Carson Schwab's List: Multiverse

Johnson, Matthew C. Lehners, Jean-Luc. "Cycles in the Multiverse". Physical Review D 85. (2012): 1-16. Web. 25 October 2013.

A Canadian Johnson, and a German Jean-Luc teamed up to alert the rest of the world that they were not content with the state of the multiverse theory. They actually had a different idea altogether. This international team of up-and-coming college physicists refined the idea of eternal inflation (constant splitting of universes) to a much more logical, yet bold alternative. Using the measurement problem as their main argument against classical theory, Johnson and Jean-Luc proposed the concept of a set number of renewable universes. The duo made published an idea that no one had ever thought of before: "In this paper, we analyze models of eternal inflation which allow for the possibility of cyclic bubble universes: in each bubble, standard cosmological evolution is replayed over and over again." This take on the multiverse theory not only does away with the bothersome endless number of universes, but also resolves issues such as the measurement problem, while retaining legitimacy.

Larson, Ronald. "Design or the Multiverse?". Perspectives on Science and Christian Faith 63.1 (2011): 42-47. Ebscohost.com. Web. 30 October 2013.

Ronald Larson's priorities involving this high-octane physics theory shows a stark difference in values from most any other physics author. Larson takes a step in a new direction, the direction of Metaphysics, a branch that deals with the social, and interactive side of physics. "The effort to explain the 'fine-tuning' of our universe by appealing to a 'multiverse'
of many universes from which our universe is selected for observation by our existence within it, is a double-edged sword" (Larson 42). He states that the multiverse has an obvious impact on the creation vs. evolution argument. Many religious physicists refuse to accept it purely because they see it as a stab at creationism. Larson elaborates that they are rightly weary, as the multiverse theory fits in very nicely with the theory of evolution (Larson 44).

Rae, Alastair I. "The Flawed Multiverse". Physics World (2011): 44-45. Physicsworld.com. Web. 30 October 2013.

This journal article sticks out like a sore thumb in comparison to the rest of the documents in this annotated bibliography. This is the only one that actually points out the flaws of the theory rather than glorifying it as a brilliant intellectual achievement. "So the initial state of the particle must depend on the measurement of the particle that is still to be performed. Choosing the basis beforehand to suit the properties of the subsequent measurement seems to destroy the objectivity of the initial state and, indeed, of the multiverse" (Rae 45). Alastair Rae is clearly not afraid to swim against the flow. While almost all respected contemporary physicists seem to worship the idea of a multiverse, he points several blatant flaws, including the one quoted above. In addition to this he makes note of other strong arguments against this theory, the most popular being the measurement problem which allows a particle to be two places at one time. Skeptics such as Rae actually do a world of good for developing theories such as the multiverse, instead of blindly dancing about the revelation, he points out that it still needs work.

Byrne, Peter. "The Many Worlds Theory Today". Interview by Peter Tyson. PBS. WGBH Educational Foundation, 2008. Web. 28 Aug. 2008.

A PBS interview of Peter Byrne (a highly knowledgeable physics journalist) sheds light on the multiverse theory. Byrne, the author of a book which analyzes and concurs with the basic theory of the multiverse demonstrates a clear bias towards the acceptance of this theory. Although biased, Byrne's interpretation clearly outlines the fundamental rules of this theory, providing a context for the lesser accepted branches of the multiverse. The interview provides key information about what really occurs at a sub-atomic level when a universe "splits". Byrne explains that "before you look at [a subatomic particle], it could be at any number of positions in the device that you've got it trapped in." He clarifies later that what actually causes the split is the recognition of that particle in one location.

Schindler, Benjamin, et al., "Multiverse Data-Flow Control". IEE Transactions on Visualization and Computer Graphics. 19.6 (2013). Web. 30 October 2013.

The team of master's physicists that authored this journal managed to develop a way to play out all of the possible outcomes of a scenario, based off of the locations of particles involved. This is a very important supplement to the theory because it allows expert physicists such as themselves to project the outcomes of a perceived interaction in not only our universe, but a gazillion other universes as well. In the article this data intensive system is described as the "complex temporal processing [used for] particle tracing or statistical analysis over time." They basically found a way to map out all of the probabilities of all of the outcomes of any scenario ever. This is an incredible tool for other physicists who wish to further delve into the complexities of the multiverse theory.

Hamkins, Joel D. "The Set-Theoretic Multiverse". The Review of Symbolic Logic 5.3 (2012): 416-449. Journals.cambridge.org. Web. 26 October 2013.

"The multiverse position, I argue, explains our experience with the enormous range of set-theoretic possibilities, a phenomenon that challenges the universe view. In particular I argue that the continuum hypothesis is settled" (Hamkins 416). Drawing from his schooling in both Philosophy and Math, Joel Hamkins presents the argument that with everything that has come to be known about the multiverse, it would really just be illogical not to support it. Additionally, he mentions the continuum hypothesis. The continuum hypothesis, explained very basically, is the concept that there are an infinite number of values between the numbers zero and one. Although seemingly unrelated at first, when you think about it, this idea is actually quite similar to that of the multiverse, a limitless number positions can be occupied. So, Hamkins produces evidence not only that the multiverse theory is the solution to the continuum hypothesis, but also that the rules of one of them provides a foundation for the other one. That means that the multiverse becomes even more of an integral part of physics, life, and everything.

Nomura, Yasunori. "Static Quantum Multiverse". APS Physics D.86 (2012): 0-28. Web. 29 October 2013.

This physics journal present perhaps the most profound idea out of any of the other sources provided. Nomura Yasunori attended the University of California, Berkeley, a very well respected school for physics… and everything else for that matter. Like others before him, Nomura raised the idea of a multiverse, on a universe's path through time. In the abstract of his journal he suggests that the multiverse is static, like a straight line extending forever in both directions but without the sprouting branches usually associated with a multiverse (Nomura 0). What that means in standard vernacular is the same old idea that the multiverse is infinite, the interesting part is that if the multiverse knows no bounds, then consequently neither does time. It's pretty damn cool if you think about it, there has never been a moment where there has not been a moment… ever. This means that now we as humans can prove time existed even before the earliest kept record of anything and time will forever continue to interact with the multiverse, and the multiverse, time. Nomura further explains that three dimensional locations of any desired particle can be deciphered "according to the rules of quantum mechanics" (Nomura 1).