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6. Eternalism.

6、永恆論

Eternalism is the exact opposite of presentism. This is a philosophical theory that says that time is multi-layered. All layers of the time exist simultaneously, but the measurement is determined by the observer. What they see depends on which point they are looking at.

永恆論與現時論完全相反。這個哲學理論說時間是多層次的。所有時間層都是同時存在的，但是時間的衡量卻是由觀察者所決定。他們能看到那些東西取決於他們正在注視的是哪個時間點。

Thus, dinosaurs, Queen Victoria and Justin Bieber all exist simultaneously but can only be observed from a specific location. If one takes this view of reality, then the future is hopeless and the deterministic free will is illusory.

因此，恐龍、維多利亞女王和小賈斯汀都是同時存在的，不過，卻只能從特定的位置觀察到他們。若接受了這種對現實的看法，那麼未來毫無希望可言，決定論者所認為的自由意志都是虛假的。

7. The Brain in a Jar

7、缸中之腦

The “brain in a jar” thought experiment is a question discussed by thinkers and scientists who, like most people, believe that one’s understanding of reality depends solely on their subjective feelings.

「缸中之腦」思想實驗是思想家與科學家所討論的一個問題，他們和大多數人一樣，相信一個人對現實的理解完全取決於他們的主觀感受。

So, what is the essence of this thought experiment? Imagine that you are just a brain in a jar that is run by aliens or mad scientists. How would you know? And can you truly deny the possibility that this is your reality?

那麼，這個思想實驗的本質是什麼？設想一下，你只是一個被外星人或瘋狂科學家養在缸中的大腦。你怎麼會知道這件事？而你又真的有辦法否認這就是現實的可能性嗎？

This is a modern interpretation of Descartes’ evil demon problem. This thought experiment leads to the same conclusion: we cannot confirm the actual existence of anything except our consciousness. If this seems to sound reminiscent of the movie “The Matrix“, it is only because this idea was part of the very basis of the story. Unfortunately, in reality, we have no red pills…

這是對笛卡兒惡魔難題的現代詮釋。這個思想實驗得出了同樣的結論：除了我們的意識之外，我們無法確定其他事物是否真的存在。若這會讓你想起電影《駭客任務》，那只是因為這個理念就是該電影情節的基礎之一。不幸的是，在現實生活中，我們卻沒有紅色藥丸可以選…

8. The Multiverse Theory

8、多重宇宙論

Anyone who has not spent the last ten years on a desert island has heard of “the multiverse” or parallel universes at least once. As many of us have seen, parallel worlds, in theory, are worlds very similar to ours, with little (or in some cases, large) changes or differences. The multiverse theory speculates that there could exist an infinite number of these alternate realities.

這十年來不是住在荒島上人都該聽過「多重宇宙論」或平行宇宙吧。我們都知道，理論上，平行世界與我們的世界非常相似，只有一點點的（某些情況下，可能有滿大的）變化或差異。多重宇宙論推斷，有可能存在著無數個替代現實。

What’s the point? In a parallel reality, you may be living in the opposite corner of the world or may have already died in a car crash. In another one, you might have never even been born because your parents never met. The probabilities are endless.

重點是什麼？在平行現實中，你可能是生活在世界的另一端，或者可能已經在車禍中過世。在另一個平行世界中，因為你的父母從來沒有遇到彼此，所以你可能根本就沒被生下來。有無數的可能。

9. Fictional realism

9、虛構現實主義

This is probably the most fascinating branch of the multiverse theory. Superman is real. Yes, some of you would probably choose a different story, for argument’s sake, Harry Potter might be real too.

這可能是多重宇宙論中最有趣的分支。超人是真的。為了方便討論，有些人可能也會選另一個故事，沒錯，哈利波特也可能是真的。

This branch of the theory argues that given an infinite number of universes, everything must exist somewhere. So, all of our favorite fiction and fantasy may be descriptive of an alternate universe, one where all the right pieces came into place to make it happen.

這個理論的分支認為，有無數個宇宙的話，一切萬物肯定都會存在在某個地方。所以，所有我們最喜歡的小說和奇幻故事都可能成為一個替代宇宙，在那裡，一切都就好定位之後就能成真。

10. Phenomenalism

10、現象學

Everyone is interested in what happens to things when we aren’t looking at them. Scientists have carefully studied this problem and some of them came to a simple conclusion – they disappear. Well, not quite like this.

「當我們沒有在看一樣東西的時候，這個東西會變的怎麼樣?」每個人都會對這個問題產生興趣。科學家們仔細研究了這個問題，其中有些人得出了一個簡單的結論：它們會消失。好吧，也不是真的這樣啦。

Phenomenalist philosophers believe that objects only exist as a phenomenon of consciousness. So, your laptop is only here while you are aware of it and believe in its existence, but when you turn away from it, it ceases to exist until you or someone else interacts with it. There is no existence without perception. This is the root of phenomenalism.

現象學的哲學家相信，物體只會作為一種意識現象而存在。所以，你的筆電只有在你意識到它並相信它的存在時，它才會在這裡，但是當你不理它時，它就會停止存在，直到你或是其他人與它產生交流時，它才會再次存在。沒有感知就沒有存在。這就是現象學的根源。