The Science in the Fiction

Is There Conflict With Awareness [Or Lack Thereof] of The Multiverse?

I’ve been fascinated with the concept of multiple universes since I was a young child  

Initially I likened it to How can we prove we don’t live in someone else’s snow globe?  

The summer between first and second grade I took my thoughts from pondering to discussing.

With my dad.

These conversations always took place just as he was tucking me in.

When my mom tucked us in she read stories to us.

After carefully listening to my concerns on the matter he asked why I thought we might be living in someone else’s snow globe following up with asking why others didn’t notice.

My dad was very willing to listen to various thoughts on a wide range of topics but from early on wanted me to understand positive ways to frame my arguments and opinions – setting me up for research success later on.

My answer was that we were living in different snow globes than those around us so our perceptions of our reality was different than theirs.

Reality Beyond Home

Catholic school.

Where majority of my teachers were nuns who migrated to the US to escape post WWII Communism.

Starting in second grade I began daring the nuns to prove my theory wasn’t true.

You can imagine how well that went over.

Other Realities

This was before I became a Star Trek fan.

A show in which such concepts were freely explored.

Also before I began watching Leonard Nimoy’s In Search of…

My dad and I were fans of both shows.

He handled the nuns – who for some reason – ahem – were becoming hostile.

The principle – also a nun – told my father “We don’t discuss those philosophies with students.”

It got to a point where his dad came to school to deal with the nuns.**

Heightened Awareness

My awareness of this [multiverse] reality intensified throughout my childhood and found release in the Metatron’s Army series.

It inspired Time Distortion Error aka Time Distortion Sickness – a key plot element.

Though the concept was one of the more challenging ones I had to face during my educational years exploring it in the series was fun.

I was so very fortunate that my high school physics teacher fully embraced it and was willing to give his time and perspective on many occasions.  By the time I was in college I was able to hobnob with like-minded individuals from fellow students to professors.

Validation

I published the Metatron’s Army series beginning in 2016.  8 years and 13 books later I came across an article that grabbed my attention because it addressed the concept of living in a multiverse without being aware of it.

From New Science published September 17, 2024. (link as of October 13, 2024)

Could we live in a quantum multiverse without ever noticing its oddness? A simulation suggests that the answer may be “yes” surprisingly often.

From Analysis

“Do you talk with anyone about your life on Earth?”

“Not if I don’t have to,” she snapped.  “People don’t handle it too well.”

“Explain.”

“I got in trouble using it in any reports at the Academy since I couldn’t prove it exists.”  She snorted.  “As if you could prove the existence of other dimensions to their satisfaction to begin with.  That’s why it’s called theory.”

** My paternal grandfather, a devout Catholic, earned a PhD in physics from MIT.  I’d been discussing my understanding of a number of semi-controversial scientific theories including multiple universes and subatomic particles and how they acted in our reality – from the time I was 7. 

 It was helpful when he came to my school and defended me to the nuns, explaining my approach to math and science was valid.