Physics and Religion

We discussed some philosophical ideas related to physics and religion. One source of mystery is that the parameters of the universe need to be very finely tuned in order for us to even exist. Creationists would say that someone, or some being, had to tune these parameters–by hand, as it were. People who believe in more natural explanations would appeal to the anthropic principle, suggesting that our universe has been evolutionarily selected for us to exist, or else we wouldn’t even be here to ponder such questions. We ultimately concluded that science cannot disprove religion, nor can religion disprove science. We should not draw conclusions from one school of thought and apply them to the other. When you go back in time–say, to Newton’s era in the 1600s–you find varying shades of religiosity. I think scientists are religious, in perhaps unconventional senses, even though they may not acknowledge it. They are looking for a pattern that may not even exist, but they believe that it does, which might be considered irrational and somewhat akin to a religious belief. The important thing is to keep an open mind. Without it, Einstein remained skeptical about the existence of black holes and gravitational waves–even though they were predicted by his theory of general relativity. And because of his preconceived notions, Einstein dismissed the Big Bang theory as Christian mythology. Despite those stances Einstein’s position makes him one of the greatest visionaries in the history of science.