As mentioned in last week’s blog about Dragon Con, I attended a few panels that were presented by the Science Track. Like a true geek, I took notes, so this week and next I’m doing a recap of a couple of the panels that were directly related to pop culture. First up is “Managing the Multiverse,” which looked at the various scientific theories exploring the possibilities of multiple universes and/or timelines – a must for any geeks into comic book and sci-fi time travel and multiverse plots! 

The panel was led by Erin Macdonald, PhD, who gives talks worldwide on space science and is a science consultant for the entertainment industry in Los Angeles. She covered the basics on the most popular multiverse theories, giving examples from pop culture, primarily sci-fi shows. As someone with an interest in science, but not a great depth of knowledge in it, this was a great way to be able to put a name to the various plots I’ve seen in my favorite shows, movies and books.

So here’s the breakdown:

Mirror Universe

This is the standard parallel universe theory where there is only one other version of the universe. In sci-fi, this often translates to “same but better” or “same but worse” in an evil twin sort of way. Star Trek has a mirror universe as canon.

Brane Universes

In this theory, there can be any number of universes, each within a membrane (thus the name “brane”) so they never interact with one another. All of these exist within a higher dimension (called a “bulk”).

Black Hole Universes

The explanation here is that black holes collide and create larger black holes. When those large black holes reach a certain threshold of energy, they spawn a new universe.

Quantum Universes

This is a theory of potentially infinite universes. It’s where every decision spawns a new universe. This has been used in pop culture many times with “what if?” scenarios. Think Back to the Future and the multiple timelines created with every change in the past.

Simulated Universe

Much like mirror and quantum universe theories, this one is popular in sci-fi. It’s exactly what it sounds like – a universe that is a simulation. It could be a replica of what we know or completely different, but accepted as real. The clear example here is The Matrix.

Quilted Universe

This is the theory that most people think of when they hear “multiverse”. It’s an infinite universe with “pocket” universes (or timelines) that coexist and can be accessed through portals or tears. They could be similar to our known universe, so everything works the same way, or they could be completely fantastical places where, for example, magic exists. This one comes up in comics a lot or shows like Doctor Who or Rick and Morty.

There are other multiverse theories, but these are the ones that were covered at the panel and are the most popular or well known. If you want to know more about any of them, there is loads of information online… or even in books! Which is your preferred theory? How about a combination of a couple of them?