable universes out there with every conceivable possibility in each. That means there’ll be more of you in other universes. Literally countless more. This theory came about as a result of string theory.
The theory itself is very scientific and if I went into it too much I’d no doubt lose most all of you. To keep it as simple as I can without sounding like I’m talking to a four year old, you have to imagine that our universe is essentially a flat projection (known as a ‘brane’). Everything we know goes on within this brane. There are endless sums of other branes side by side and each of them is moving back and forth. Every so often, our brane collides with other branes that are moving relative to it and when they do, that creates a big bang; a new beginning for each universe.
It still sounds confusing even putting it as simply as that. I don’t want to get bogged down by the science behind it though and I’d rather highlight the fun parts of the theory. Namely what I’ve already mentioned in that there are endless possibilities in each brane. The physical laws of each brane would differ. Every single little possibility exists within this theory, up to and including a you who chooses to eat a different meal to what you ate last Friday week. Imagine it; if this theory were true then there’s a you out there who’s mega rich. A shame that I don’t believe it is then.
Pulsating/Oscillating Theory – This theory actually incorporates both beginning and end. I suppose the Ekpyrotic Theory did too, but this one works differently.
It’s quite simple really. The words “pulsating” and “oscillating” should give it away. The theory states that the universe is expanding up until a certain point and once it reaches this point, it’ll begin to contract until everything in the universe is squashed down to the point it was at before the Big Bang. Then from there, the universe will start all over again. Basically it’s a never ending cycle.
I quite like this theory, but I don’t believe it. If it were true then I think it’d be fun if things happened like in the Red Dwarf episode ‘Backwards’ where it’s a case that the universe doesn’t just contract, but everything that ever happened starts to undo itself. So you basically start off dead, you get up and start living as an old person, get younger and eventually crawl back…actually, you know what? Eurgh! No! That wouldn’t be fun at all, but what would be is that you’d talk backwards and the word ‘bitter’ would sound like ‘erskib’. Try it. You’ll see.
So no, I’m not sold on this theory. I don’t think the universe contracts back to a singularity after a given period of time. I think the Pulsating/Oscillating Theory negates entropy (something I do believe in – it’s tough not to because it’s happening) and therefore I can categorically rule it out.
Steady State Theory – I can already say with fervour that this theory has already been disproven so I’m not talking about it to say whether I believe it or not; more just to explain what it is and how it works.
The theory suggested that matter is being continuously created to explain why the universe is constantly expanding. This essentially means that the universe had no beginning and has no end; that matter creation is an eternal occurrence. The theory has been disproved due to a lot of contrary evidence found since the 60’s however.
I quite like the idea behind the theory. While it’d be easy to ask “well how does matter just create itself”, I think it’s only as ludicrous as The Big Bang Theory where the universe apparently created itself. It’s easy to see why the theory has been dispelled, but I think it’s a nice one if you imagine it. An ever expanding and self-replicating universe that never ends; new possibilities springing up all over the place. It’s a shame it isn’t the case and the universe really will end one day. Or at least cease to exist in the way we know it.
So there are a few of the known theories. There are more I could list, but they’re honestly so complex that I’d lose patience trying to explain the science behind them. It’s been tricky enough with the ones I’ve explained without getting too technical.
Now for my fun theory. I’m doing this totally off the top of my head so please bear with me. I shall dub this ‘The Inventism Theory’. Basically, this universe came into existence the moment I came to exist. An alternative version of me created everything after the last incarnation died and I create it differently every time. I live my life in a universe I didn’t actually know I created and when I die, I return to the drawing board and decide what the next universe will be like before being born again.
Don’t confuse it with reincarnation. That’s not what this is. You see, I’m, the only thing in the universe that really exists. You’re all here just because I put you here. Once I die, you’ll no longer exist. That doesn’t make me god either because once I’m born I just fit in like everybody else with nothing especially remarkable about me. If I made myself too powerful then people would get wise. Not that it’d matter if they did because if they killed me I’d just go back to the drawing board anyway. I’ll live on forever inventing universes however I see fit.
