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title: "Lawrence Krauss on The fine-tuning argument"
description: "Krauss argues that a universe from nothing is physically plausible and that fine-tuning reflects our ignorance, not divine design."
canonical: https://opendoubt.com/people/lawrence-krauss/on/fine-tuning
source: html
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# Lawrence Krauss on The fine-tuning argument

> Krauss argues that a universe from nothing is physically plausible and that fine-tuning reflects our ignorance, not divine design.

Position

# Lawrence Krauss on _The fine-tuning argument_

Argues againstTheoretical physicist

Krauss argues that a universe from nothing is physically plausible and that fine-tuning reflects our ignorance, not divine design.

Lawrence Krauss's A Universe from Nothing (2012) is a direct challenge to the fine-tuning argument. He argues that the laws of physics allow — and perhaps require — a universe to arise from 'nothing,' where 'nothing' means the quantum vacuum. The apparent fine-tuning of constants may reflect deeper physical laws we do not yet understand, rather than the intentions of a designer.

Krauss acknowledges that his use of 'nothing' is controversial — philosophers like David Albert have argued that the quantum vacuum is not truly nothing. But Krauss counters that the philosophical concept of absolute nothing may be incoherent, and that the relevant question is whether the universe requires an external cause, which he denies.

On fine-tuning specifically, Krauss emphasizes that we do not know the range of possible values for physical constants, or whether they could have been different. Without knowing the probability space, claims about improbability are premature. The appearance of fine-tuning may simply reflect our ignorance of the underlying physics.

Key quotes

> “The universe is the way it is whether or not we like it. The universe was not made for us. We were made by it.”

Continue exploring

[

Lawrence Krauss

Full profile — positions, quotes, and key moments.

](/people/lawrence-krauss)[

The fine-tuning argument

The full argument — stated fairly, then answered.

](/arguments/fine-tuning)

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