Two arguments for the existence of God
In chapter 43 two issues in modern physics are presented as strong evidence for a super-intelligence (God). Like always in physics there is another alternative explanation: here the assumption of the existence of an infinite number of parallel universes. So the choice is between one and infinity.
On the basis of both physics and "logic" the assumption of a creator is the most logical. The material is abstract but accessible to the general reader. One issue is the physical requirement that the Big Bang must have had a beginning. This sounds self-evident, but a number of models have been proposed - such as the "oscillating mega-universe" which apparently imply that the world of matter has existed forever, obviating the need of a creator. Critics, including the well-known science writer Paul Davies, have pointed out, however, that all these models, although possessing an infinite future, have – by physical necessity - a finite past, i.e. a beginning. This has to do with (don't be alarmed) the second law of thermodynamics, better known as "heat-death".
Everything that comes into being has a cause for its existence. This is a fundamental premise in philosophy. Denial of this premise means that the universe came into being from nothingness without a cause. This might explain to the satisfaction of your tax inspector how you acquired your canary-yellow Rolls-Royce, but little else. From this premise and the fact that the universe began to exist (Big Bang) it follows that it must have (had) a cause for its existence: a creative super-intelligence that we call God.
The second argument has to do with the extreme "fine-tuning" of some of the so-called fundamental (physical ) constants. By the way, an example of a constant is c in Einstein’s familiar equation E=mc2, where c is the velocity of light in a vacuum.
If the numerical values of these "sensitive" constants (there are 8 of these among 30) would have differed only a few percent from their actual values planets would not have formed and we wouldn’t be here.
There are two options to explain this apparent "fine –tuning". Either it is the wise choice of a super-intelligence (God, the maker), or our universe is one among an infinite number of "existing" universes, most of which are barren.
Oh, are we lucky! It is of some interest to mention that one of the greatest astronomers of the 20th century, professor Fred Hoyle of Cambridge, an ardent atheist, became, as he mentions in his autobiography, a theist when a theoretically predicted critical value of a constant (the so-called "resonance", don’t worry) required for the creation of carbon atoms from helium atoms was actually found experimentally.
No carbon, no life, no human beings. This discovery was such a "miracle" that Hoyle, the atheist, was forced to draw the logical inference that God exists.
For a full discussion turn to chapter 42.
