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Dark Matter

Dark Matter book cover image

Author: Blake Crouch

Publisher: Crown Publishing Group

Year: 2016

Language: English

Country: USA

Number of pages: 342

Our rating

Full StarFull StarFull StarPartial StarEmpty Star
3.5 / 5
Good
Bizarrometer Slider
0.5 / 5
Not very weird

Good Points ✔

  • Gripping, fast-paced story that keeps you engaged
  • Easy-to-follow plot, never boring
  • Good writing with accessible narrative style
  • Makes you question reality on a human level

Bad Points ❌

  • Clichéd moments and predictable plot events
  • Unrealistic plot elements (e.g., easy escape, lucky car find)
  • Shallow treatment of dark matter and multiverse
  • Lacks deeper philosophical or scientific exploration

Your rating

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.0
By19th May, 2023
Two comments

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

Introduction

In most of my articles, there is always an interesting (or so I tend to believe) background story that led me to the particular work I’m reviewing.

With Dark Matter, that story is rather unremarkable…

I literally went to google and typed: “mind-bending books”. Dark Matter came up at the top of the list in goodreads.

So, I decided to have a go at it.

I have to admit that I usually take months, sometimes over a year, to finish a novel – yes, I’m a terribly slow reader. With Dark Matter, I finished the novel in just about 3 weeks. For me, that is some serious lightning-speed reading.

And that, my friends, attests to how engaging the book was, and made me start wondering if I’ve been reading the wrong books… (by the way, the book it took me most time to read was Foucault’s Pendulum by Umberto Eco, which took me longer than a year to finish – I dare you say you read it faster!!).

Review

Dark Matter tells the story of Jason Dessen, a high-school teacher of Physics, who lives in Chigago with his wife Daniela and their teenage son Charlie.

Jason had been a world-class physicist, who gave up his very promising career 15 years ago in order to focus on family.

One day, Jason is kidnapped and drugged by a mysterious masked man, and ends up in a parallel universe, where everything and everyone he knows has changed.

Jason desperately tries to get back to his own world and family, stumbling along the way on all sorts of alternate worlds.

Dark Matter is like a book on steroids; the story progresses at lightning speed. Sentences are often 4/5 words long (almost like a screenplay), and there is really hardly any boring section. I guess Crouch intended to grip readers to the story, and he certainly succeeds. I was captivated from beginning to end.

Having said that, I found the storyline disappointing at times.

As it’s often the case with action thrillers, there were a certain amount of clichés.

For example, the protagonist is in possession of a few dozen ampoules with which he tries to find the universe from which he came, and, of course, he has to exhaust almost all of them for us to know if he succeeds or not. This is just another version of the diffusing-a-bomb-in-the-last-second kind of situation.

I’m really not sure why authors insist on leaving everything to the last moment/second, since it tends to make the story predictable.

Then there is the whole escape from the high-security facility. The psychiatrist is the one who saves Jason by disabling the security cameras. But what sort of high-security facility is this, that even the psychiatrist is able to disable the cameras? Again, it just strikes me as unbelievable…

There is also the occasional “I need a car! Oh, this car has keys in the ignition, aren’t we lucky?”. (for all the Americans out there, do you really leave your car keys in the ignition?).

The title is also a bit misleading. I was really excited and hoping to read about the role of the mysterious dark matter in the narrative, but there is no real treatment of it in the book.

There is a point at which Jason2 explains to Daniela that dark matter is a mysterious form of matter that holds galaxies together and makes up most of the matter in the universe.

Then there is this sentence “Some string theorists think it might be a clue to the existence of the multiverse”. And that’s it! No real attempt to delve deeper into how dark matter is related to the multiverse.

Of course, I wouldn’t expect a scientific treatise. But mentioning dark matter and then just leaving it at that was sort of unfulfilling.

