Intelligent Universe
Martin Rees, Britain's Astronomer Royal, had argued in the late nineties that just six basic numbers define the universe. And these numbers are so precisely set that if they had been off by even 0.001 our universe may not have been stable and could not have supported life as we know it. For example, if one of the numbers called the nuclear force that glues together protons and neutrons had been 0.006 instead of 0.007, then the universe would have been full of only hydrogen atoms. This means carbon and other atomic forms necessary for life would not have been possible.
Rees argued that multiple universes started out each with their own six numbers. But only our universe survived and flourished because the six numbers were just right in this universe. Others argue that God set the knobs giving the exact values for all the right numbers for this universe to flourish.
Well whichever way the numbers came about, the fact is that they encode an inherent intelligence into the the system that allows life to sustain itself on earth. Call them laws of Physics, Biology, Chemistry or call them God's will, the fact is that you and I don't have to make a special effort to make the universe run. In fact it is the universe that makes us run. If I jump I am bound to return back to the ground and not fly off into space. If I push an object it offers me resistance. The chemical reactions in my stomach to digest food happen based on an inherent intelligence built into the system.
Intelligent Organization
Intelligence is encoded into every system, even organizations. For example, when a customer's order reaches a company, a process to respond to it gets initiated. Mature organizations have more intelligence encoded into the system and can handle different kinds of eventualities better. Even surprises get taken care of easily by them. The intelligence in the organization is a set of rules or processes that get followed.
Rules is Intelligence?
The organization's intelligence could be termed artificial because it is comprised of the intelligence of the people in it. It is their experience that is showing through as intelligence. But remember you could change the set of people in the organization and still the organization would run properly because each response is already encoded as a rule or process.
What about the universe? It is doing very well without any human intervention. Also the universe seems to know enough to keep the planets turning, the rivers flowing, so that life is sustained in it. Again intelligence in the form of rules or laws of Physics, Chemistry and Biology is inherent in the system.
So at one level can we argue that intelligence is a set of rules? These rules encode the intelligence inherent in a system. These rules have probably evolved over time to make the system effective, but they are still rules and they support life?
God or Science??? I believe science is only unravelling what has already been in existence....... who created it?? Newton discovered gravity, it is said......but gravity always existed before he discovered it. So who created gravity?? God?? Yes, He created some rules which gave rise to this phenomenon, I believe. So, 'Rules is Intelligence'???? Hey, LVS, you cannot just leave us with questions. My mind spins after reading each of your very insightful posts.
ReplyDeleteI have read a number of seemingly spiritual quotes attributed to Albert Einstein and have come to the conclusion that spirituality is the final pinnacle of science. I consider Einstein as one of the great scientists of our times. Is my conclusion right?? What do you think??? I definitely would love to read your response.
LVS- But the working of an organization cannot be compared to that of the universe, can it?
ReplyDeleteWe can change the rules of an organization to make it run in a different way, but not those of the universe.
I, too, would enjoy reading your answers to the question you have posed.
Yay! Another blog from you. Also another brilliant one.
ReplyDeleteSix numbers? Just why did it come down to 6 numbers?
It's really interesting to know that numbers make up the universe and with more or less of it, it would be different! Maybe it would be for another planet or there would be an imbalance or something! We follow the Laws of the Universe.
Yeah, would love to know the answers to the questions you posed.
Hi
ReplyDeleteYour articles are thinkable. As each systems are governed by intenllegence, as i am system, Do i can measurem my level of intellegence? do i have any numbers to me or is it fixed for every system? there are number of questions arising...
You got me this time. This topic is beyond me. I have arrived at the abyss in space.
ReplyDeleteI think your meaning about intelligence is similar with the opinion of DAO, a concept found in Taoism, a kind of ancient Chinese philosophy. :)
ReplyDeleteHi friend.. Interesting post.. Nice blog work.. keep it up..
ReplyDeletewill drop by your site often.. Do find time to visit my blog and post your comments..
