Process rules our universe. Young illustrates this by walking us through creation step by step: The Big Bang bringing forth energy and matter, space and time; quarks forming sub-atomic particles, which in turn form atoms; atoms bonding themselves together into molecules; molecules assembling themselves into crystals and living matter; and life entering into complex symbiotic relationships.
"There is something within life, within nonliving matter, too, that is not passive--a nisus, a striving that is stimulated by challenge. Steadily throughout geological time life has moved out from easy to difficult environments and now has populated almost every nook and cranny of the globe, from the frozen wastes of Antarctica to the boiling sulfur-laden vents at the bottom of the sea."
So, why do many scientistsi insist that everything is falling apart? The answer lies with the often misquoted and misunderstood Second Law of Thermodynamics which states that every spontaneous change is accompanied by an increase in the randomness of the energy distribution within a closed system.
But Earth is an open system, bathed in energy from an outside source. Open systems not only allow for the growth of complexity, they encourage it.
We must seriously question our definitions of randomness and orderliness. Seen one way, a supernova explosion increases chaos; seen another way, it increases order by building up heavier atoms and sowing the universe with them.
Thermodynamics is the study of heat distribution, or how rapidly atoms are moving and where. The higher levels of organization in the universe are unaffected by it. Scientists have mistakenly applied the Second Law to these form-building processes, ignoring the fact that these are organized from within and can repair and protect themselves from outside disruption, and extend their existence and their progeny through space and time.
Contrary to the claims of evolutionists such as Steven Jay Gould, there is genuine progress in the universe over time. Young asserts that the growth of complexity and capability is a fundamental property of universal processes. This includes us:
"The magnitude of the mechanism may be an indication of the VALUE of the product. Not size nor power but potential is the true measure of importance--potential realized through the meticulous construction of higher and higher degrees or organization, from quarks to the finely wrought molecules of living things. Generations of stars were required to synthesize the elements essential to life. The time required to mold these miniature masterpieces of design was a least twelve billion years."
A human being is not just a collection of chemicals worth $1.97 on the market. We are fashioned from the finest materials that have been under development since the Big Bang. Our minds weave magic in the form of thoughts and dreams. Each of our decisions helps bring forth changes that may one day affect the future evolution of the entire cosmos. As freely acting self-symbols, as agents of truly revolutionary change, we have far more responsibility than we've ever dreamed of. It's time we acted as if we knew it.
Our very existence may be crucial right now to the working out of universal processes. John D. Barrow and Frank J Tipler have studied a number of striking coincidences in the specific numerical strength of the four fundamental forces of the universe. A change in any one of these would radically alter the structure of the universe and thus make the development of life impossible.
Barrow and Tipler believe tha tthe odds against this array of coincidences occuring randomly are too high, and therefore, they are not coincidences. We human beings grew out of this particular arrangement of fundamental forces. We observe them at work in our world. As a result of these facts, Barrow and Tipler assert in "The Anthropic Cosmological Principle" that all scientific observations must take the existence of the observer into account.
The Weak Anthropic Principle makes this point concisely: The conditions under which scientists make their observations must include those necessary to give rise to intelligent life--and scientists! We cannot make the observations of conditions which make it impossible for us to exist. We are limited to our own user-friendly universe.
And then, Barrow and Tipler grow bold. The Strong Anthropic Principle: The universe MUST admit the creation of observers within it at some stage.
They then ask themselves why, and focus in on the role of the observer. The Participatory Anthropic Principle: The observer is needed to bring reality into focus. The universe is brought into existence by the collective observations of all observers, past, present, and future.
Why would the universe go to all this trouble if everything is going to die? They address that philosophical quandary with the Final Anthropic Principle: The universe not only must give rise to life, but once life is created, it will endure forever. It will become infinitely knowledgeable and mold the universe to its will. Everything will have been brought into existence.