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I was watching this (the show called: How the Universe works):
Zoomed in, we see the stars, they are so far away... So far away from each other. Randomly scattered across the universe...
We zoom out a bit and see galaxies... (the stars don't seem random anymore, don't seem too far away from each other, but actually form a shape)
We zoom out more, and see clusters of galaxies.... well, it's nothing really special I guess
But then we zoom out all the way and we realize that these clusters of galaxies are a part of the bigger shape that looks like a Brain network!
If you watch a movie about a brain network and you see how it looks (not the physical brain, but the network of the inside of the brain) this is kind of like the zoomed out Universe looks like! It sure makes you think twice about whether it's alive or not.
It could be compared to an ant hill, an emerging intelligence. The ant hill can do more than each individual ant, and so emerges a sort of a collective consciousness overmind in some sense. It probably is not alive (of course we would need a definition of a life form here). But if it's not, it's only because it's too simple.
But if you imagine that the Universe is a collection (connected like a Brain) of all the life inside of it, what kind of a collective consciousness may emerge from it...
Imagine how smart the Universe could be compared to each individual.
But what if there was a multiverse and all the universes are connected with each other this way (like a brain network)? Imagine how smart the Multiverse emerging consciousness could be...
What basis is there to think this is anything but a graphic artist's stab at something we can't directly observe, tinged by said artist's desire to make it look compelling? Is it a mathematical extrapolation, at least? I kinda doubt it.
Besides, even from one star to the next, it takes years for any kind of particle or wave go pass between them, so if the universe is conscious, it is like the trolls in Sir Terry Prachett's novels ... very slow thinking and rather dim. "One, two, many, lots ..." would be the numbering system, for instance :-)
Obviously, the human brain is made of exactly the same chemical elements as everything else in the universe, subject to exactly the same physical laws that arrange them. Why would anyone imagine that it might be "special" in any way?
These same elements, using the same laws of physics, either form into galaxy clusters or black holes or something else so far incomprehensible. Just as some matter particles form into human brains and some form into sea slug brains and some into rocks.
Obviously, the human brain is made of exactly the same chemical elements as everything else in the universe, subject to exactly the same physical laws that arrange them. Why would anyone imagine that it might be "special" in any way?
These same elements, using the same laws of physics, either form into galaxy clusters or black holes or something else so far incomprehensible. Just as some matter particles form into human brains and some form into sea slug brains and some into rocks.
Exactly. Fractal-like patterns emerge in all forms of matter, at all levels of size. From trees that grow trunks that then break off into many twigs, and then multiple leaves from those, to neural pathways in our bodies, and arteries, veins, capillaries, etc. It is a pattern repeated again and again in nature. It's all part of the greater universal laws. Why should the universe itself be any different?
Exactly. Fractal-like patterns emerge in all forms of matter, at all levels of size. From trees that grow trunks that then break off into many twigs, and then multiple leaves from those, to neural pathways in our bodies, and arteries, veins, capillaries, etc. It is a pattern repeated again and again in nature. It's all part of the greater universal laws. Why should the universe itself be any different?
Agree
Natural features of the environment, such as a dandelion gone to seed, a silt-deposit-filled riverbed, or an outerspace nebula all operate according to same principles.
Is it any wonder that they display iterative self-similarity at levels micro & macro ? Nifty stuff to consider, plus fractals are awesome to look at (Mandelbrot sets).
That the universe at large scales may seem to resemble the neural network of the human brain is more a matter of pareidolia. It's the same reason why we see groups of stars (like constellations), dust and gas remnants of supernovae, etc., that loosely resemble various animals, mythological characters and other familiar objects. The universe does not need to be conscious to give rise to things that are conscious. Rather, the way the universe has evolved with expansion, entropy, fundamental forces, happens to allow for conscious beings to come into existence.
A survey of galactic clusters was done to look at whether or not there might be any repeating patterns to be found in the structure of the universe. The idea being related to ever larger patterned fractal-like groups, like solar systems, galaxies, local clusters, super clusters, so there might be even larger structures to be found and thus fractal in nature like a set of Russian Nesting Dolls. If the universe could be shown to be fractal in its distribution of matter, our concept of the universe would be entirely wrong. If the distribution of matter at larger scales could be shown to be more evenly distributed, then it would mean the universe is not fractal. The survey came up with zip. Matter is pretty much evenly distributed in all directions throughout the universe.
That's not to say there aren't repeated patterns in the universe. While there are some patterns, it seems to drop off to zip at scales larger than 350 million light years across. It means that the comparison of the distribution of galaxies and connecting filaments at large scales of the universe and any similarity to the neural network of the human brain is a matter of pareidolia.
Be sure to watch the video in the link below for a better explanation about the findings of the galactic survey.
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