霍金遗作：多重宇宙到底是什么？

　　Prof Stephen Hawking’s final research paper suggests that our Universe may be one of many similar to our own.

　　斯蒂芬·霍金教授最后的研究论文表明，我们的宇宙可能只是众多宇宙之一，它们和我们自己的宇宙类似。

　　The theory resolves a cosmic paradox of the late physicist’s own making.

　　该理论解决了这位已故的物理学家自己制造的宇宙悖论。

　　It also points a way forward for astronomers to find evidence of the existence of parallel universes.

　　它也为天文学家寻找证明平行宇宙存在的证据提供了一条途径。

　　The study was submitted to the Journal of High-Energy Physics 10 days before Prof Hawking died.

　　该研究在霍金教授去世前10天提交给《高能物理》杂志。

　　In the 1980s, the Cambridge scientist, along with US physicist James Hartle developed a new idea about the beginning of the Universe.

　　在20世纪80年代，这位剑桥科学家与美国物理学家詹姆斯·哈特勒一起提出了关于宇宙起源的新观点。

　　This resolved a difficulty with Einstein’s theory that suggested that the Universe began nearly 14 billion years ago but said nothing about how it began.

　　这解决了爱因斯坦的理论中的一个困难，该理论认为宇宙起源于近140亿年前，但没有提到它是如何开始的。

　　Instead, the Hartle-Hawking idea used a different theory called quantum mechanics to explain how the Universe arose from nothingness.

　　相反，哈特尔 - 霍金的想法使用了一种称为量子力学的不同理论来解释宇宙如何从虚无中产生。

　　The idea tied up one loose end but created another - an infinite number some might say.

　　这个想法解决了一个问题但又制造了另一个问题 - 有些人可能会说是无数的问题。

　　As physicists analysed the idea it emerged that it carried with it the implication that the Big Bang would create not just one universe - but an endless supply.

　　物理学家们对这个想法进行分析，发现该想法暗示着，宇宙大爆炸不仅会创造出一个宇宙，而是会产生无穷无尽的宇宙。

　　Some, according to the Hartle-Hawking theory, would be very like our own, perhaps have Earth-like planets, societies, even individuals similar to the ones in our Universe.

　　根据哈特勒 - 霍金理论，有些宇宙会和我们自己的非常相似，也许有像地球一样的行星，社会，甚至和我们的宇宙人类一样相似的个体。

　　Other universes would be subtly different - perhaps with Earth-like planets where dinosaurs were not wiped out. And there would be universes completely unlike our own, with no Earths, perhaps no stars and galaxies and different laws of physics.

　　其他宇宙会有微妙的差异 - 可能有和地球相似的行星，在那里恐龙没有灭绝。而且又会有完全不同于我们自己的宇宙，这个宇宙没有地球，也许没有恒星和星系，而且那里有不同的物理定律。

　　It sounds far-fetched, but the equations in this theory make such scenarios theoretically possible.

　　这听起来很牵强，但这个理论中的方程式使这样的情景在理论上成为可能。

　　A crisis arises because if there are infinite types of universes with infinite variations in their laws of physics then the theory cannot predict what kind of universe we should find ourselves in.

　　但是有一个严重的问题。如果有无限种不同的宇宙，其中包含着无限的物理定律，那么这个理论就无法预测我们自己身处在什么类型的宇宙中。

　　Prof Hawking joined forces with Prof Thomas Hertog at KU Leuven in Belgium, who is funded by the European Research Council to try to resolve this paradox.

　　霍金教授与欧洲研究委员会资助的比利时鲁汶大学的托马斯·赫托格教授联手，试图解决这一矛盾。

　　Prof Hawking’s final paper is the fruit of 20 years’ work with Prof Hertog.

　　霍金教授最后的论文就是与赫尔托格教授20年的合作成果。

　　It has solved the puzzle by drawing on new mathematical techniques developed to study another esoteric branch of physics called string theory.

　　它通过利用新的数学技术解决了这个难题，该技术是为了研究另一个称为弦理论的物理学深奥分支而开发的。

　　These techniques enable researchers to view physics theories in a different way. And the novel assessment of the Hartle-Hawking theory in the new paper has restored order to a hitherto chaotic multiverse.

　　这些技术使研究人员能够以不同的方式分析物理学理论。而新论文对哈特勒 - 霍金理论的新颖评估让混沌的多元宇宙恢复秩序。

　　The new Hawking-Hertog assessment indicates that there can only be universes that have the same laws of physics as our own.

　　新的哈特勒 - 霍金评估表明，其它宇宙具有与我们自己的宇宙相同的物理定律。

　　That conjecture means that our Universe is typical and so observations we make from our viewpoint will be meaningful in developing our ideas of how other universes emerged.

　　这个猜想意味着我们的宇宙是典型的，所以从我们的角度出发作出的观察，对于建立我们对其它宇宙是如何出现的认知就具有了意义。