[ExI] Future and past was Many Worlds

[Rafal Smigrodzki]

On Jan 9, 2008 10:14 AM, Jef Allbright <jef at jefallbright.net> wrote:
> On 1/9/08, hkhenson <hkhenson at rogers.com> wrote:
> > At 09:22 PM 1/8/2008, Rafal wrote:
> > >On Jan 8, 2008 10:41 PM, hkhenson <hkhenson at rogers.com> wrote:
> > > >
> > > > One of the things which falls out is that the past is as uncertain as
> > > > the future.  I.e., *many* pasts could have contributed to the current
> > > > reality (whatever that happens to be).
> > >
> > >### I'd rather say, 1 << N(past) << N(future). The number of possible
> > >futures is much larger than the number of possible pasts, and both are
> > >unimaginably numerous.
> >
> > Time symmetry would argue for the number of past and future states to
> > be the same.  I don't think it is a good idea to go any further with
> > this line of thinking.
>
> I'm intrigued by Rafal's claim, but I come to the same symmetrical
> result as does Keith.
>
> I can imagine reasons why pursuing this topic might be demoralizing to
> some, but I don't see it as a "bad idea" to try to increase
> understanding of this.  Rafal, can you provide a rational
> justification for your claim?

### An increase of entropy in a system means that the description of
the state of the system requires more bits. A perfect crystal can be
described as multiple of its cell structure but the same matter
vaporized requires enumeration of relative positions of every atom.
The false vacuum which gave rise to all observable matter was a very
low entropy system that at sizes below Planck scale could be described
by just a small number of bits, and there were comparably few states
that are compatible with our present - yet today the same part of the
universe requires hundreds of orders of magnitude more information to
be described to the same degree of precision. As entropy increases,
the size of the universe grows, there will be even more possible
states. Thus, the number of possible past states is very small
(approaching 1 perhaps?) if you go close enough to the Big Bang, and
the number of possible futures will keep on increasing, for a very
long time if not indefinitely.

Rafal