Taking Comfort In The Not So Obvious

There's a theory in physics that also happens to be the basis for a lot DC Comics shenanigans.  I assume the physics came first but I honestly don't know and as you'll see in a minute, it really doesn't matter.  In this theory, I take a great deal of comfort and from the DC Comics usage I get a lot of entertainment.  When science and superheroes agree, you have my attention.

The theory goes (much simplified, feel free to wiki/google yourself the nuts and bolts, they're amazing!) that at the quantum level, human observation of a phenomenon actually influences the state of light particles known as photons.  A photon is the smallest component of light and in a famous experiment known as the "Double Slit" experiment, human observation has consistently been shown to change the action of a single photon travelling though one tiny aperture or another.  It sounds trivial but the implications are truly staggering.

Because of the effect that human observation can have on a single elementary particle's reaction to reality, the math that flows from there literally changes the world.  A LOT.  And repeatedly.

It's known as the multi-verse.  In DC Comics it means that different versions of the same person exist simultaneously in different dimensions of reality.  In the real, scientifically serious and mathematically supported theory, it means pretty much the same thing.  Really.

The theory basically states that much like the action of a photon relying on our observation of it to determine its true state, every quantum particle is dependent on that same observation/state relationship.  Further, if our observation pushes a particle to appear "positive" (for instance) to our eyes, that same particle had an equal chance to be "negative" and will in fact split off a completely identical reality in which it is observed as "negative". 

The simple upshot is, every time you or I (or anyone who ever existed) chooses to take a beer our of the fridge, there buds off a separate but otherwise identical reality where you reached for a Coke instead.  From that moment the two realities continue on, independent of each other.

Literally every decision we make creates an entire reality where the opposite choice (or, I suppose if there were three equal options, three realities, etc.) was made begins.  Some of these realities spin off in wildly divergent directions (the big choices like to marry or not, to attend university or not, etc.) or in only tiny degrees (eggs over pancakes, Coke or Pepsi, etc.) away from our own.

So why do I take comfort in this admittedly esoteric concept? 

Assuming it is true, and the math holds up so there's at least a reasonable chance that it is, there MUST be an INFINITE number of me (and you and everyone you know) out there living an INFINITE number of lives.  In effect, it's a combination of immortality and the possibility that every single dream life any of us has ever had MUST be playing out somewhere.  In at least one each one of us is living a superbly perfect version of ourselves.

I find that idea pretty damned comforting.  Somewhere, somehow, some version of me made all the right calls, sang all the right songs, met all the right people, took all the right classes, made the perfect investments, met the perfect companion(s), got it ALL right.

It also makes me appreciate that my own less than perfect existence is the product of an infinite number of choice that have brought me here, now.  The math of that set of choices is near to miraculous and while I can't imagine that my reality is the absolute best of all possible scenarios, I am alive, I am pretty healthy, pretty happy and don't really have much to complain about.  In a multiverse with infinite possibilities I can say with certainty that things could be a helluva lot worse.

Now to bake your noodle.  There are three possible outcomes for you, dear reader, after reading this long winded post.  You will be:

a) positively affected and take a measure of comfort from this as I do
b) be negatively affected and find the ideas here disturbing and unpleasant to contemplate
c) not be affected at all

Congratulations.  You've just given life to TWO entire universes.  Thanks to your willingness to read this piece the reality you live in has now diverged into three distinct directions.  From here, every life in the universe has three new paths, all equally real.  The differences may amount to exactly nothing or perhaps your particular butterfly might blow up that metaphorical hurricane on one or two of those paths.

As one of my favourite people is fond of saying, your mileage may vary.