Sky & Telescope December 2005 [antikvár]

by richord tresch fienberg |I - '^THT^i I 'i 'i iV'tv.-J1Parallel Universesone of the more intriguing ideas to gain a foothold in modem cosmology is the notion that ours is one of many parallel universes. Each supposedly sprouted from its own big bang with its own pecuhar mix of matter and energy and its own laws of physics. It's bizarre, yes, but astrophysicists didn't just dream it up they've been compelled to consider the reality of the "multiverse" by data streaming in from laboratories and observatories.As far as I'm concerned, this is nothing new. I've been collecting evidence of multiple universes for many years. I don't even have to go looking it comes right to my mailbox at Sky Telescope, often in envelopes marked, appropriately, "Certified Mail." Typically, the letters enclosed within are handwritten {usually on lined paper) or typed on old-fashioned typewriters (each period makes a hole in the paper). Additional notes are often scribbled in the margins. It's all very other-worldly.In the space-time continua occupied by my correspondents, things really are quite different from what we know based on observations of our own vmiverse. For example, Einstein's equations of relativity don't apply, so material bodies can travel faster than light. The laws of thermodynamics don't permit big bangs or the subsequent evolution of complex systems, so stars, galaxies, and hving organisms have simply existed aU along. And cosmic expansion, if it's happening at all, is slowing down rather than speeding up.Is our universe one of many, each with different laws of physics? Yes, and the proof is in my mailbox.It isn't easy figuring all this out, because mainstream science is a conspiracy of brainwashed buffoons who consistently overlook obvious math errors, misinterpret their data, and pubhsh research papers filled with pure nonsense. Worse, media gatekeepers - beings with jobs not unlike my own - routinely echo this drivel to an unsuspecting public while suppressing the truth as revealed by lone visionaries, often the very ones who send me letters.This is all very alarming. I think we should take steps to guard against science going similarly awry in our own universe. Accordingly, I wish to alert our readers - not only professional astrophysicists, but also anyone else who's working to unravel the mysteries of the multiverse to a valuable resource that can help ensure the quality of your work. It's called the Crackpot Index.Developed by mathematician John Baez {University of California, Riverside), the Crackpot Index can be found online at http://math.ucr.edu/home/baez/crackpot.html. It is billed as a simple method for rating potentially revolutionary contributions to physics, but it applies to cosmology and other fields in astronomy as weU.To use it, get out your latest book manuscript or research paper (or letter to Sky Telescope) before submitting it for publication and assign points as you go down the list of statements on the Web page. For example, you get 5 points for using a thought experiment that contradicts widely accepted results, 20 points for each use of the phrase "self-appointed defender of the orthodoxy," and 40 points for comparing yourself to Galileo.Baez doesn't say whether you should be happy with a high score or a low one, and since it's his index, I wouldn't feel right concluding one way or the other. You'll have to judge the results for yourself.Meanwhile, here's my own modest contribution to the emerging theory of the multiverse. Most scientists working on it seem to think that all universes are completely and forever separate, so we can never communicate directly with those outside our own. I offer the contents of my mailbox as evidence to the contrary.PS: Longtime readers may notice the absence of our semiannual index from this month's issue Don't fret - we've posted it online as a free Adobe PDF file. To get it, point your Web browser to SicyandTelescope.com/index.8 December 2005 Sky & Telescope