May 29, 2003: Cosmology & Consciousness - Adair Butchins
Podcast: The Art Bell ArchivePublished On: Sat Jun 07 2025
Description: Art Bell opens with personal updates on his recovery from back problems and his massive dual-loop ham radio antenna project in Pahrump, Nevada. The antenna produces an unexplained 400 volts of mixed AC and DC current and delivers signal gains of 20 to 25 decibels that defy conventional physics. Art also discusses the acceleration of what he calls "the quickening," pointing to record tornado activity, unusual solar flares during Cycle 23, and the ongoing SARS outbreak as evidence of intensifying global change.Oxford astrophysicist Adair Butchins joins from London to discuss his book "The Numinous Legacy," which examines how modern cosmology challenges the three great monotheistic religions. Butchins outlines the Copernican principle of mediocrity, arguing that an infinite universe with countless opportunities for life undermines the idea of humanity as uniquely chosen. He presents both the design argument for God and the many-worlds counter-argument, comparing the fine-tuned universe to a gambler hitting the jackpot among infinite possibilities.Art pushes Butchins to reveal his personal beliefs. Butchins ultimately suggests that if a God exists, it is likely transcendent and indifferent to the universe, more aligned with Aristotle's conception than the interventionist deity of organized religion. He argues that consciousness may arise from a parallel universe that intersects the physical world, carrying with it universal values of ethics and mathematics.
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