The Inventism Theory there. What do you think of that? Not bad for a theory I just created with no forethought whilst eating my dinner (or lunch depending on how you swing).
In reality, nobody knows for sure how the universe came to be. We’ll likely never find out. Maybe god did create everything. Which god? Take your pick. That leaves the question…who created the creator? The idea of a god who just appeared out of nowhere to create the universe is surely no less ludicrous than the idea of the universe creating itself, but however it came to be, let’s just enjoy it as best we can. It’s the only one we’ve got for now so we should endeavour to make the most of it!
What theory do you think is most plausible? Do you care to venture any hypotheses I haven’t mentioned here? Perhaps you want to explain why you think god was definitely the creator and that these theories are just all plain wrong. What do you make of my newly created Inventism Theory? I’d love to read your thoughts and see what you think so please comment below and I’ll get back to you.
The Adventures of an Average, White Man...© 
I personally like the ekpyrotic one best in my own knowledge of the subject. I guess it is because it’s awfully interesting to think that there are many different Klutzies out there and it would be pretty cool to some how get a glimpse at them all and see how she is doing in her own Universe.
Your theory is pretty interesting too. Something to ponder at the very least.
The facial hair make you look like you belong in WWE.
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The facial hair is a rip off of a WWE superstar’s former look. Haha.
Yeah, I really like the idea of the Ekpyrotic Theory. It’d be sort of comforting to know that other versions of yourself are doing better for themselves and realising dreams that perhaps this version of yourself hasn’t. The Red Dwarf episodes Dimension Jump (Series IV) and Stoke Me a Clipper (Series VII) delve into the Ekpyrotic Theory in a comedic way where a much better version of the character Rimmer appears.
My theory is stupid! Let’s not split hairs about this. Haha
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No. We’re not interesting enough for aliens to even contemplate our existence. They likely aren’t destroying their home the way we are too
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But Veen you explain why you go into the earth but just land on the moon to me?? Nope, didn’t think so! 😄
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Sorry, I don’t understand your question
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I love when you’re scrolling through your followers’ posts and come upon one that is not only entertaining but educational! Anyway, I was vaguely familiar with a couple of these theories, but totally ignorant to others. I must admit, thinking about a few of these makes my brain hurt. The concept of nothingness is tough to wrap my head around. And maybe that isn’t surprising since we are something, so the concept of a nothingness existing prior to time is inherently impossible for us to truly grasp. Regardless, wrapping my mind around what nothingness looked like prior to the Big Bang (if we are to go with that theory) is impossible for me to do. I’m agnostic now, but the sensation kind of reminds me of that feeling I would get as a (religious) child asking my parents who God’s parents were, and them telling me God just always existed and didn’t have a mom and dad. Anyway, I’m afraid I understand the science behind these theories far too little in order to make an informed opinion on which theory I like best.
Tangentially related, your post reminded me of a YouTube video I recently saw which gives a good visual representation for just how incredibly young humanity is compared to the history of just EARTH. Which itself is a speck on the timeline of the universe as you described here. You can watch the video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M8V_glRW1hA
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Yeah, if you put it on a scale it’s quite mind boggling how little time humans have existed. 13.7 billion years is such a big number that we simply can’t get our heads around it. Earth has existed for 4.5 billion. The 30,000 or so years any variant of human has existed is quite literally the cosmic blink of an eye. Professor Brian Cox did some diagram to show exactly how much time life has to flourish using the entropic model of the universe and the window is miniscule comparatively speaking. Like hardly measurable. It makes me wonder if other lifeforms out there experience time in the same way we do.
