Who, what, where, why, when, and how are we here?
In the beginning, there was just a simple post. A post that started it all. This was all a concept. A realization of the real world. How does stuff work? How does it stay in place? How does it change? Why does it change? The ultimate question of “Why are we here?”
Some simple concepts
I’m here to introduce some very simple concepts. No fantasies, no delusions, no mythical creatures. We’re not gullible children anymore. We’ve been down that road. And, that’s why we’re here. We didn’t get the answers to the questions we were asking. I only ask of one thing. Keep a real mind. Don’t think fairies and Santa Claus. Think knowledge and wonder.
Let’s start with a simple understanding. We can all agree that atoms are about as real as most of the scientists around the world have observed. We know the moon is not made of cheese. It wouldn’t make sense if it was. It would collapse under its own pressure. We know it’s made of soil, rocks and dust. If we were to go with the consensus, we could all agree that the moon is very far away, the Earth is not flat, and atoms are very real, even if it’s hard to grasp the concept of matter made of energy, or electro-magnetic forces acting as solids.
Another fact is that there are galaxies out there. Some smaller, some larger, but they are there, and they are millions of light-years away. Our scientists have discovered things. Things like how our galaxy spans 100,000 light years, and Adromeda is on a collision course with us. Don’t worry, it won’t happen for another 4 billion years, give or take. We might not even exist as human form by then. And even when we collide, there’s a very small chance for any of the stars or planets to collide. The space between stars and planets is so large, that we’d have a better chance of getting wiped out by an asteroid from our own solar system. It would be an interesting sight to see. Maybe they’ll join forces, maybe they’ll pass each other. It’s far too far away to make a good guess.
The birth of awareness
So, from atoms to galaxies, there’s a wide range of things that exist in different states. Some are observing, some are observed, but it’s all connected and ever learning about itself. Think of everything in the Universe as just stuff. A long time ago, as atoms kept colliding, and collecting, a few of the atoms connected in such a way in order to create something on a larger scale that replicates itself. It’s a simple progression of atomic reactions. It’s only a matter of time before those atoms make a good connection.
My physics teacher was a hard core Christian. He believed that God created us, and arranged the atoms. Sure, it was a simple explanation, and if you think of it in the way that we’re understanding it, that was the case. However, God was the simple explanation, the abstract. It’s like looking at an apple and calling it just a fruit, but think about it. It’s a fruit that has taken time to grow, and multiply. It’s the essence of life for apples. Its job is to provide nourishment to other creatures, and to continue to grow and multiply.
So in the end, understanding the Universe will help the Universe to understand itself.
I bet you didn’t think of apples in such a way, but when you do think of apples in that way, you have a much more in-depth and appreciation for food in general, and you most likely won’t throw away uneaten parts. With less waste of an apple, you eat less apples, and in general save other apples for others to feed on. This little act of efficiency could save a family from starving. It’s a domino effect. That family that didn’t starve will have more time to explore the Universe and learn, and spread their knowledge. Everyone benefits. So in the end, understanding the Universe will help the Universe to understand itself. Being efficient will help speed up that process.
Back to my physics teacher… He mentioned to us that randomness is like putting a bunch of car parts in a box, shaking the box around, and the car assembles itself. He was onto something. Instead of car parts, let’s observe how atoms work. They don’t work like car parts. They work more like Lego bricks. Think of bouncing around a bunch of Lego blocks in a box. Within a few seconds, you’re going to have some of the blocks connect since they were naturally designed to fit. Atoms became what they are because of the energy levels they possess. It was only natural for atoms to connect the way they did. And now that they were around, they connected. If you don’t understand how, learn a bit of chemistry, and specifically look into ionic and covalent bonding. Over a long time, about 4 billion years, things connected enough to create a full Lego set. It’s a long time, and there were many, many Lego bricks. Trillions upon trillions of Lego pieces bouncing around, and it’s almost impossible that a few of them didn’t connect. And then, a few minutes later, more connected, and so on, and so forth, fast forward 4 billion years, and voila… life.
When the first bacteria happened, as complicated as it is, after billions of years, its sole purpose was to find food and multiply. The more it multiplied, the more it was aware of its world. Sure, it was different perspectives and points of view, but it was aware, and it learned. It learned where to go for food and safety, and it learned where not to go. As a collective it survived. But the challenges increased. Amoebas evolved. Fast forward another 4 billion years, and you have humans. In between live evolved. Frogs were the first to see land. Before then, it was all water. Now, we were able to explore the land. More challenges presented themselves. But, life found a way.
From frogs to mammals, and from mice to humans, it was only a matter of time. We got to a point where we can look into the Universe and observe so much more around us. The only way we can consolidate all of this information is through contact and communication. We share this knowledge. We learn. And now you’re starting to see what the Universe has in store for us. We are The Universe learning about itself, just like we were learning about ourselves growing up.
Self discovery
With this knowledge, we did a full 360, and realized who we are. But, what is our purpose? Is it really to just learn about ourselves? To learn about who we are? To know that we are the Universe itself? Maybe that’s it. Maybe it’s as simple as Darwin’s evolution theory. It’s only natural to think that way, but that’s just a guess.