  • If the other Jasons were created each time Jason was visiting the alternate worlds and was required to make a decision, why aren’t there multiple copies of Jason2 as well? After all, he also traveled in the machine and there must surely have been quantum decisions involved that would originate alternate Jasons2?
  • The Many-Worlds interpretation says that whenever a quantum decision takes place, an infinite number of timelines emerge (read more below). So, if Jason was really able to interact with these other alternate “worlds”, I’m afraid there wouldn’t be enough space in the galaxy to accommodate all the alternate Jasons, let alone Earth.
  • I don’t really understand how Charlie, Daniela, and Jason could all use the same ampoule in the end. I thought that in order to enter a superposition state, an ampoule was required for each individual. 

Nevertheless, I could tell the author did his research, although I think he could have delved deeper into the philosophical implications of the Many-Worlds multiverse.

The topics are dealt very superficially, and the focus is more on action rather than on the philosophical/scientific questions.

In the end, the novel feels like it has been written with cinema/television in mind.

Our rating

Don’t be put off by my review – I’ve noticed I seem to be a little pricklier with novels than with other forms of entertainment, probably because they require a greater deal of time to dissect and analyse.

I definitely recommend the book! It’s gripping from beginning to end, and it will make you question reality at a very human level.

As I will explain below, the Many-Worlds theory has been seriously considered by many world-renowned theoretical physicists. As a matter of fact, it is one of the few successful theories that can accommodate many paradoxes that have been bothering physicists’ minds, without breaking any laws of physics.

Notwithstanding the 3-4 word sentences, Crouch is a good writer and I liked the fact he did not attempt to be presumptuous. The storyline is easy to follow, and you will never get bored.

Personally, I would have welcomed a bit more scientific background and deeper philosophical debates, but, of course, that might have never been Crouch’s intention with this book from the beginning.

Here, at Mindlybiz, Dark Matter gets a star rating of 3.5.

Bizarrometer

When I googled mind-bending books, and got this book as a first result on Goodreads, I thought I would have in hand a very strange book with many twists and turns.

But it isn’t.

The story isn’t confusing or weird at all. Maybe, if you aren’t familiar with the concept of the multiverse (and the Many-Worlds interpretation in particular), you might struggle with the explanatory parts.

However, those are few and far between, and they won’t be a deterrent to enjoying the novel.

In fact, the book only contains two elements that make the story slightly strange: Daniela’s exposition (which is awesome, by the way), and the corridors with doors to the alternate worlds. Those added a nice weird element to the story, but will not leave you utterly confused.

There is also a slight ambiguity about the ending, although I think most people will reach a similar conclusion. I spice it up a bit at the end of my analysis and offer an alternate, gloomier interpretation of that ending.

For that reason, Dark Matter gets a Bizarrometer of 0.5.

Dark Matter (briefly) Explained!

Dark Matter will make you question the very nature of reality, as well as your place in the universe.

This may sound cheesy, and perhaps it is, but if you do not feel that way once you finish the book, then I suspect the implications of the novel haven’t really sunk in.

You see, the main theme of the novel – the idea that (quantum) decisions exist in a state of superposition, where all outcomes will be realised – may sound like a radical and preposterous proposition. Maybe the kind of stuff found in science fiction stories, which shouldn’t be taken too seriously.

Sure, humans achieving a state of superposition (as Jason2 was able to achieve) is simply beyond comprehension, and not at all likely to happen in any foreseeable future.

However, Crouch’s flair was to write the story with ideas that are grounded in actual science. The Many-worlds interpretation is not mere speculation. It is a serious and, for the most part, accepted interpretation of how quantum mechanics translates into experienced reality.

Dark Matter makes us aware of this; it goes a step further than other parallel universe stories, because it links its story to actual physics.

Being in a state of superposition allowed Jason to travel to other timelines that evolved independently of his own. Along the way, he meets worlds that were beyond his imagination. According to the Many-Worlds interpretation, if something has the potential to exist in real life, it will exist.

He finally reaches his beloved Chicago in the nick of time. But so do other Jasons that happened to have been “created” in the worlds Jason had visited.

After a series of fatal encounters with some of his duplicates, he finally manages to escape with Daniela and Charlie to an unknown world.

The novel is geared towards action, so it’s natural that more philosophical questions are not fully considered.

To me, there are at least two lingering questions.

First question: could there actually be a “true” Jason?

