PARALLEL UNIVERSES 249
universe: a multiverse of universes that coexist with each other, like
soap bubbles floating in a bubble bath. Contact with another universe
in the multiverse is a different question. It would undoubtedly be a difficult feat, but one that might be possible for a Type III civilization.
As we discussed before, the energy necessary to open a hole in
space or to magnify the space-time foam is on the order of the Planck
energy, where all known physics breaks down. Space and time are not
stable at that energy, and this opens the possibility of leaving our universe (assuming that other universes exist and we are not killed in the
process).
This is not a purely academic question, since all intelligent life in
the universe will one day have to confront the end of the universe. Ultimately, the theory of the multiverse may be the salvation for all intelligent life in our universe. Recent data from the WMAP satellite
currently orbiting the Earth confirms that the universe is expanding at
an accelerating rate. One day we may all perish in what physicists refer to as the Big Freeze. Eventually, the entire universe will go black;
all the stars in the heavens will blink out and the universe will consist
of dead stars, neutron stars, and black holes. Even the very atoms of
their bodies may begin to decay. Temperatures may plunge to near absolute zero, making life impossible.
As the universe approaches that point, an advanced civilization
facing the ultimate death of the universe could contemplate taking the
ultimate journey to another universe. For these beings the choice
would be to freeze to death or leave. The laws of physics are a death
warrant for all intelligent life, but there is an escape clause in those
laws.
Such a civilization would have to harness the power of huge atom
smashers and laser beams as large as a solar system or star cluster to
concentrate enormous power at a single point in order to attain the fabled Planck energy. It is possible that doing so would be sufficient to
open up a wormhole or gateway to another universe. A Type III civilization may use the colossal energy at their disposal to open a wormhole as it makes a journey to another universe, leaving our dying
universe and starting over again.
universe: a multiverse of universes that coexist with each other, like
soap bubbles floating in a bubble bath. Contact with another universe
in the multiverse is a different question. It would undoubtedly be a difficult feat, but one that might be possible for a Type III civilization.
As we discussed before, the energy necessary to open a hole in
space or to magnify the space-time foam is on the order of the Planck
energy, where all known physics breaks down. Space and time are not
stable at that energy, and this opens the possibility of leaving our universe (assuming that other universes exist and we are not killed in the
process).
This is not a purely academic question, since all intelligent life in
the universe will one day have to confront the end of the universe. Ultimately, the theory of the multiverse may be the salvation for all intelligent life in our universe. Recent data from the WMAP satellite
currently orbiting the Earth confirms that the universe is expanding at
an accelerating rate. One day we may all perish in what physicists refer to as the Big Freeze. Eventually, the entire universe will go black;
all the stars in the heavens will blink out and the universe will consist
of dead stars, neutron stars, and black holes. Even the very atoms of
their bodies may begin to decay. Temperatures may plunge to near absolute zero, making life impossible.
As the universe approaches that point, an advanced civilization
facing the ultimate death of the universe could contemplate taking the
ultimate journey to another universe. For these beings the choice
would be to freeze to death or leave. The laws of physics are a death
warrant for all intelligent life, but there is an escape clause in those
laws.
Such a civilization would have to harness the power of huge atom
smashers and laser beams as large as a solar system or star cluster to
concentrate enormous power at a single point in order to attain the fabled Planck energy. It is possible that doing so would be sufficient to
open up a wormhole or gateway to another universe. A Type III civilization may use the colossal energy at their disposal to open a wormhole as it makes a journey to another universe, leaving our dying
universe and starting over again.