Hey, wanna “get small” – like Steve
Martin used to say? (If you don’t know him, look him up, he’s
really funny.) Anyway, Science’s biggest mystery is one
that’ll make you feel really, reeeally small. I’m talking about multiple universes. Yes, the idea that everything you thought
you ever knew – our planet, the solar system, our galaxy, that cutie-pie in the other apartment,
all the other stars and galaxies out there as far as our fancy telescopes can see – it’s
just one itsy bitsy piece ofc an inconceivably giant puzzle! Okay now I feel small. The theory of multiple or parallel universes
is one that blurs the line between scientific reality and science fiction. You hear about this stuff in sci-fi movies,
but is it possible? Well, the customary answer is, nobody knows
for sure. But, hey, that’s why it’s called a theory! Oh yeah, and it’s a pretty huge topic of
debate in the scientific community, with big names on both sides. Like RumpelstiltskinNeilDeGrassTyson vs. LinusPaulingEinsteinStrudelmeyer. Yeah those are big names, but I’m pulling
your leg here. If you believe that multiple universes exist,
then maybe you can feel a little better about having the great genius physicist Stephen
Hawking in your camp! He had a pretty spectacular theory on multiple
universes, but I’ll get into that a bit later! For now, which side of the debate are you
on? Well, how can you believe in it if you’re
still not sure what a “multiverse” or “mirror-verse” really is? Well not knowing what the “mirror-verse”
will not “reflect” badly on you. Ha ha. So, let’s start with the basics. Up until recent years, scientists were sure
there was only one universe that contained everything known to humankind – hence the
whole “uni” thing. Again, I’m talking EVERYTHING we know – Earth,
galaxies, Minecraft, the whole shebang. But one day back in 1954, a Princeton grad
student by the name of Hugh Everett came up with the first theory of multiverses. He believed that the universe was constantly
splitting and that each of these splits became its own universe. This is now known as the Multiple Worlds theory. (Yeah, there are different views among all
the proponents of multiverses, and Everett’s is just one of many!) So how does his work? You can mostly visualize it like a flow chart
that keeps branching off continuously. Just remember any time you’ve ever made
a decision or something happened to you. Here, I’ll give you a personal one. When I started college, I couldn’t decide
what I wanted to major in. I personally loved astronomy, but I was also
obsessed with English and writing. Well, I ended up choosing the latter, but
what if I’d gone with astronomy? Would I be looking through a gamma ray telescope
and coming up with complex theories of my own? According to the Multiple Worlds theory, yeah! There’s a version of me that went down that
path and is living that life right now! In fact, there are infinite me’s and you’s
each in their own universe! (Go ahead and get ready for plenty of mind
blowing explosions today…) Anyway, although Hugh Everett’s dissertation
on his groundbreaking theory was impressive enough to earn him his Ph.D., it was still
too radical for the big wigs in the scientific community at the time. But over the years, scientists eventually
kept coming back to it, adding their own versions, and now we’ve got all kinds of models on
how this multiverse would look. Some believe these universes are like bubbles,
totally unseen by each other because, well, we just don’t have that kind of technology! There’s also the model that shows universes
looking kinda like sheets of paper stacked on top of each other. Yeah, I can’t imagine how that works either. And still you’ve got the theory that combines
them all! Maybe with each decision you make, you add
one more new universe “paper” to that stack, and perhaps this stack is just one
of many floating around in a little bubble! Ow, my brain hurts… I know, it sounds totally bizarre. But it’s not like this is all a result of
some smart people sitting around and saying “Whoa man, check this out, what if the universe
was, you know, like a bubble?!” Ohh, that’s like gnarly, dude…These physicists
do mathematical equations that actually check out! So, in theory and on paper, multiple universes
really could exist… we just can’t see them. At least, not yet… So, what would a parallel version of our world
look like? Well, some attributes of our universe may
be different, while some are the same! For example, perhaps this parallel version
of our planet has grass and trees and birds flying in the sky and whatnot. Looks like nothing out of the ordinary to
me! But maybe the atoms that make up all that
stuff are just slightly different. The atoms in the atmosphere might reflect
