Multiverse theory is now verifiable

[little_monkey]

From a new study: http://physicsworld.com/cws/article/news/47394

The idea of a multiverse is highly controversial. One problem is metaphysical: the universe seems big already, without having to contend with a potentially infinite number of others. Yet perhaps a bigger problem is scientific. If observations are limited to our own observable universe, how can scientists test whether a bigger multiverse exists? The answer to that has been that, from time to time, another universe in the multiverse might collide through ours, leaving a "wake" in its path. But figuring out precisely what such a wake would look like hasn't been easy.

Now, however, Kris Sigurdson of the University of British Columbia in Vancouver and others say they have calculated the detailed features of a cosmic wake. They have considered the possibility that our universe collided with another before our inflation period, because, they say, the latter would have erased the wake's evidence. Even though this happened more than 13 billion years ago, the wake would have been preserved in the cosmic microwave background (CMB), which was formed some 380,000 years into the universe's existence.

[5thHorseman]

I didnt get a word of that, but nevertheless good find.

[Cinjin]

It's cool. Unfortunately, it's a little beyond my level of education for me to really wrap my thoughts around.

[Cyberman]

Paraphrasing Davros in Genesis of the Daleks, "Though the power of such things is beyond my scientific comprehension, it is not beyond my imagination." (cautionary note to theists: quoting fictional characters out of context is habit-forming. Seek professional advice before attempting.)

Anyway, this is extremely interesting and just further illustrates the extraordinary power of modern science. Think we ought to run a book on how long before the first bit of scripture-spam pops up 'proving' the bible/koran/whatever knew about it all along?

[downbeatplumb]

Anything that exists is verifiable somehow. Even if we cant do it now we should be able to think of a way of verifying the idea.

[LunchBox]

I'm a fan of the multiverse idea. It is actually more plausible than not, in my opinion...which admittedly is based on the observable laws of our universe...and may not be applicable to the laws that govern any other universe. But...how many things occur in nature "just once"?

I wonder if every universe has its very own Invisible Space Wizard...or better yet...maybe we are all the "[G]od(s) of our own little internal universe...shit, I need a beer.

[reverendjeremiah]

Is it linear multiverse or parallel multiverse?

Sounds like Parallel to me if it leaves a "wake" within an already existing universe.

and what facts do they have to back up their claims?

[theVOID]

No facts Rev, they instead have some solid predictions about what should be present in the data given this event happened and can now begin to search for the evidence, it's a (somewhat) falsifiable multiverse theory, so should they find this pattern in the data it would go a long way to confirming the event, namely due to the probability of the pattern in the data being random or caused by some other phenomenon being phenomenally low.

There is also the a chance they don't find what they're looking for, it would discredit some MV models.

[8BitAtheist]

I've always had an interest in multiverse theories, but I can't exactly place why it would matter. On one hand, I find it extremely extraordinarily interesting and on the other I find it very unlikely that we'll ever have any way to actively manipulate any other other universe to our advantage.

[little_monkey]

If you look back 40 years ago, when the Big Bang was asserting itself as the only viable theory, there was little concern about pre-bang activities. Today, you have a slew of different models with different scenarios of what could have happened before the big bang, of which there are many models using the concept of a multiverse. This study gives a test means for ruling on these MV theories. Whether this will pan out remains to be seen, but I find it extraordinary that we are probing an area that was once the sole domain of philosophy or religion.