Ep 4. What Happened Before the Beginning?

Through the Wormhole season 1 episode 4, titled "What Happened Before the Beginning?" explores one of the biggest question of our existence - what happened before the Big Bang? The episode delves into the various theories proposed by scientists, philosophers and religious scholars over the centuries to unravel this mystery.

The episode starts by introducing the Big Bang theory, which suggests that our universe was created from a singularity, a point of infinite density and temperature about 13.8 billion years ago. However, the theory falls short when it comes to answering what caused the singularity to exist in the first place. According to the laws of physics, the universe cannot create itself out of nothing, which leaves scientists wondering about what happened before the beginning.

The episode features interviews with experts from various fields, including cosmology, physics, and philosophy, who attempt to unravel the mystery of what existed before the Big Bang. Theories range from the multiverse theory, which suggests that our universe is just one of many universes that exist in a vast multiverse, to the cyclic universe theory, which proposes that our universe goes through an infinite cycle of expansion and contraction.

One of the theories featured in the episode is the concept of the Big Bounce. This theory proposes that the Big Bang was not a beginning but rather a transition from the contraction phase of a previous universe to the expansion phase of our current universe. This theory is based on the idea that the universe undergoes cycles of contraction and expansion, with the Big Bang marking the transition to a new expansion phase.

The episode also explores religious and philosophical perspectives on what existed before the Big Bang. Some religious scholars believe that the universe was created by a divine being, while others believe in the concept of eternal recurrence, which proposes that everything that has happened before will happen again in an infinite cycle.

The philosophy of time is also discussed in the episode. Some philosophers argue that time is infinite and has no beginning, while others propose that time is a construct of the human mind and does not exist outside of our perception.

Ultimately, the episode leaves us with more questions than answers, underscoring the limitations of our current understanding of the universe. As one expert featured in the episode puts it, "we don't know what happened before the beginning, and it's possible that we may never know."