poly: baby universes

Gene said:>> Obviously, proliferation of
fertile universes is an exponential process (though it is probably
meaningless talking about processes in the context of tangled
spacetimes).

If one pursues the parallels with life further, the mind boggles.

Might there be some fundamental substance (ether? Ylem? metric?) that only
seems inexhaustible from our narrow point of view, but is actually used up
in the process of making new universes? If you make this one assumption,
all of the logic of competitive ecosystems begins to take hold. Universes
cannot reproduce exponentially endlessly if the raw material is limited.
rather, there will be a reward-incentive to have your metrics overlap some
other univers's metric rather than being entirely orthogonal... and then
DEVOURING that neighbor in some way, thus creating an ability to make more
babies. You thus get --

Predation
parastitism
competition

At which point genetic sharing (mating) and alliances (communication)
become of more than passing interest to universes that want to flourish!

I've begun hinting at this in some stories (e.g. Heaven's Reach) but the
notion is really too mind-boggling.

QUESTION: What might one visually SEE (what outward signs) if another
universe were adjusting itself in some way to bring its dimensional metrics
into alignment with ours, in order to predate or mate or communicate?

To Curt's comment on my proposed Law of expanding threat horizons
(suggesting that even people with extended horizons will still compete to
have more kids) I replied privately that --
Expanded horizons -- in time and space-- make you are capable of
imagining the world being destroyed by ecological degradation or injustice
or war, in a century's time. That in turn means any successful replicator
will see his own best success path in helping eliminate those dangers to
his allelles. Since his great-great g-children will have mated across the
planet by then, sheer numbers are less urgent than saving everybody.

An exception. If women ever realize what a disaster pure-monogamy has been
for them, and elect instead to institute Cherokee-style polygamy (some male
chiefs get 2+ wives... but the chiefs are chosen by women and 1st wives
choose the 2nd wife) then you will see some males having substantially
larger breeding options than others. Even among those with long horizons,
then, motivations may vary substantially.

david brin
Received on Thu Nov 12 04:43:43 1998