This question is briefly addressed in the novel, and we are led to the conclusion that all Jasons are real, none is more real than the other.

However, many readers may have missed the implications of Jason branching into many Jasons, as readers become more involved with the Jason narrating the story. But ask yourself the question: is the Jason-narrator the Jason that Daniela should end up with?

Perhaps it is, but also perhaps it is not (check out why in the detailed analysis below).

The second question is related to whether the Dessen family will meet a favourable end. The description of the world Jason, Charlie, and Daniela will step into at the end of the novel is ambiguous:

“A wind through the door carries the scent of wet earth and unknown flowers.

A world just after a storm.”

That could mean just about anything from a terrifying underworld to a celestial kingdom.

Considering Charlie’s state of mind, as well as the pressure to choose a door, it would likely not bring visions of good worlds. Therefore, I’m more inclined to believe that Charlie summoned a world that is more along the lines of what Jason experienced in his first few attempts with the box.

But before going any deeper in my analysis, let’s first review the Many-worlds interpretation, and see why scientists haven’t discarded it as a plausible interpretation of quantum mechanics.

Quantum mechanics without collapse: the case for many worlds
A scene from the TV shows Star Trek: The Next Generation and Community
The idea behind the Many-worlds interpretation has inspired several TV shows, such as Star Trek: The Next Generation (left) and Community (right)

Dark Matter Explained!

The parallel-worlds theme in the entertainment business is definitely not new. Many novels, films and TV shows have adopted the idea that there might be, in the immensity of the cosmos, other worlds that look just like ours.

Think of the episode “Parallels” from the TV show Star Trek: The Next Generation or “Remedial Chaos Theory” from the TV show “Community”. .

What makes Dark Matter different is that it tries to adhere to the original interpretation with a high degree of fidelity (even though plot holes still exist).

Crouch did his homework and his explanations are accurate and very understandable even for laymen.

I’ll not comment on the mechanisms of the box and ampoules that would allow you to reach a state of Superposition. Quite frankly, nobody has a clue how this could even work in theory, so I doubt Crouch based his ideas on solid research (other than vaguely suggesting altering the chemistry of the prefrontal cortex).

Let’s start this analysis with a few interesting ideas from the book that we can immediately link to the Many-world interpretation (if you don’t know what the Many-world interpretation is, please refer to the section Many-worlds-interpretation).

Superposition
In Dark Matter, Jason2 managed to place himself in a Superposition of states. This allowed him to visit timelines that evolved independently from his own. [Image by geralt from Pixabay]

Superposition

Jason’s earlier research years had focused on developing a cube that would allow putting a macroscopic object into Superposition.

As Jason recalls: 

“My concept for my tiny cube was to create an environment protected from observation and external stimuli so my macroscopic object […] could be free to exist in that undetermined cat state and not decohere due to interactions with its environment”.

If you read the section Many-worlds-interpretation, this should all now be familiar to you.

In short, Superposition occurs when two waves interact and create areas of constructive (the peaks and troughs) and destructive (when peaks meet troughs and cancel each other out) interference. The higher the peak the more likely it is that a particle or groups of particles is in a particular state (e.g., location).

For example, for a moving electron, the higher the wave peak the more likely the electron will be found at that location when a measurement is made.

Jason2 refined this line of investigation and managed to upscale it to human beings. Of course, Jason2 faced a problem. Our consciousness would never allow us to be in Superposition, because the mere act of us observing would “collapse” the wave function and we would experience one and only one reality.

So, Jason2 asked a colleague to manufacture a psychoactive compound that could temporarily silent three brain regions within the prefrontal cortex – a major site in the brain thought to be involved in decision making and attentional control.

Thus, taking the drug would effectively turn off the “observation deck” of our brain, allowing superposition to take place.

The box would prevent others from observing whoever was in a Superposition, thus, preventing decoherence.

A corridor with an infinite amount of doors
In Dark Matter, Superposition was depicted as an infinitely long corridor with doors on either side [Image by torstensimon from Pixabay]

The Corridor

When Jason and Amanda enter superposition, they find themselves in a never-ending corridor, with an infinite number of doors perfectly aligned.

