u/ATTst

I have many questions about this. The hypothesis is basically that the formation of a black hole gives birth to a new universe.

The hypothesis is then expanded to include the element of natural selection, suggesting that universes that produce the most black holes will be more numerous and able to perpetuate their species.It even extends the concepts of reproduction and mutation to cosmological scales.

I think there's something problematic here. For example, what happens when black holes merge? Do universes merge? How does this work? Black holes evaporate. So do universes evaporate too?

Did Lee Smolin consider these situations? Does he have an answer to them?

I think Leonard Susskind's String Theory Landscape makes more sense than this.I'll take his side.

Here I will share an idea that caught my attention in the book "Life 3.0": the purposes and goals of conscious and unconscious matter.

Non-living matter can have goals, and increasingly so. If you were observing the atoms of Earth since the planet's inception, you would notice three stages of goal-directed behavior:

1. All matter appears focused on energy loss (increase in entropy).

2. Some of the matter comes to life and focuses on self-replication and its sub-goals.

3. In increasing proportions, matter is reorganized by living organisms to help fulfill its own goals.

The ultimate origin of goal-directed behavior lies in the laws of physics, including optimization.

Thermodynamics inherently aims at energy loss: increasing a scale of disorder called entropy.

Life is a phenomenon that can aid in energy loss (increasing total disorder) by maintaining or increasing complexity and replicating itself while increasing the disorder of its environment.

Darwinian evolution shifts goal-directed behavior from energy loss to self-replication.

Intelligence is the ability to accomplish complex goals.

Because we humans don't always have the resources to decide on the most optimal self-replication strategy, we've developed useful practical calculations that guide our decisions: feelings like hunger, thirst, pain, lust, and compassion.

Therefore, we no longer have a simple goal like self-replication; when our feelings conflict with the goal of our genes, we heed our instincts, as in using birth control methods.