Objection · Case 09 · Atheism

Doesn’t the inverse gambler’s fallacy cut against the multiverse? Many universes elsewhere no more explain why this one is fine-tuned than many dice rolls elsewhere explain why this roll came up double six.

One objection from the free evidence repository at apologetics.pro.

Suggest a correction

Response

This is Ian Hacking’s argument, and it is a real one in the literature. The standard reply is that observer selection makes the difference: we could only find ourselves in a life-permitting universe, which blocks the fallacy charge in the multiverse case in a way it does not in the dice case. Whether that reply works is an ongoing debate (Roger White against Darren Bradley, for instance). It is a point in the theist’s favor that is often left out, and it belongs in any serious weighing of the multiverse.

About this exhibit

This objection is to The multiverse explanation (Susskind, Rees, Tegmark).

On this account there is not one universe but a vast ensemble of universes with different constants. Life-permitting universes are rare, but observers can only arise in the rare ones, so it is no…

Under Claim 03: The basic constants of physics fall within narrow life-permitting ranges, which is evidence of a designer.