What is the Many Worlds interpretation of quantum mechanics?

For some of us, whether we’re science fiction fans or not, The idea that parallel universes could exist fuels our imaginations with some of the most dazzling and exotic ideas.Because in this scenario, what we know as “our universe” is just one of many independently existing universes.

Various scientific hypotheses explore this possibility, and each offers a unique perspective on the nature of the cosmos.

One of these hypotheses is known as the Bubble Universe, and according to it, our universe is just a “bubble.” a vast multiverse in which other infinite bubble universes are constantly emerging due to cosmic inflation. Each bubble will have its own physical laws and fundamental constants, producing realities completely different from our own.

Another one is the Branas Multiverse hypothesis, which arises from String Theory, states that the universe may be a brane (or a “membrane”) in a higher dimensional space. Parallel universes may exist in other membranes separated from our own by extra dimensions, but they may interact through gravitational forces.

Among these hypotheses, the Many Worlds Interpretation (IMM) of quantum mechanics occupies a prominent position due to the simplicity and elegance of its formulation, but with profound implications.

Proposed by American physicist Hugh Everett in 1957, the IMM is an attempt to resolve the paradoxes of quantum mechanics without resorting to the collapse of the wave function (in quantum mechanics, the wave function describes all possible states of a quantum system).

Traditionally, in the analysis of a physical system, the wave function “collapses” into a single result. But Everett proposed that instead of all the possible results of a measurement collapsing, each one emerges simultaneously in a different parallel universe. This means that, For every decision or event, the universe splits into multiple versions where all possibilities actually occur..

Difficult? Not a lot. Picture this: You’re about to flip a coin. If we ignore the possibility of the coin falling perpendicular to its side surface, you only get two results; either heads or tails. However, according to IMM, instead of the coin coming up heads or tails, The act of tossing a coin creates two parallel universes: In the first, the coin comes up heads; in another, in a crown.

The same thing happens when dice are rolled, but instead of reality splitting into two universes, it splits into five additional universes, each offering a different outcome for the faces of the dice. However, in each universe, observers perceive only one of the results, unaware of the existence of other universes.

The IMM is extremely counterintuitive and has fascinating philosophical implications. For example, in a universe of many (or infinite) worlds, all possibilities of your actions actually occur. For every choice you make, there are universes in which you have made different choices since your childhood.

In a universe where you choose to go to that university instead of this one, choose profession x instead of profession y, marry so-and-so instead of so-and-so… If the explanation made by IBB is correct, the Truth is much more complex than we perceive.

What we call “Being” is only a part of a much larger and vast reality in which everything that can happen is happening simultaneously.

The IMM challenges both physics and philosophy, inviting us to rethink fundamental concepts such as existence, identity, causality, freedom of choice, and countless others.

The question that remains is: if there are other Universes where certain events have different outcomes, where any decision leads to a different path, is there perhaps a way to access them? The answer is simple and direct: no.

The Many-Worlds Interpretation (like all other multiverse hypotheses) is purely theoretical and cannot be directly tested with any current technological device. However, It provides a fascinating speculative framework because predictions about its existence are based on known physical phenomena..

We don’t know if the IMM will have any observable and measurable aspects of our reality, but even if it means knowing what it isn’t and what it doesn’t have, it certainly helps us understand the deep nature of the Universe.