Mario Livio Quote

Tegmark argues that our universe is not just described by mathematics-it is mathematics [emphasis added]. His argument starts with the rather uncontroversial assumption that an external physical reality exists that is independent of human beings. He then proceeds to examine what might be the nature of the ultimate theory of such a reality (what physicists refer to as the theory of everything). Since this physical world is entirely independent of humans, Tegmark maintains, its description must be free of any human baggage (e.g., human language, in particular). In other words, the final theory cannot include any concepts such as subatomic particles, vibrating strings, warped spacetime, or other humanly conceived constructs. From this presumed insight, Tegmark concludes that the only possible description of the cosmos is one that involves only abstract concepts and the relations among them, which he takes to be the working definition of mathematics.