He could have just said: "Hello everyone. We don't know why the universe exists, and we probably never will. Thank you".

I remember being 7 years old, sitting on the steps of my front door, and blowing my mind trying to imagine nothingness.

I tried explaining this to my dog, she just looked at me like 'yeah, are we going to the park or not?'

The only solution I have come about is just that, as we go about in a dream accepting logic that does not make any sense, we are blocked by some sort of mechanism now, that our logical structures are not built to answer this question, and maybe if the afterlife exists we will understand it later it will all make sense, and will be simple to us.

This 17 minute video is the longest "I don't know" I've ever seen

When you are watching these types of videos, its really the time to sleep

His elegance in accepting the fact, after going through a rollercoaster of different possibilities, we still can't come to a conclusion and pulling out the cell phone joke😂>>>>>>>>>>>>

17min of my precious life i will never get back

This guy is talking exactly what I think when I’m stoned.

To all people who are spamming in comments "spoiler, he doesn't say the answer": you didn't think you'd find the answer to this in the video on YT, did you?

Yes, this question has haunted me a lot. Why something instead of nothing? And after extensively thinking about it, I realised it's a futile cause. Yes, we are humans and our brain is constantly thinking. But not always all thoughts are fruitful. We know very little about consciousness, we don't even know what we are trying to find. So asking why and how is just a search of needle in a haystack. And moreover the needle might not be even there. People have thought their entire lives and got no answer. If we take scientific and atheist view we do not have a plausible explanation. I beg to differ from the speaker in here. Buddhism doesn't advocate that nothingness is world. It is rather that it says the world is an illusion, a maya, root of all our suffering. To ease the suffering, Buddhism asks us to go beyond the worldly afflictions. But one who is living can very well choose to live in Maya. Eternal peace or Nirvana is a joyful feeling that if discovered is even better than life. Not death. Peaceful existence. Now coming to the ontological argument. The speaker said it is a bad argument but I beg to differ. Why? Ontological argument says that the supreme being exists because one of us has to be supreme. I mean why not? If there are all pencils, one will be bigger than others, even if it's all same, patterns do break. Okay maybe not the best arguments. The cosmological argument comes into picture. If something happens it always has a cause. Meaningless life is not what we live. It's cause and effect. If there is a watch there is a watchmaker, and if questions arise who made the watchmaker? Well nothingness would have been better? Then we would not have had this conversation in the first place. In Hinduism it is said actually we all are one not different. One soul. One being. One universe. Then it broke (scientifically big bang) and other atoms and participles were created. God is never bored or has questions where he came from. Because primeval energy or universe always existed. We are conscious of reality is the proof in itself. The universe is aware that it exists. And hence it does not question why and how because existence in itself is beautiful. If you say why god broke into so many participles, because he wanted to play. All of it is a game. He is aware also unaware. He is concerned also unconcerned. So yes we exist because he exists, he exists because nothingness is not the truth. Supreme reality is meant to exist. And non existence is a lie. When we die we return as matter of energy. After all we are bundles of energy and we return back to the universe where we came from who knows the greater scheme of things? God doesn't have be even called god or doesn't even have to be human form it's an infinite source of energy which could create anything and everything out of nothing. Even himself. Because he willed so. And when you yourself are the universe manifestation is very much possible. And this beautiful world is not mediocre. It's elegant. Every creation has its scars. Death, decay, imperfection, struggle, pain all of it is a part which makes life up. Reality is a very small box and we are confined to it. The supreme reality is far hidden from our eyes. But whatever we can see, hear, sense, feel, think is enough. Because I do agree with the speaker on some points- even if there was nothing we wouldn't have been satisfied, we exist that's all that matters not why not how, we have actually won the cosmic lottery and we get to think live and perceive the world because we have won. Yes everything exists in our mind in our consciousness it's nothing but a trickery, actual simple truth is hidden in plain sight. Yes I am a believer so I gave my point of view. Felt like sharing also to calm my intrusive thoughts. If it helps anyone great. If you stick to atheist or science it's fine. But it is undeniable that science explains little, and it couldn't prove the non existence of God either, there is no harm in believing if the thoughts comfort you. I know how troublesome these thoughts can get. So reining our mind not letting it run wild is the main motto. And my explanations I hope is not just religion but also scientific. The question is futile but our existence is not. We should focus on living. Nihilism and other factors are always going to be there. Whenever we feel what is the point of it all we can remind us how miraculous it is to exist and how lucky we are to win this genetic lottery

We are not in the universe, we are the universe. We are the universes ability to understand and express itself. Divinity or no divinity, both are possibilities are astonishing in their own way .

"Never in my life have i had a cell phone", totally more astonishing than the answer to the universe.

The universe: **exists** Philosophers: *hmm..*

Truly fascinating. How can he live without owning a cell phone?

