The Law of Cosmic Coolness

 The Law of Cosmic Coolness

 

I have noticed a curious phenomenon: namely, that the coolest technology of an era is regarded as oddly resembling the real reality of that era’s universe.

This is a result in meta-science, the science of science. I call it the Law of Cosmic Coolness.

For instance: when clocks were high-tech, then the universe was clockwork. When nuclear bombs were freshly invented, then the universe started with a Big Bang. (Some of the same individual physicists worked on both.) Now computers are highest tech, so all the cool kids say that the universe is made of information, and may even be a simulation.

From this law of scientific metaphor, I predict that when the Green New Deal kicks in, we will learn that the universe is recycled, and sustainably self-powered. When biotech hits its stride, the universe will be revealed as recombinatory. Eventually we will discover that the universe is a quantum computer.

Science is ruled by metaphor, for so is the human mind, especially in matters beyond immediate perception. In fact the scientific method is all about testing poetic theory by prosaic observation.

The Law of Cosmic Coolness isn’t just that world-building is inherently subjective; it’s that those worlds are built to appeal to their patrons.