A paradox in the global description of the multiverse

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Published 5 June 2007 • Published under licence by IOP Publishing Ltd
, , Citation Raphael Bousso and Ben Freivogel JHEP06(2007)018 DOI 10.1088/1126-6708/2007/06/018

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Author affiliations

1 Center for Theoretical Physics, Department of Physics, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720-7300, U.S.A.

2 Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720-8162, U.S.A.

Dates

  1. Received 23 February 2007
  2. Accepted 24 May 2007
  3. Published

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1126-6708/2007/06/018

Abstract

We use an argument by Page to exhibit a paradox in the global description of the multiverse: the overwhelming majority of observers arise from quantum fluctuations and not by conventional evolution. Unless we are extremely atypical, this contradicts observation. The paradox does not arise in the local description of the multiverse, but similar arguments yield interesting constraints on the maximum lifetime of metastable vacua.

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10.1088/1126-6708/2007/06/018