7:10 I gain immediate respect. I have been waiting so long for someone to shout this from a stage! It feels like I live in a land blind. Keep asking why until you can no longer ask why.

when the essay has a word limit so you stretch 'we don't know' to over 17 minutes

Universe: *exists* Humans: "Why you gotta do us like that!?"

I have always thought that science doesn't usually concern itself with why. It's more about how.

No one: Universe: exists.

With all the open questions left, this talk was deeply satisfying.

That's just mind-blowing. Different laws create different realities and they all exist beside each other. So now, I'm happy to live in a regular reality

I've had an out of body experience trying to contemplate how something came from nothing and how we are here because of it

I shall call myself a fool for thinking I can find the answer on UKposts........

If we are part of the universe, thinking about how it works it's like the universe studying itself.

I was just thinking these thoughts this morning. Strange that this video showed up in the search engine because I didn't type it in or look for it.

This talk gets better every year like a good wine?

"Even if there was nothing, you still wouldn't be satisfied.." .. I'm happy this guy exists!

I feel like watching speeches improves your vocabulary and overall your speaking

I read his book on this subject and at the end it has the same answer, " We don't know'. Well, thanks Jim from a former NYUMC faculty. I expected more.

Understanding Creativity and Consciousness is the key, as it seems to me these two elements of human behaviour are not really needed for pure biological evolution and pro creation, they seem added special extras; and if we are a part and reflection of the Universe then unlocking these two mysteries could unlock greater answers. I find it fascinating that their is no real complete understanding of either, just generalized explanations.🙏

I come to this side of UKposts when I want to procrastinate but not feel like I'm procrastinating.

No one: “Why does the Universe exist?” Audience: *immediately laughs*

Cool guy! I liked his "definition" of purpose: making the nice bits larger

Watching this for communication assignment . Hope this would help. 🙏🏻

Knowledge about the lack of knowledge is still useful to know.

Einstein opined, “it would be possible to describe everything scientifically, but it would make no sense. It would be a description without meaning-as if you described a Beethoven symphony as a variation of wave pressure.”

Thinking about this stuff gives me the same feeling as death, activates fight or flight and makes my chest and body seize up.

what a brilliant talk !!!!!

😂 the reason he writes off in the beginning is it. The ontological argument is a good one! God would never ask "where" time and space are illusory!

I can beat his last statement. I'm a 65 year old American male and "Never in my life have I EVER watched a football game." Thank you!

Plot twist: This ted talk is actually a metaphor of the universe symbolizing that it exists just to exist, serving for nothing, just like this talk.

Very good !!!!

Someone asked me, " what came first, the chicken or the egg " and i said," the universe is like a safe to which there is a combination, but the combination is locked up in the safe ".

----"Why is there something rather than nothing? " ----"Oh, even if there was nothing, you still wouldn't be satisfied."

I think of this question sometimes and the more you embrace it the trippier it gets

I was in grade 4 when i have started questioning myself about this. Its so scary and stressful until today.

I think this is the fastest anyone has ever captured the audience's attention in an opening line

Spoiler alert: He never says anything about why things exist.

He would make a good politician, completely dodging the question LOL

I'm sick, I'm ill. I'm not long for this world. I'll be leaving behind kids and I'm so sad about that. Goodbye for eternity. I use to be somebody.

The key to existing is understanding death is really normal. Everything dies.. change dies to evolve and things become more interesting.

Why is everone laughing all the time? This is THE philosophical question, if you go in your room for a few hours, think about meaning of life, death, existance, aynthing, and think about it long enough, you will be struck by this, as in you receive a blow, and suddenly you wonder: Why is there anything at all? It's so weird and mysterious.. And this is super interesting and entertaining on its own, not everything has to be laughed at to be good. I think the guy even added some jokes because the audience clearly wanted it, instead of just trying to understand his deep wonder...

I’m so high on shrooms right now and this guy gets it

Was the entire audience drunk? As soon as he asked why does the universe exist everyone started laughing.

His book about this subject is an awesome read.

He could have just said he doesn’t know.

"Oh.even if there was nothing you still wouldn't be satisfied." That's me

Just coming here to say the thumbnail looks like a great meme format, especially with the title.

What remains when we strip all possible forms of identifiableness from an object? Is existence a little less existing when that object doesn't exist any longer? Is existence itself only present in identifiable forms? Could being in it's purest form be formless?

Why assume everything came from nothing? We know things exist. We do not know a thing about non-existence. We don't even know if it is at all possible to have absolute nothingness - no matter, no energy, no time, no dimensions, etc. We have absolutely no clue if such a state is even possible.

"Awareness is known by awareness alone," is the sole irreducible axiom of reality. To put forth a syllable to the contrary is but to concede.

