Fine-Tuning in the Physical Universe

An overview of fine-tuning arguments in physics, for students and researchers in physics and philosophy.

Is the universe fine-tuned for complexity, life, or something else? This comprehensive overview of fine-tuning arguments in physics features contributions from leading researchers in their fields. It is an accessible yet precise introduction to the topic, for students and researchers in physics philosophy.Is the universe fine-tuned for complexity, life, or something else? This comprehensive overview of fine-tuning arguments in physics, with contributions from leading researchers in their fields, sheds light on this often used but seldom understood topic. Each chapter reviews a specific subject in modern physics, such as dark energy, inflation, or solar system formation, and discusses whether any parameters in our current theories appear to be fine-tuned and, if so, to what degree. Connections and differences between these fine-tuning arguments are made clear, and detailed mathematical derivations of various fine-tuned parameters are given. This accessible yet precise introduction to fine-tuning in physics will aid students and researchers across astrophysics, atomic and particle physics and cosmology, as well as all those working at the intersections of physics and philosophy.