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Hi, this is my first post on this forum (hopefully I did everything correctly!) As a professional mathematician who thinks a lot about theoretical physics, I often find myself studying "quantum fields", which are essentially the most fundamental components of reality within our current best theories of physics. This led me to wonder what kind of tier quantum fields would be depending on how they are implemented within a particular fictional universe. I've outlined the following possibilities to this extent.
If the fictional universe furthermore uses a "block universe" model of time, then a quantum field in such a fictional universe would span over all of space and time and so be able to significantly affect the universe's 4D spacetime continuum. This puts it at Low 2-C (Universe Level+).
If the fictional universe implements the eternal inflation as simply an infinite 3D space with finite-sized bubble universes, then the highest you could get the inflaton field is High 3-A (High Universe Level). This is because large numbers of 3D universes count for that tier unless they are temporally/causally closed off from one another.
If the fictional universe implements the eternal inflation as a more formal multiverse, where each bubble universe is causally closed off from its surroundings, then the inflaton field- the source of this multiverse- is capable of creating a countably infinite number of spacetime continuums. So it easily qualifies for 2-A (Multiverse Level+).
Interestingly, there are tens of real world models for eternal inflation, with some models falling more to High 3-A and others to 2-A. Some models even feature a bit of ambiguity, leaving it up to interpretation. For instance, in one common eternal inflation model, the eternal inflation itself as a whole is a 4d construct, but the bubble universes within are still causally closed off from one another due to the laws of relativity, and so can be "factored out" as separate, disconnected 4d constructs.
In fictional universes based on the most common and accepted models of string theory, the fictional universe would have a dimensionality of 10. As such, this places a quantum field in this universe firmly at High 1-C (High Complex Multiverse Level). In a fictional universe based on the 11 dimensional M theory, the tier would be the same.
In fictional universes based on bosonic string theory (which isn't an accepted model of a realistic universe, but this is fiction), the fictional universe would have a dimensionality of 26. This puts a quantum field in this universe at 1-B (Hyperverse Level).
In a fictional universe where spacetime is emergent from quantum fields, the quantum field by definition is "above dimensions", since intrinsically it is a dimensionless entity. Without further context, this qualifies a quantum field to be Low 1-A (Low Outerverse Level).
However, it might be possible to go further if the fictional verse highlights quantum fields from a metaphysical perspective. Metaphysically, quantum fields that precede spacetime also necessarily precede points in spacetime and events and objects that exist in spacetime, all of which emerge from the quantum fields. So from this standpoint, it does not seem logical that any composition of dimensional structures, or taking unions of any dimensional structures, would make the resulting structure any less emergent from the quantum field. That is, there is no way for any emergent entity to "access" the underlying quantum field from which it emerges; a quantum field's inherent nature is entirely inaccessible to dimensional entities.
Furthermore, as an analogy, one can consider another phenomena many scientists consider to be emergent- consciousness. In some regards, it really does seem that a person's subjective conscious experience is qualitatively different than the underlying brain mechanisms that project it (in fact, this qualitative gap is a major factor in why the issue of consciousness is considered a "hard problem"). The wiki even cites under "Reality-Fiction Transcendence" that mental constructs such as thoughts or dreams are considered "less real" than the physical person themselves, and so might qualify for qualitative superiority. And if the physical brain has qualitative superiority over the emergent consciousness, perhaps by analogy it indicates a quantum field can have qualitative superiority over the emergent spacetime.
I would argue all this could qualify a quantum field in such a fictional verse to be 1-A (Outerverse Level). It seems the deciding factor is whether or not spacetime being an emergent effect of quantum fields is enough to establish a qualitative gap between them. So whether you see this as Low 1-A or 1-A will likely depend on how you interpret "emergence", or perhaps how the verse interprets it. In any case I would be eager to hear opinions either way on this front, as I think it can spark an interesting philosophical discussion.
Anyways, those are my thoughts, let me know yours!
Base Form
At its most basic form, a "quantum field" is just an energy field that spans an entire universe. If the fictional universe is infinite in its spatial extent, then its existence affects the entire infinite 3D space of that universe. Thus, a quantum field in it is easily tiered as High 3-A (High Universe Level).If the fictional universe furthermore uses a "block universe" model of time, then a quantum field in such a fictional universe would span over all of space and time and so be able to significantly affect the universe's 4D spacetime continuum. This puts it at Low 2-C (Universe Level+).