Very clever presentation

It is equally as easy to answer the question of why we continue to ask why in light of bounded rationality, as it is to answer why the universe exists. I wonder now, 7 years since this talk was posted on UKposts, what the newly active James Webb Space Telescope will reveal that tempers this question, or draws new previously imponderable aspects.

The Universe is under no obligation to make sense to us.

Tiger gotta hunt, bird gotta fly. Man gotta sit and wonder why, why, why? Tiger gotta rest, bird gotta land. Man gotta think that he understand. -Kurt Vonnegut

I love it. Humorous, but as philosophically valid as every other attempt to answer this question. Too much time is wasted on unfalsifiable answers to unknowable questions.

Loved it.

Maybe a universe will spring from this talk.

The universe exists so I can name-drop all my friends. -Jim Holt

Interesante. La cuestión es como hemos llegado a pensar y a preguntar por lo "exterior" a nosotros mismos, la pregunta fundamental es "porque hemos llegado ser seres que pensamos somo nosotros mismos"; "¿porque existimos?"; esta pregunta es previa a la existencia del universo. La humanidad en este proceso ha creado un super yo externo a si mismo: Dios, por lo cual ha sido como la "i" de los números imaginarios, soluciona uno problemas así como todos los problemas que nuestra conciencia de que existimos plantea. Una buena conferencia, pero en resumen no explica mucho, en todo caso que sabe hablar largo y desarrollar muchas ideas teóricas, que no resuelven la pregunta planteada, quizás por ser una pregunta mal formulada. ¿Por que no podemos vivir en paz, sin guerras?

_"...so we don't want to live in that special reality."_ What we want is irrelevant.

I love these sorts of talks, we’ve grown so accustomed to people just saying facts instead of leaving us with more questions. And given the choice, I prefer the latter almost every time.

No one: Literally no one The universe: exists

"Grant me one miracle and I can explain the entirety of the universe." Science needs at least one miracle.

“We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.” Albert Einstein ---we can't solve universe creation problem using universe rules

Managed to comment before the inevitable religious/atheist debate ensues! Whew!

đón chờ những ca khúc tiếp theo của Phúc, càng nghe càng thích giọng ca của Phúc ❤

Por um momento, nutri a esperança de poder mudar minha opinião sobre o mundo, imaginando que talvez me deparasse pelo menos com um pequeno indício de verdade enxergável. Ao findar da palestra, depois de absorver toda síntese das mentes mais brilhantes aí disposta, ví-los ser tão perdidos quanto sou, em suas geniais incapacidades em conceber uma idéia concisa e satisfatória sobre como tudo começou. Queria muito ser como alguns que conheço, que levam a vida de maneira tão leve e despreocupada, onde essas volições desconcertantes e frustantes não povoam suas mentes. A mim, ao que parece, isso sempre será um presságio a consumir a existência.

My english is not enough to explain my feelings about that subject but we will ask that ''why ?'' question forever.

This is exactly the kind of thing I enjoy. I loved this video.

Thinking this will send you mental, we are not supposed to know yet, I feel we will find out once our bodies are gone and we are one with everything.

Overland, I agree, spot on!

"Nothing" might be a concept made up by the human mind.

I was pissed off before I even hit "play", because I knew, I just knew that I wouldn't get an answer to the ultimate question LOL.

We were created to love Him. And each other. That’s why the last commandment was to “love each other, like I loved you.”

My reality- the only thing i know is true is that there is suffering. Therefore I will use empathy and try to make the place I live in better by helping others not to suffer.

His ability to engage his audience is superb!

I love how a talk is devoted to a single question, and he does not end up even approaching somewhat sort of even touching upon any semblance of an attempted answer.

The most honest answer anyone can give is I don’t know it’s good to have an open mind to have our beliefs and theories but the fact is nobody really knows.

The equation I believe to be: Everything+ nothing= The world

Nice speech, but a bit misunderstanding of Buddhism and the "vacuity" in the Buddhist language. In fact "vacuity" is not precise translation as the concept itself is difficult to explain even in its original language. Apart from that, very inspiring speech.

"I know, I know, you're special, but you're still kind of secretly mediocre, don't you think?" Amazing.

Everyone has known for decades - if you want to truly explore multi verses, you need to repair your toaster with parts from the nuclear power plant.

Always so proud of you Steve-O

this video is great definition of “nothing”

So basically this guy says a whole lot of nothing for 17 minutes. That was more impressive than any other ted talk I've ever listened to.

Thank you Mr. j. Holt

And yet I haven't heard any explanation of the mystery of existence. Why is there something rather than nothing? No one can answer.

A major flaw in this presentation: Everything he says hinges on the belief that the human brain is capable of understanding truths about reality beyond the individual brain's subjective experience. This is a dubious belief for anyone who believes the human mind evolved for the sole task of survival which has no necessary connection to understanding objective reality.