Lucky or Special?

Chapter 9 sums up the cumulative evidence from preceding chapters and addresses (without resolution) the underlying question of how to interpret the existence of a universe so finely tuned. The chapter’s central science vs. religion theme contrasts conceptions of a Creator, who established conditions for life, with the anthropic principle, which claims that it is inevitable that living observers find physical attributes that are tuned to support life in their universe. The concepts of eternal inflation, the multiverse, and the string theory landscape of myriad possible vacuum states are introduced. The astronomical odds against landing in a universe built on a string theory vacuum capable of supporting life are contrasted with the vastly superior odds of finding a planet in our universe within the habitable zone of a living star. The testability of the multiverse concept is discussed in the framework of Karl Popper’s criterion of scientific falsifiability.