light a certain way, so the grass would be orange and the sky green! Perhaps in this world, birds didn’t evolve
to look like they do here in our world. Maybe they look more like little featherless
dinosaurs flying around! Hey, I don’t know, I’ve never been to
a parallel universe! What do you think or hope it’d look like? Let me know down below! Anyway, before we travel to these worlds,
we have to know they’re actually real. Proving or disproving their existence is no
easy task, but science is close to taking the abstract and making it physical. That is, researchers from Tennessee’s Oak
Ridge National Laboratory are currently putting together some equipment that could prove the
existence of a mirror universe, almost like a reflection of our own. So, what’s the plan? The idea is to blast a handful of subatomic
particles through a 50-foot tunnel, past a really strong magnet, and into a wall at the
end. If some of those particles come out as a mirror
image of themselves on the other side, that means science has made a breakthrough of galactic
proportions! Yes, a few little particles getting all messed
up in a magnet and coming out the other side of a wall would be proof that multiverses
can physically exist. I know, I also didn’t catch the connection,
but, hey, you can’t make this stuff up! …But I can try to explain it! (Mind you, this isn’t the parallel version
of me that went into astronomy and astrophysics, but I’ll give it my best!) This experiment would prove that we can make
mirrored copies of particles – and then, hopefully from there, protons, neutrons, electrons,
and morons (no please, let’s just have electrons): you know, the things that make up the cells
in our bodies and everything around you. Therefore, other copies of ourselves could,
in fact, exist in a parallel universe! But did our world get blasted through a 50-foot
shoot and smashed into a wall? Possibly! In theory, some scientists believe the Big
Bang that started it all could’ve been two universes colliding and forming a new one!
(oh did your head just explode there? Me too.) So, what does this all mean? Why is it so important to prove that multiple
infinite universes exist out there? Well, what about the fact that it’s so cool!? Think about it: every decision you ever made
created a new thread in time! It might make you feel less regret when you
feel like you chose the wrong alternative, like only about every time I eat out with
my friends. “Ugh, man, your dish looks better! Should’ve gone with the Pasta Carbonara
instead…” I’m kidding, the magnitude of this discovery
is a lot bigger than that of course! Remember, a parallel universe may contain
elements and physics that we’ve never seen before, and they could possibly be used in
medicine and other fields. Plus, I mean, there is the possibility that
we could travel to another universe if ours starts having some problems. Ya know, global warming, the sun burning out
in 5 billion years, YouTube going offline… But the whole getting there is where the real
problem lies. How could you possibly travel to a different
universe? Of course, we’re talking theoretical physics
here, so there are plenty of theories! First off, there’s always wormholes! To simplify the mumbo jumbo, the most common
way to think of it is to imagine spacetime as a piece of paper with a hole in each end. Instead of going from point A to B in a straight
line, you can bend the paper, create a tunnel between the two points, and, basically, it’s
like a giant space shortcut. They say the same thing could work for two
universes. Although, call me a party-pooper here, but
let’s say you have a certain universe in mind. Let’s go to that one with orange grass and
dinosaur birds! So, do I just pop the address into the navigator
of my wormhole airplane? What are the mechanics here?? Guess I’ll save it for the smart people
to figure out… And, well, there’s always Stephen Hawking’s
theory of how you can travel to another universe: all you have to do is jump into a black hole! Yep, he theorized that black holes themselves
could be the very wormholes connecting multiple universes! Hmm, but don’t those things spaghettify
you as soon as you cross the point of no return? I guess that’s technically just a theory
too… In any case, hopping universes might just
be sci-fi talk for now, but remember: holograms also were not too long ago! So, anything’s possible! Phew! I don’t know about you, but I definitely
learned something new today, and if you did too, then give this video a like and share
it with a friend! But – hey! – don’t go hopping to another
universe just yet! We have our own multiverse of over 2,000 cool
videos for you to check out. All you have to do is pick the left or right
video, click on it, and enjoy! Stay on the Bright Side of life!
