The universe, earth and humanity’s origin stories have long been hotly and fiercely contested and contentious issues, ranging from creationist and divine origins to alien beings building and populating our planet long ago.

In this week’s on-air chat with Radio Hong Kong 3’s Phil Whelan we road tested 3 newish theories of how all things came about and frankly I’m not sure if we resolved anything, but it was fun trying.

To me this is not an attempt at trying to resolve the possibly unresolvable, but rather an exercise in perspective, that we can all look at the same thing and see very different versions, purposes and outcomes of it.

As a foresight strategist, I’m for ever tyring to figure out clients’ origin story, because I know that informs who they are and what’s important to them, but then to use this shared understanding of past to recreate and reimagine a future of possibilities.

Anyway, back to our chat this week.

Theory 1

The first of the theories espouses that we are living in a computer simulation, existing in a digital hyper realistic reality and playing some pre determined game.. It goes on to say that our ability to understand and manipulate this environment classifies us into 1 of 3 states.

Option 1: we learn, it’s a game and how to create our own game moving forward – highest state of being

Option 2: we figure out, its game, know how to make one but never do

Option 3: We never reach that point – which is where humans are now

Theory 2

Dr Bento of the University of Liverpool has recently concluded, using Quantum gravity theory, that there was no beginning and will be no end to the universe, that the big bang didn’t happen and if it did it was one activity in a long line of activities that shaped, but not created the universe.

It’s like the image above, which is made up of many smaller pictures, each joining together to give us a new picture.

Each element of the universe is unique, changing, evolving, devolving, but the big picture still remains, we can tell what it is, even when small elements within it change.

Theory 3

Avi Loeb, Harvard Scientist, believes that our universe was created in a laboratory by higher class lifeforms.

He also uses an A through C grading system to rank evolved beings and humans, you guessed it, failed with a C.

As always great catching up with Phil each week, have a listen now and let me know what you think, and your best universe origin story.