X-Message-Number: 14483
From: 
Date: Sat, 16 Sep 2000 00:33:44 EDT
Subject: Re: CryoNet #14443

Robert Ettinger writes:

> The Big Bang envisages a "beginning" of time itself. What existed "before" 
>  time began? A meaningless (?) question; since "before" presupposes time 
>  before time--like saying the universe is bounded in space and then asking 
>  what is outside.

I've read a lot about string theory etc. recently, and finally think I 
understand the paradox.  Those who say that given all space and time, huge 
quantum fluctuations will occur, and one started our universe (including 
space and time) are just neglecting to state their underlying assumption that 
before and outside was a much larger universe containing many (as many as 26) 
spatial dimensions plus one -- or more! -- time dimensions.  Our universe was 
born with the collapse of most of these spatial dimensions to infinitesmal 
size.  It's as though we in three-space created flatland by printing a piece 
of paper, or perhaps by making a block of material and slowly imersing it in 
a glass of water -- each level being a flatland plane at a particular time, 
and the present being the water level.  Flatlanders could rightly say that 
their space and time began when we made the block, but the larger universe 
preceeded it.  

Quite an assumption to leave out.  Then again, maybe they were just drinking 
when they composed the explanation...  Read carefully, cosmologists often 
make little sense.

Alan Mole


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