Ok, the universe. Infinite in size or what?

[T_Bone]

whabang wrote:
If you go to the end of the Universe, and then went across the  line, then you'd be the new end of the universe. Period.

You're assuming that our bang is the only bang that happened, what if there were millions of big bangs, all over the universe, and none of the universes has expanded far enough to come into contact with our "bangsphere?"

If this is the case, I wonder what happens when universes start expanding into each other?

[T_Bone]

KennyR wrote:

T_Bone wrote:
If this is the case, I wonder what happens when universes start expanding into each other?

By definition, they can't. A universe is a universe; once a big bang happens there's no longer the conditions within that universe for it ever to happen again.

Besides which, the laws of physics are finely tuned and we would be able to detect the presence of other big bangs in our universe even if possible by mathematical analysis of fundamental properties.

...such as?  :-)

We don't even know why the properties exist, how can we use them as tea leaves?

[T_Bone]

KennyR wrote:

Cymric wrote:
I'm sure you know that this reason in itself is not a valid one, but I cannot resist adding a little clarification for those who might not know: laws of nature are not written in stone.

I disagree. They're absolute and changeless, the maths from which the fractal pattern of the universe is drawn. Only humanity's understanding of them can possibly be 'broken'.

Maybe it already is ;-)

Actually I was just recently thinking about something you said a while ago, that anything that's even the slightest bit possible will happen eventually, as an infintesmal times infinity is one.

As I was thinking about this, I extrapolated this to every imaginable story I've ever heard, The Wizard of Oz, Willie Wonka's chocolate factory, etc and came to the conclusion that although the chances that these stories will actually happen verbatim is really really slim, they HAVE to happen eventually. Everything you can imagine has to happen eventually. A universe with two bangs (or one happening in two places) HAS to happen eventually. If you can concieve it in your mind it has to happen.

Heinlein touched upon this in "The number of the beast"