Have a great day.. Cheers!!!
Hi Sir,
ReplyDeleteI agree with you that Organizations runs even if you change the people. I just feel that some Individual's presence makes more sense to a organization ,Eg: Steve Job.
Hi
ReplyDeleteHaving some trouble posting a comment, lost th previous post in cyberspace. So for now will just leave a single line comment: The Universe is running smoothly because we haven't tampered with it (or rather not been able to), not as yet!
Best
Nice Blog you created.good job.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.clickindia.com/events/
I suggest you read up on the Chinese Room thought experiment by John Searle and the rebuttal to it by Daniel Dennett.
ReplyDeleteThe Wikipedia entry on it is decent.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_Room
It seems to be along the lines of what you're thinking about when you write about whether or not rules create intelligence.
INTELLIGENT post
ReplyDeleteLVS
we can change the rules of the organization but its impossible to change those of the universe.
Hi friend.. Interesting post.. Nice blog work.. keep it up..
ReplyDeletewill drop by your site often.. Do find time to visit my blog and post your comments..
Have a great day.. Cheers!!!
TPAM -amen to that! an intelligent post indeed! ^^
ReplyDelete@ ivs
Not only is intelligence present or inherent in our 'system', it the only means by which everything came to existence in the first place.
Rather than rules, I would call them Laws. It does make sense that where there is a set direction, a defined mechanism by which events an life processes are regulated, there is intelligence behind it.
ReplyDeleteThe diverse Laws of the Universe are a reflection of an intelligent pattern, stemming from a unified Source. Source is intelligent, the Laws are an expression of it.
I think... You do pose some good questions!
I think that there is intelligence and that there are rules, separate but connected, a paradox, no?
ReplyDeletepeace,
mike
livelife365
What is beyond comprehension has been attributed to GOD.
ReplyDeleteLet me first comment on the analogy of an organisation.
An organisation is created by humans and therefore is limited by the intelligence of its creators - the humans. Its inherent intelligence is a collection of experiences of humans over a period of time, in different situations. This constant upgradation of inherent intelligence of the organisation is a slow evolutionary process influenced once gain by humans. This again becomes a limiting factor.
The analogy is right upto a point in normal circumstances but this inherent intelligence upgrades and corrects course only on making mistakes. This happens because its hitherto collected experience has proved inadequate to handle a particular situation.
However, if the magnitude of the mistake is large, it can turn fatal and all the inherent intelligence cannot save it. This has been witnessed by us in the recent debacle of many global level well managed companies in the US financial sector.
This is different from the accurate and never failing inherent intelligence of the natural world and the universe. This is beyond our current level of comprehension and hence called divine or attributed to advanced intelligence.
As has been stated by some saints and seers that the world is a thought projection of the divine and that the whole creation is just a manifestation of that thought. Whatever that unknown power - it is bloody perfect.
Very thought provoking posts - LVS. I have enjoyed reading them. Looking for more.
anyone knows whats the future of the universe...........
ReplyDeleteThings had stopped to amaze me any more. But this post got me thinking. I always thought creation of universe, the evolution were just an accident, still i think them to be.
ReplyDeleteBut the intelligence behind the laws? that caught me thinking. I think we are part of this intelligent system and the intelligent system is a part of us, so the answer lies within us, we just need to ask the right question and the answer will be bang in front of us.
i dont have a science back ground so i am asking you are these physical, chemical laws tweakable?, or are they permanent unchangeable in nature.
this post is beyond my intelligence
ReplyDeleteRead poems
@Maya as far as I know these laws are fixed and cannot be changed.
ReplyDeleteDo atoms have souls!
ReplyDeleteConsider this possibility: that God, wearing His Creator cap, directly created only three 'things'. The three are Time, Space and Energy. And, further, as Creator He willed these three to create all material things possible in all possible combinations.
ReplyDeleteSimply put, God invented The Creation Machine. The Machine's job is to 'spit out' all possibilities, forever. Our own universe, is only one of the possibilities.