Eternal Inflation
In the theory of the Eternal Inflation, the period of inflation prior to the hot Big Bang only locally ceased, but globally continued. In an infinite universe, this would result in an infinite sea of "bubble universes" bubbling out of the surrounding perpetual inflation. Inflation is driven by a quantum field, the inflaton field, and so we will be evaluating its tier depending on how the fictional universe chooses to implement the idea of the eternal inflation.If the fictional universe implements the eternal inflation as simply an infinite 3D space with finite-sized bubble universes, then the highest you could get the inflaton field is High 3-A (High Universe Level). This is because large numbers of 3D universes count for that tier unless they are temporally/causally closed off from one another.
If the fictional universe implements the eternal inflation as a more formal multiverse, where each bubble universe is causally closed off from its surroundings, then the inflaton field- the source of this multiverse- is capable of creating a countably infinite number of spacetime continuums. So it easily qualifies for 2-A (Multiverse Level+).
Interestingly, there are tens of real world models for eternal inflation, with some models falling more to High 3-A and others to 2-A. Some models even feature a bit of ambiguity, leaving it up to interpretation. For instance, in one common eternal inflation model, the eternal inflation itself as a whole is a 4d construct, but the bubble universes within are still causally closed off from one another due to the laws of relativity, and so can be "factored out" as separate, disconnected 4d constructs.
String Theory
In string theory, a "quantum field" is just a high level description of a distribution of strings of a certain variety. String theory is commonly set in higher dimensions, but the number of dimensions can vary depending on the model.In fictional universes based on the most common and accepted models of string theory, the fictional universe would have a dimensionality of 10. As such, this places a quantum field in this universe firmly at High 1-C (High Complex Multiverse Level). In a fictional universe based on the 11 dimensional M theory, the tier would be the same.
In fictional universes based on bosonic string theory (which isn't an accepted model of a realistic universe, but this is fiction), the fictional universe would have a dimensionality of 26. This puts a quantum field in this universe at 1-B (Hyperverse Level).
Emergent Spacetime
In many theories of quantum gravity, spacetime is treated not as a fundamental entity, but rather as being emergent from quantum mechanical effects. In these theories, quantum fields would therefore precede spacetime, rather than being defined as distributions over spacetime as covered above. There are many examples of these theories. One is the proposal outlined in Vilenkin's work (which was popularized by Krauss) of a "universe from nothing". This proposes that quantum states can exist prior to any notion of spacetime, and spacetime can spontaneously fluctuate into existence from this non-spatial quantum state. Another example is work by Sean Carroll exploring defining space and dimensions in terms of entanglement within quantum fields. Notably, this does NOT include holographic models, which propose that only one dimension of our spacetime is emergent. This would make quantum fields defined on a lower dimensional boundary, so not only would they still be dimensional entities, they might even be considered Tier 11 entities.In a fictional universe where spacetime is emergent from quantum fields, the quantum field by definition is "above dimensions", since intrinsically it is a dimensionless entity. Without further context, this qualifies a quantum field to be Low 1-A (Low Outerverse Level).
However, it might be possible to go further if the fictional verse highlights quantum fields from a metaphysical perspective. Metaphysically, quantum fields that precede spacetime also necessarily precede points in spacetime and events and objects that exist in spacetime, all of which emerge from the quantum fields. So from this standpoint, it does not seem logical that any composition of dimensional structures, or taking unions of any dimensional structures, would make the resulting structure any less emergent from the quantum field. That is, there is no way for any emergent entity to "access" the underlying quantum field from which it emerges; a quantum field's inherent nature is entirely inaccessible to dimensional entities.
Furthermore, as an analogy, one can consider another phenomena many scientists consider to be emergent- consciousness. In some regards, it really does seem that a person's subjective conscious experience is qualitatively different than the underlying brain mechanisms that project it (in fact, this qualitative gap is a major factor in why the issue of consciousness is considered a "hard problem"). The wiki even cites under "Reality-Fiction Transcendence" that mental constructs such as thoughts or dreams are considered "less real" than the physical person themselves, and so might qualify for qualitative superiority. And if the physical brain has qualitative superiority over the emergent consciousness, perhaps by analogy it indicates a quantum field can have qualitative superiority over the emergent spacetime.
I would argue all this could qualify a quantum field in such a fictional verse to be 1-A (Outerverse Level). It seems the deciding factor is whether or not spacetime being an emergent effect of quantum fields is enough to establish a qualitative gap between them. So whether you see this as Low 1-A or 1-A will likely depend on how you interpret "emergence", or perhaps how the verse interprets it. In any case I would be eager to hear opinions either way on this front, as I think it can spark an interesting philosophical discussion.
Anyways, those are my thoughts, let me know yours!
