Why Does the Universe Exist? (1991) [pdf]
Posted2 months agoActive2 months ago
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Philosophy
Cosmology
Existentialism
A 1991 philosophical article by Derek Parfit questions the existence of the universe, sparking discussion on the nature of philosophical inquiry and its ability to provide answers.
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Discussion (3 comments)
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sema4hacker
2 months ago
1 replyThe title contains the first of 25 question marks you'll find in this two-page article. Like much of philosophy, you won't find many answers.
ghtbircshotbe
2 months ago
1 replyIt's fun to think about though. If the (meta) universe were infinitely old then why hasn't it all diffused into background noise? Maybe once in a bazillion years there's an improbable quantum fluctuation - a big bang. It's interesting to think that we and the entire universe we know of exists in a tiny blip in between almost unimaginable spans of nothingness.
drweevil
2 months ago
Fun indeed! If there is no universe, there is no one to ask the question. If there is a universe, the the question is inevitable. It's enough to make the brain hurt!
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ID: 45805299Type: storyLast synced: 11/17/2025, 7:51:06 AM
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