The corridor that Jason and Amanda ended up in is one of the coolest and weirdest descriptions in the entire novel.

The corridor, as Jason explains, isn’t a concrete physical location. It is a product of their minds, as their brains try to make sense of Superposition. Remember, our brains are very limited; our senses have evolved to make sense of a 3D world.

Visualising superposition of states of even a single fundamental particle (such as an electron) would be way out of the possibilities of the most brilliant of brains.

Each door is essentially a quantum state in the wave function. Remember the double-slit experiment? (if not, please read section The double-slit experiment) I mentioned that the ultimate wave function is composed of all possible locations of the electron entangled with our environment. Likewise, the corridor is the ultimate wave function as interpreted by Jason’s and Amanda’s brains.

Also, in the context of the double-slit experiment, each peak in the wave function of the ultimate wavefunction corresponds to a reality where the electron exists at a particular location. Likewise, in Dark Matter, each door in the corridor corresponds to a possible reality.

Also, remember that when we make an observation, the wave function of the quantum system becomes entangled with the particles of the environment (ourselves included), which causes decoherence and the emergence of alternate timelines.

Decoherence is represented by the opening of a door. Once a door is opened, a decision has been made, and Jason and Amanda will experience one, and only one, reality behind that door.

Why? Because when they open a door, the outside environment (all those atoms, photons, molecules, etc. that make up the environment) interact with the interior of the box (or, to be precise, their wave functions interact).

Since the interior of the box is in a state of superposition, the wave function of the macroscopic object (the environment) “forces” the superpositioned quantum system to acquire a definite state (decoherence kicks in). The result: you experience one and only one reality.

That is why when they go through a door the corridor collapses and they find themselves in the ordinary box.

The drug will only have an effect within a specific amount of time. However, within that time, Jason and Amanda are free to open the same door several times, and will find themselves in the exact same world.

Importantly, as soon as they take another ampoule, the corridor resets itself, so if they open the same door, the world will be a different one.

Alternate realities
In Dark Matter, each door is the entrance to an alternate timeline, where the world can be very different (or very similar) from the one Jason comes from [Original images from Pixabay]

Choosing worlds

Now, later in the novel, Jason has the epiphany that they are able to control the type of worlds they can summon. When they open the doors, they will not find themselves in a world that has been purely dictated by chance. The world that presents itself is determined by the feelings the person is having when she/he opens a door.

For example, if your emotional state at the time of opening a door is that of being afraid, desperate and anxious, then the world will be a reflection of those negative feelings (e.g., a ruined and desolated city).

If, on the other hand, your feelings are of joy and happiness, then the world might turn out to be pleasant.

So, there is nothing random about the worlds found behind the doors. The key is to control one’s feelings, be specific about the kind of thoughts that emerge and guide all of these feelings and memories in a positive direction.

At this point, I have to say that I found the idea very silly.

Even if you are a person with an exceptionally emotional self-control, feelings are likely to sway within seconds, especially under duress.

Also, I’m not sure how past memories, which are very unreliable even for recent events, would allow the summoning of the particular world you are familiar with.

You see, even conjuring the image of Daniela in a dress with the wrong color could catastrophically send Jason to a completely different world; one, for instance, where Daniela has that kind of dress, but she is a serial killer (remember that under the Many-worlds interpretation, if a world is possible to exist, it will exist).

Schrodinger's cat
According to the Many-worlds interpretation, the act of observing or measuring a quantum particle in Superposition causes the timeline to split into all possible outcomes [Image from Wikimedia Commons]

Branching

Now, the part when Jason finds that there are multiple Jasons in his world. Even though I’d have liked to say that I saw it coming, I didn’t. This was quite unexpected turn of events, and on the positive side. I was already expecting an epic (if cliché) battle with Jason2 for Daniela, but was happy to have been proven wrong.

So, according to the Many-worlds interpretation, splitting of timelines occurs pretty much all the time.

In the corridor Jason is in a superposition of states, so he can’t split any more than that (since superposition already entails all possible outcomes). However, as soon as he enters an actual world, his decisions in that world mean that branching will occur.

