We know everything. Now what?
So, it is Day Zero, the time scientists finally discover all the secrets of the universe. The mind of God has been unravelled, time and space laid bare, and mankind stands on the threshold of infinity. What will it be like? What would we do with all that power and knowledge? Will life be at an end? Will there be nothing left to discover? Will unlocking the universe’s secrets be the end of everything? Mankind’s quest for everything could lead to having nothing. The main areas which would be profoundly affected would be in science, religion, and humanity.
Science:
Whether in this or the next century, man will surely and decisively render unto themselves the greatest of all prizes unlocking the mysteries of the cosmos, whether by string theory, quantum loop gravity, or another exotic theory. Man will unite all the forces and energies into one colossal nutshell. The world will celebrate, the planets tremble, and the stars quake at the thought of humans understanding the universe. But then what? Will we do everything at once, quantum style, or bit by bit? Will quantum computers solve all our problems? Who will own this miracle scientific progress the scientists? The rich countries, or everyone? Will corporations withhold vital pieces of the universal code, ransoming human survival for a few dollars more? Indeed, if scientists discovered the ultimate cosmic key, would they keep and use it in secret, never to be divulged? What other arcane unknowns would they delve into? Who has the right to keep such secrets and power? Maybe it would be in the public’s best interest not to know or wars could begin to control such secrets. After all, we have fought over lesser matters.
Could we travel time? Would time be meaningless? Would space have meaning? All the visible and dark matter and dark energy would be entwined into a comprehensible tale of cosmology? Would limitless energy power the world and thrust humanity to the stars and beyond? Or would we simply teleport there by thought? Would we unleash deadly forces beyond our control an equal and opposite reaction to us opening Pandora’s Box? But instead of Hope at the bottom of the box, we would find despair. What if the secrets of the universe held nothing but empty promises? The grandest of secrets and all the questions that were asked just answered by more vexing questions. But surely knowing everything would let us see everything to come? Well, yes, but knowing something does not mean you could do anything about it. The universe could be one great big unending question, even though we have the answers, we might not understand them.
Religion:
So we’ve peeked behind the curtain and found no God peering back. Will Man be a God unto himself? Or will Man instead worship natural law? Will we enter heaven or descend to hell having tasted all the forbidden fruits? Will scientific claims of killing God cause wars on earth? Will the religious minded accept the scientific doctrine? How could they go on believing in something that had been disproved or would they believe that God is outside of the universe and thus our complete understanding? Religion could evolve into something new, something all encompassing and beyond the belief in a supernatural being. Knowing the secrets of the universe would still mean different things to different people and what they would still believe in.
What would happen if we actually found God? Would this be the day of Ascension or Armageddon? Would everyone be forced to worship God? Will God draw back the veil and laugh as he destroyed the universe in another Big Bang, ready for his next test subjects? We human lab rats took 14 billion years to finish the test is that good or bad? Okay, really, modern human thinking has been around for almost 50 thousand years, so have we excelled ourselves or are we just Johnny-come-latelys to the cosmic club of total understanding? God’s purpose for humanity may be just for us to strive as far as we can, reach the finish line, and then watch as the goal line is pushed further away. The nebulous heavens in deep space could be there for a reason, to shroud the darkest secrets from us and stop us from going blind with ambition as we stare at the stars. There just may be someone out there hiding the Universe’s commandments away from us. We shouldn’t know what we cannot know.
Humanity:
Life on Earth would be irrevocably changed as the full import of harnessing the power of the universe became apparent. But can knowing everything be enough? Would we be able to put an end to the world’s ills: poverty? disease? climate change? war? And even death itself? We humans would live forever. There would be no more death; there would be selective evolution, transgression of body and machine, and the unbounding of the mind. Physical man could cease to exist as he transcended to a higher plane of existence. This omnipotent being would stride the galaxies upon wings of thought. There would be no more secrets, nothing to learn, nothing to teach, nothing to live for. The end of humankind would begin with the decoding of the last revealing universal equation.
But we are nowhere near this tipping point (even with the Large Hadron Collider). However, like climate change, the feedback loops from our endeavours could be devastating. The universe could be polluted by unseen particles or forces and warmed up beyond absolute zero, defrosting space, causing extra solar precipitation in one galaxy, gravity droughts in another, and cause huge galactic storms. Once the secret is out and if it goes wrong, how can we fix the universe? Yes, we have discovered everything, but we do not know what is beyond the discovered horizon. Humanity could destroy itself and the universe in seeking what created them in the first place.
Is this a precautionary tale? Perhaps; each time we have discovered something, even for the benefit of mankind, it has brought its own problems. So, instead of lining up for the ultimate Nobel Prize ceremony, scientists should be thinking ahead way ahead- to the day someone finds the golden key to the universe’s door. Either they shut the door (and forever wonder if Schrodinger’s cat is alive or dead) or they have to get a great screen door to filter what is worth processing (and control their Pavlovian urges). Which is it to be? Time will tell.
