This is our Universe,
an ever-expanding network of stars
and galaxies.
And this is your brain.
Don’t they look eerily
similar to one another?
Your brain is made up of neurons.
These are cells that process
information and signals
throughout your body.
Between these neurons
is an underlying network of connections
that allows them
to communicate with each other.
And on the largest scale imaginable,
the galaxies in our Universe
form clusters with vast
amounts of empty space in between.
These clusters are connected
to each other by a complex network
known as cosmic webs.
The Universe and your brain.
Puzzling, isn’t it?
Well, maybe our Universe is
a lot more complex than we thought.
It might just be some sort of
giant brain.
Digging into these concepts can be challenging,
and sometimes I need help breaking things down
so I can understand them better.
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If you’re lucky, maybe the Universe will share its subscription with you.
Now, you could be thinking,
wow, What If has really gone off the rails
with this episode.
This guy is crazy.
But we’re not the only ones to notice
the similarities between
galaxies in the cosmos and neurons
in the human brain.
Astrophysicists and neurosurgeons
have been studying these networks.
And they found that the cosmos looks
very similar to your brain,
just on a much larger scale.
Your brain is 77% water.
And the cosmic web is about
73% dark energy.
There are around
69 billion neurons in your brain.
And the cosmic web could connect
at least 100 billion galaxies.
Not exactly the same.
But not too far off either.
Wait, there’s more.
Neurons and galaxies
both share a similar pattern.
2.5 mm (0.1 in) of your brain
looks like 500 million light-years of space.
Pretty cool, right?
Well, even that isn’t all.
Each neuron
of that 2.5 mm (0.1 in) of your brain
connects to about five other neurons.
And in space,
each galaxy has about
four different connections.
Your brain and the cosmos aren’t identical.
But they are similar enough
for you to ask this.
Could it have its own consciousness?
Theoretically, the Universe
could achieve consciousness.
But only if it managed
to understand
its position in space and time.
Then it would need to understand
how it relates
to other things, like you.
Have I blown your mind yet?
Now, the Universe isn’t
exactly like your brain.
It’s a lot harder for it
to exchange information
between the galaxies.
It might be conscious,
but on a level we don’t yet understand.
And how could we understand
the consciousness of our Universe
if we don’t even fully
know what consciousness is
and how it works?
What we do know
is that your own consciousness
is pretty advanced.
All thanks to your ability
to understand what the future is.
Humans are one of the few animals
that think about tomorrow.
At least as far as we know.
But maybe we overcomplicate things.
Maybe consciousness
isn’t an intricate biological thing
only humans have.
Maybe consciousness
is when systems relate to each other
and work together.
Like the Universe.
Then, yes,
the Universe is conscious.
Especially if
you think of the Universe with its
billions of galaxies,
billions upon billions of star systems,
planets, moons.
That’s a lot of consciousness.
Maybe there are other universes,
living on a much larger scale,
communicating with each other
like we do.
And maybe they collide.
Well, that’s a story for another WHAT IF.