I think you’ve put that very nicely. We simply can’t grasp the concept of there being “nothing”, but then there are a whole lot of things we can’t understand because we’re just one species on one planet. I can say with conviction that god isn’t everything unexplainable (in my opinion of course). I think we just simply don’t understand it because it’s beyond our realms of understanding. Kinda like what’s beyond the event horizon of a black hole. We just don’t know and probably never will.
I’ll give that video a watch shortly when I get on my laptop
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My exact words when I saw that facial hair were “Oh dear.” Then I laughed. Lol so glad to hear it’s not permanent. Anyway as to your point.
I have heard of something like your slightly narcissistic inventism theory before, that your reality is the only reality and mine doesn’t exist. I can’t go with that one, it excludes waaaay to much.
I have seen tests done in particle accelerators where they show how much a person’s perception changes actual matter.
So my favorite theory is that our brain waves and the conciousness of any other animal, not just human (because realy, we’ve really just showed up), affect matter in our universe. Morphing the matter into our realities, each of us making changes ever so slightly. Some more than others of course. I think that they will find that perception/conciousness has way more of an affect than everyone gives it credit for.
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I was toying with calling it the Narcissism Theory, but that seemed a little on the nose. Haha.
The pic of me is from when I’d grown a beard and then shaved it off in stages and took selfies. Why not right? Haha.
I like that theory and have heard something similar before. Might even have been that. It’s something to do with the unlocked potential in the human brain that nobody has been able to access. Telekinetic energy or whatever. Whether it’s actually true that we have the potential to move objects without touching them is of course speculation at this point until we see it with our own eyes
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I hope they figure it out in my lifetime, I want superpowers. You know, other than supercoolnesss!. (Jk as I wrote that I kept imagined my daughter rolling her eyes. Lol)
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I’m glad you imagined me as your daughter 😂 The only problem with that level of superpower is that surely everybody else would have them too which I imagine would make them less super
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Oh..yeah. Things could get dangerous with all the idiots. Maybe not a good idea. Lol
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Now my turn for a generic comment because I have no idea what you’re talking about… bahaha just teasing 😉🤣 I actually didn’t realise there were so many different theories, I feel so uneducated! But I think you did a good job explaining it all in layman’s terms… and if your theory happens to be correct; I hope I’d make it past the drawing board each time… and if that isn’t the face of a vengeful god like being I dunno what is… LOL 🤣🤣🤣
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You might have existed in entirely different forms in previous incarnations. That’s the beauty of the Inventism Theory. There are other theories aside from these, but these are all the main ones. If you’ve never had or felt the need to learn them then it’s not exactly anything to feel bad about. It’s only because I’ve had a vested interest to learn it that I know
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It certainly does open up the curiosity and imagination in me 🙂
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I need to re-watch Professor Brian Cox’s Wonders series’ soon I think
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That sounds familiar though not sure if I’ve ever seen it… I used to also watch the Edison Twins… I think that was Canadian too?
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Lol I totally thought I was responding to the other comment stream about Degrassi 🤣 sorry… but it kinda fits here… Edison Twins was about science genius teen twins that would solve mysteries and invent things…
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I don’t think Professor Brian Cox invents things. He just be’s clever and looks hot (I liked the contradiction of saying ‘be’s clever’ because it sounds anything but). I don’t think he’s solved mysteries either, but he has used many inanimate objects to express things like stars and planets
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I’ve never seen the show I just assumed it was science based and was reaching for a similarity LOL 😂
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Any old similarity. Oh my god, this show has a man in it too. How coincidental! 😂
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See? I told you! Lol but nah it was meant to go along on that other discussion makes more sense there for sure 🤣
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I enjoyed reading this…this is a subject I know nothing about and im still none the wiser as these huge creation type concepts bend my head too much. It’s fascinating though and we’ll done for attempting something as ambitious as this 😊💪👍💟
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I get what you mean. It’s often too big to get one’s head around. I don’t profess to understand it, but I do my best. I love talking about astronomy. I do it depressingly little nowadays 😞 I’m glad you enjoyed it xxx
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