The universe is infinite, or at least incomprehensibly immense. Who knows what forms of life and emergent properties and forces may have arisen? Certainly not us. Not yet. From observation we know the minimum size, the visible size, of the universe is indeed immense.
What then is a god? An omnipotent being. A being that can create life from nothing. A being that can create stars and planets; control space and time; understand and craft an entire universe over which this being has complete dominion.
Technology has shown a great many things to be possible if there were no limit on spending and available resources- the lack thereof creates the barrier between possible and impossible. We know technology improves and advances, quite rapidly as evidenced by the world and its civilizations.
Currently machines can be controlled by the mind. Nano scale objects, tools, machines are being created right now. With an army of atomic sized robots we are capable of rearranging atoms and molecules into new macro-scale objects. Artificial intelligence and the evolving symbiosis between man and machine and computer… Well, it seems that somewhere down the line it’s not entirely impossible, or unreasonable to think that perhaps a super powerful being with a quantum computing brain could control cosmic swarms of microscopic robots which would gather raw material throughout the stellar voids and piece together new stars and planets. Perhaps, beyond our time too. For when the manipulation of time and space become possible it’ll probably make our current notions completely archaic.
Or we could create an entirely new universe. We could program computers to run simulations of the universe from the big bang onwards: a simulation so detailed it would incorporate the interplay between molecules in neuro-chemicals during the process of consciousness in millions and billions of people along with everything there is.
I already play as a demi-god growing more omnipotent. A space faring Spore I create and engineer life, terraform planets, filling ecosystems with the creatures I invented, or transplanting them from across the galaxy. I conquer and settle worlds inhabited by lowly beasts, tribesmen and nations, and trade with galactic empires. I am able to destroy ships and cities and planets, or simply make a world void of life. I suppose one day we could even enter virtual reality versions of that game where you can beam down to the planet to father children with beautiful maidens of the stars.
What sort of simulations and space-time manipulations could a race of beings that have 10,000 years of recorded history and science achieve. Or, imagine how advanced the first occurrence of life in our universe could potentially be by now.
So I don’t thinks it’s totally unreasonable to believe in a god. But in these scenarios and many of their variations the gods are never that concerned with every individual within the systems they’ve created. But, I must wonder- are they children with magnifying glasses and we the proverbial ants?
~David T. Kukulkan~
The Iron Astrolabe 