Philosophy Now Forum

Here's an interesting article which proposes that black holes may contain entire universes, and thus, we may be living within a black hole.

http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg2 ... verse.html

To add my spin, this would seem to imply an infinite progression of reality, as a black hole contains universes, which contain black holes, which contain universes etc.

Oh my, how very small we may really be.

I've heard about this before some time ago, but I don't think it was more than a curious idea at the time.

This seems almost Kantian to me. If we're in the center of a black hole, then our senses are really getting the best of us, and time and space are probably a lot different than we expect. This is the ultimate noumenal world.

Of course, it would also mean something for physics that physicists don't seem to want to accept; energy can be "created" and "destroyed". After all, black holes are adding to their mass constantly by swallowing stars, planets, and other celestial bodies. At the same time, they emit massive beams of energy (mostly x-rays) from either end. Surely we could detect this movement of energy in and out of our universe somehow, but we'd have to figure out how it would manifest (and if we're even anywhere near or could even see where it would).

This also runs into a common problem; is this falsifiable? What tests would we run to be sure whether or not we're in a black hole? Could this just be a metaphysical claim about reality? Sure, we can test whether or not the universe has a "spin", but does that imply that what we think it does?

(As an interesting side note, the universe seems to have a "left bias". Can we say anything about the universe with this knowledge? Does it support the claim that we're inside a black hole, or does it simply verify our belief that the universe is sinister at its heart?)

Metadigital wrote:IThis seems almost Kantian to me. If we're in the center of a black hole, then our senses are really getting the best of us, and time and space are probably a lot different than we expect. This is the ultimate noumenal world.

Yes. The theory could turn out to be pure rubbish of course, but it serves as good entertainment, at the least.

I found the idea of an infinite regression of universes, one within another, to be quite aesthetically pleasing.

Oh my, imagine what a bore it would be if we already knew everything. Being ignorant is much more fun.

Typist wrote:...that black holes may contain entire universes, and thus, we may be living within a black hole.

Love It. I remember Isaac Asimov suggesting this in 1977, and I have considered it a fascinating idea ever since.

I understand the theory says they should be there but have we actually confirmed any 'black holes' yet?

Noooo!!! There are ideas that Black Holes contain proton stars and this theory is much better!!

Besides, it's unclear to me what these smaller Black Holes are meant to be comprising...

No, smaller and smaller Black Holes are indeed a mystery! Also, does it not take a certain critical mass to make a Black Hole in the first place?