[extropy-chat] Let us speak of universes and intelligent designers

Terry W. Colvin fortean1 at mindspring.com
Fri Jul 1 00:47:44 UTC 2005


Forwarding permission was given by William R. Corliss

< http://www.science-frontiers.com >

SCIENCE FRONTIERS, No. 160, Jul-Aug 2005, p. 4


UNCLASSIFIED

Let us speak of universes and intelligent designers

The latest number of the *Journal of Irreproducible Results*, a
science-humor magazine, had fun with an article on the Intelligent
Designer (ID) hypothesis.  We have the temerity to reproduce one
paragraph from said article because it harks back to SF#81, where
there was speculation about multiple universes.  In said universes, it
was proposed, the values of physical constants might change or be
changed so as to make them fitter in terms of longevity,
reproducibility, or some other criterion.  Pretty weird stuff, but
what do we mere humans know about the teleology of universes?

Universes seeming to us to be merely vast assemblages of luminous and
dark matter may be much more---something akin to the entity in F. Hoyle's
classic sci-fi novel *The Black Cloud*.

Anyway, here is the promised paragraph from the *Journal of
Irreproducible Results*.  Remember this is a humor magazine where
anything goes!

   With our increasing ability to manipulate genes, based on our
   ever-enlarging knowledge of the genetic code, eventually
   humanity will gain the ability to be virtually immortal, if
   bare-handed solo mountain climbing and hang-gliding are
   avoided in favor of selecting sedentary continuing
   accredited courses.  It's easy to envision a future where
   our descendants will explore the universe; perhaps to
   find other intelligent species.  It's possible that we might
   even meet the hypothetical species we call "The Intelligent
   Designers", assuming they want to be bothered with us.  As
   our progeny explore other solar systems, should they find
   a sterile planet, they may want to "seed" it with species
   bioengineered to thrive there; thus, future humanity may
   well become "intelligent designers".  The inhabitants of
   such a world may eventually speculate and contemplate
   about their origins as they turn their multifaceted eyes
   upward.

We hasten to add here that the proponents of Intelligent Design do
*not* insist that an Intelligent Designer be supernatural or even
singular.  Indeed, the quoted paragraph leaves room for such
possibilities.

In this light, the populations of competing universes mentioned in SF#81
could be the works of *different* Intelligent Designers in competition
with each other.  Their criterion for success might be life-containing
universes that include intelligent but *not* self-destructing lifeforms.
Or, there may be criteria that are beyond our comprehension and
toward which the Intelligent Designer of *our* universe is presently
striving and we are but partial steps along the way!

(Kirschbaum, Joel; *Journal of Irreproducible Results*, 49:27,
March 2005.)


SCIENCE FRONTIERS is a bimonthly collection of scientific anomalies in
the current literature.  Published by the Sourcebook Project, P.O. Box 107,
Glen Arm, MD 21057 USA.  Annual subscription: $8.00.


-- 
"Only a zit on the wart on the heinie of progress." Copyright 1992, Frank Rice


Terry W. Colvin, Sierra Vista, Arizona (USA) < fortean1 at mindspring.com >
     Alternate: < fortean1 at msn.com >
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