And remember from the discussion in the section Many-worlds-interpretation: every single time a quantum particle is faced with a choice, the timeline splits. And this can happen all the time and everywhere; a quantum process in the electrons in Jason’s brain can cause the timeline to split, and so does a supernova explosion in a far away galaxy.

Now, that’s all fine and good, but it comes with an important implication. Crouch seriously misrepresented the amount of Jasons that would have been “created”.

As I’ve described above, splitting is happening all the time – possibly even an infinitely amount of times.

Thus, even though it would be perfectly plausible that not every Jason could make it through, infinite is a really huge amount to work with.

And this brings me to one of the most uncomfortable aspects in the novel, and one which I think might not be obvious to many readers.

As you keep reading the book, you may feel that the Jason that is narrating the story is the actual Jason.

For example, do you think that Daniela should choose the Jason that she picked up at the police headquarters?

If your answer is yes, then I have to tell you that Daniela would be just as correct picking any of the other Jasons.

Think about it. We know that Jason will split as soon as he enters another world, that’s a certainty. From that moment on, he will face multiple decisions – some were unfortunate decisions and he died, some were fortunate and he survived.

You might argue that the Jason narrating the story must be the real Jason, because he is in possession of all the memories and feelings related to his life with Daniela and Charlie.

Furthermore, there is no disruption in Jason’s behaviour or thought-processes. He acts like the Jason before the kidnapping, he has the same opinions as he had before the kidnapping, he feels the same towards Daniela and Charlie as he did before the kidnapping, etc.

But, again, that is fallacious thinking.

For example, take the scene where Jason goes to Jason2’s flat, thinking to be his own. As he walks around, he realises, to his chagrin, that it isn’t his flat. He first enters the dining room, goes to kitchen, then living room, and bedrooms.

But what if he had gone first to the bedrooms, then kitchen and finally living room? Would the story line be that different?

Not really. Leighton would still show up, and all the events would turn out to be virtually identical.

But both Jasons exist, and their timelines are almost identical. So, which Jason is the real one?

Again, you might argue that the real Jason is the one that chose the order in the book (first dining room, then kitchen, then bedrooms) because that’s what Jason would do.

But I could counter-argue and say that maybe the actual Jason would first look in his son’s bedroom to see if everything is alright with him.

To stress this point further, in the Many-worlds interpretation, both Jasons exist and will go through almost exactly the same experiences.

In fact, Jason will make even much minor decisions (such as looking either left or right) that could potentially split the timeline, and have negligible effects in the development of the story.

So, many of Jasons’ timelines will run almost entirely parallel, but we are only viewing the timeline of one of them – the timeline in the novel.

In fact, we don’t need to go back that far into the story. What about the scene just before Jason manages to find his Chicago, when he writes his last entry in the notebook:

Sitting in the doorway of the box, I open the notebook.
I’ve been thinking ever since I woke up about what Amanda said in her goodbye note, how I haven’t really written what I feel.
Here goes…

Right after he wrote the full entry, he goes into the box, takes the drug and opens the door that leads to his Chicago.

Now, why am I mentioning this?

Because right before he steps into the box, there might have been a multitude of branchings (remember, a simple change from looking left or right can cause a split).

This means that that particular Jason – the one who had just written the note – will have copious of doppelgangers with the exact mindset to arrive in Jason’s Chicago. 

And they will all succeed. They are all the same Jason, one is no more truer than the other.

One thing is for sure though. Whenever the story is narrated about Jason2 and Daniela (when Jason is stuck in Jason2’s world) there is a shift from first-person narration to third-person narration.

This is interesting, because it gives us a subtle cue that Jason2 isn’t considered a “real” Jason.

My argument above is that the Jason that ended up with Daniela shouldn’t be thought of as the real Jason (all Jasons are equally real), but Crouch leaves no ambiguity as to whether Jason2 is a real Jason or not.

Daniela's options
Which Jason should Daniela choose? Could there be a way for Daniela to determine which Jason is more "real" than the others?

Just out of fun, let’s ask ourselves a question: which Jason should Daniela actually pick?

