Ockham's Razor and the Hypothesis of Multiverses: An Approach from the Critical Perspective of cosmologist George F. R. Ellis

Abstract

One of the main criteria that the scientific method uses to establish the relevance of an explanation or competing hypothesis regarding an event in physical reality is the principle of simplicity, or scientific parsimony. This often involves the exclusion of entities or hypotheses considered unnecessary for explaining a phenomenon. The roots of this principle are often traced back to the medieval nominalist philosopher William of Ockham. In the present work, the aim is to determine the possible impact of the methodological conception derived from Ockham's Razor on the cosmological hypothesis of multiverses and to take a critical look at the cosmologist George F. R. Ellis's discussion on the validity of the multiverse hypothesis in the realm of contemporary physics.