Alternative Histories Quotes

“Take your place, then. Look at what happened from every side and consider all the other ways it could have gone. Consider, even, an Africa unconquered altogether. Imagine those first Portuguese adventurers approaching the shore, spying on the jungle’s edge through their fitted brass lenses. Imagine that by some miracle of dread or reverence they lowered their spyglasses, turned, set their riggings, sailed on. Imagine all who came after doing the same. What would that Africa be now? All I can think of is the other okapi, the one they used to believe in. A unicorn that could look you in the eye.”
― Barbara Kingsolver, The Poisonwood Bible

“To apply quantum theory to the entire universe... is tricky... particles of matter fired at a screen with two slits in it... exhibit interference patterns just as water waves do.

Feynman showed that this arises because a particle does not have a unique history.

That is, as it moves from its starting point A to some endpoint B, it doesn’t take one definite path, but rather simultaneously takes every possible path connecting the two points.

From this point of view, interference is no surprise because, for instance, the particle can travel through both slits at the same time and interfere with itself.

In this view, the universe appeared spontaneously, starting off in every possible way.”
― Stephen Hawking, The Grand Design