It’s a rather silly question really, given that I just explained that no Jason is more real than the other, but it’s a fun game nonetheless.

 So, how should Daniela base her decision regarding who is the real Jason?:

(1) she should pick one at random (e.g., by drawing lots)

(2) she should choose the Jason that arrived first (not counting Jason2)

(3) she should group Jasons by how similar their timelines were, and choose one from the group that had a more “normal” timeline

(4) she should select the Jason with the timeline that had a greater wave function height

Let’s make this interesting. I’d be very curious to see what option you would find more acceptable/reasonable were you to be in Daniela’s shoes. So, feel free to let me know which option you went for in the comment section below. 

Although this may sound like an amusing thought-experiment, it is actually at the heart of many problems for the Many-worlds interpretation.

Even though fairer, most would say option 1 is a terrible option. Picking one at random without knowing what kind of vicissitudes that particular Jason went through just spells disaster.

For example, there is a chance Daniela may pick a Jason whose experiences in the other worlds messed his mind up to such an extent that he, for all intents and purposes, wouldn’t be Daniela’s Jason anymore.

Option 2 is perhaps more appealing to some people. After all, the first Jason to arrive is the one that effectively “won the race”, so it would be fair that he should get credit for it.

However, the problem with option 1 applies here as well. Even though this Jason is just as real as any other, he could be a complete psychopath.

Option 3 is a bit trickier. Daniela could ask all Jasons to report their experiences and maybe even let them go through some psychological evaluation. That way she could determine which timeline was likely to have had less of a negative effect on Jason.

Some Jasons would have very similar timelines, so she could group them based on how severe that timeline was.  

After separating the wheat from the chaff, she could draw lots and select one Jason at random from that timeline, since they would all be very similar.

Even though, at face value, this option sounds reasonable, just because the timeline had a relatively innocuous effect on the Jasons, it does not mean it is a typical timeline.

Which brings me to option 4.

I’d like you to think of the wave function of the electron (see the section Surfing on the wave function). The higher the value of the electron’s wave function, the more likely we are to find the electron located there. In contrast, the lower the value of the wave function, the less likely we are to find the electron located there.

So, given many trials, the majority of electrons will hit the region with highest probability, and would, thus, be the most “typical” electron.

Similarly, Daniela could choose a Jason from the group that was associated with the wave function with the greatest height (of course, assuming she had access to such data). That would mean that these Jasons shared the most typical story, and, thus, would diverge less from the initial split (because the least likely the Jason is, the more atypical his experiences were).

It may well be that the Jason that Daniela ended up with came from such a timeline. But what I’d like to point out is that there could have been a timeline in which Jason figured out a way to his Chicago without seeing any deaths for example. This timeline would have been much milder than the timeline described in the novel, even though not very likely.

Thus, if Daniela chose option 3, she could have chosen a Jason that diverged a lot from the initial split.

Of course, if Daniela did go with option 4, she would still need to face the arduous task of choosing one of these typical Jasons, and there is no guarantee that this “typical” timeline would be a good timeline.

So, Daniela would find herself in an impossible position. There would be really no way to know which Jason is her actual Jason, because they are all her Jason – even the psycho ones, I’m afraid.

Choosing a door
In Dark Matter, Charlie (Jason's son) is given the difficult task of selecting a world of his choosing, where he and his parents will live for the rest of their lives [Image by qimono from Pixabay]

The ending

That brings me to the last chapter of the book.

Probably you wish to know what kind of world do the Dessen family steps in.

Jason tells his son, Charlie, that it should be he who opens the door. Given that we know that the person’s feelings and emotions are key in summoning the right world, what can we say about Charlie’s state of mind?

Confused, possibly doubtful, likely afraid, definitely anxious.

Hhhhmm… I don’t know about you, but none of these feelings sound particularly encouraging to me.

Unfortunately, the description of the new world couldn’t be more uncommitted:

A wind through the door carries the scent of wet earth and unknown flowers.
A world just after a storm.

That can pretty much mean anything: from a wonderful Rivendell to a terrifying Mordor.

My take is this. As a newcomer to the multiverse, I very much doubt that Charlie would have had the capacity to bring about a serene and beautiful world on his first attempt.

