Fine-Tuning and the Multiverse Rescuing Device

Have you ever heard of parallel dimensions, also called the multiverse? The concept is quite ancient. My first introductions to it was a young adult book The Forgotten Door. In it, a boy fell through a hole in his world and ended up in ours — similar, but with noticeable differences.

There are various concepts of the multiverse. A common version is that our universe resides in a bubble, and other universes are in their own bubbles in a much larger universe. Since things appear finely tuned, we are the results of dumb luck.

Multiverse, geralt (Gerd Altmann) / Pixabay

The fine-tuning argument for the design of the universe is frequently used by biblical creationists and Intelligent Design advocates. A couple of atheists on a podcast rejected it, saying that there is no scientific evidence (they must not look around much). Instead, the fact-free fantasy of the multiverse, a rescuing device for the Big Bang and atheism in general, passes for science to them. This is another example of the truth of Romans 1:18-19.

With the multiverse hypothesis, a key supposition is that the physical parameters within alternative universes somehow vary over an undefined range, with the acknowledgement that most variants turn out badly for life. Our existence is therefore “explained” in that we landed in a “lucky” space, tautologically required for us to be alive, let alone to engage in philosophical debates.

How could anyone not be convinced by such a dismissal of the fine-tuning argument? As Carroll concludes, with his glib assessment of fine-tuning, “It’s a terrible argument.”

To read or listen to the entire article, zip over to "Why a Multiverse Doesn’t Refute Fine-Tuning."