Not only because he is a teenager (and we all know the mess that goes inside the mind of teenagers), but that he just had literally been chased, witnessed murder in front of him and almost died.

And if that wasn’t trauma enough, he is told in the moment that will have to choose the world they will be forever stuck in (remember, no more ampoules after that). Quite a responsibility to give a kid, if you ask me…

More likely, the world Charlie summoned would be something along the lines of Jason’s initial experiences with the box, in which case a not so pleasant life would expect them.

To add an even more macabre ending, there’s a terrible flaw with Jason’s escape plan.

We shouldn’t forget that there are splits occurring all the time, including when Jason asks his son to choose the world they will be living in.

Remember, in the multiverse of Many-worlds all the things that can happen, will happen.

In some other timeline, one of the other not-so-nice Jasons will try, and will succeed, in killing Jason.

And again, don’t fall prey to the idea that it’s enough that one of them escaped, so Jason and his family are all and well in some world.

To keep pressing the point, they are all the same Jason, Daniela and Charlie. The timelines are evolving independently, and do not communicate. The Jason that got murdered isn’t thinking in his deathbed “Shoot, I’ll die… Oh well, at least one of my clones survives”.

No.

Jason is completely unaware of the other timelines.

To this Jason, it is game-over.

Conclusion

Gosh, that was a depressing ending for this analysis.

To be perfectly honest with you, I’m probably overthinking the consequences of Jason’s branching. In all likelihood, Crouch meant the Dessen family to meet a happy ending, and that is certainly the conclusion many readers will also reach.

The questions and interpretations I put forward in my analysis above are probably the result of my tendency to wish to stimulate discussion. 🙂

Anyways, in Dark Matter, Jason succeeds in putting himself in a state of Superposition, allowing him to visit every possible world that is allowed in classical physics.

After figuring out a way to control which timeline to travel to, he finally manages to get back to his own world. Encounters with other Jasons that he had unwittingly “created” in the other worlds lead him to take the drastic decision to leave his world and, together with Daniela and Charlie, find subterfuge in an unknown world. 

Daniela chose one Jason, the Jason narrating the story, even though that choice is still questionable. Any other Jason would be justified. In fact, unless we collect every Jason’s travel report, psychological profile and wave function, there is no way to know if Daniela has made the “correct” choice (if there is even one).     

It is also unclear what fate awaits the Dessen family. Charlie is given the task to choose a world that they will forever be. Probably, it’s all well and good, and they emerge in a world not very dissimilar to ours.

I put forward a different idea though, that the Dessen family may step into a world of chaos, not unlike the worlds from Jason’s initial interactions with the box. Charlie must have been in a whirlpool of emotions at the critical period to conjure up a world, and this would have had repercussions. 

I would like to conclude this article with one last observation. What will Jason, Daniela and Charlie do in this new world? Even if the world they arrive in is benign, and assuming there is a version of them already living there, will they attempt contact? Will this new world require some unknown technology for identification? If so, how will they be able to integrate themselves in the society? Will they end up in jail, guinea pigs in a lab, be forever on the run?  

I sense plenty of material for sequels here. 🙂

Final thoughts

Some of you may dismiss Crouch’s choice to use parallel universes in Dark Matter as probably corny, hackneyed and overused.

Even more of you probably think the Many-worlds interpretation is the product of some flamboyant physicist’s whim that probably watched way too much Star Trek.

But know this, the Many-worlds interpretation is a valid framework to explain quantum mechanics and how it translates to classical physics.

In fact, it is one of the few interpretations that provide an escape route to many paradoxes, such as time-traveling into the past (if that is even possible).

I guess I’ll re-watch The Terminator in a different light now. 🙂

 

See you in the next article!

Books

Greene, Brian. The Hidden Reality.

Youtube

About the double-slit experiment:

The Royal Institution

Medium

About the Many-worlds interpretation:

PBS Space Time

Looking Glass Universe

This post is part of a larger deep dive

Curious about the role of Many-worlds interpretation in Dark Matter?

Read the full Dark Matter article!

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