Conventional physics views the universe as evolving from initial conditions via fixed laws. An alternative view is that the universe is a self-constructing system with no external builder. Life is the physical process through which the universe explores possibilities and generates novelty.

Selection is not exclusive to biology. It is a fundamental physical force that acts on matter, favoring configurations that persist over time. This process of 'selfish matter' battling for persistence was happening long before the first cells emerged, making life a natural consequence of physics.

The universe operates on roughly two dozen physical constants, like gravity's strength, that are tuned within incredibly narrow ranges to allow for life. A slight change in any one would make atoms, chemistry, or stars impossible. This precision is more analogous to calibrated game physics than a random cosmic event.

Cosmologists mistakenly model the universe with simple gas laws, as if it's a random bag of chemicals. Instead, it behaves like an evolving organism—"a dog"—that grows more complex and interesting over time. This fundamental mischaracterization leads to flawed theories.

A major success for string theory was calculating black hole entropy from first principles, matching the Bekenstein-Hawking formula. It provided a microscopic explanation for this entropy by counting underlying quantum states, bolstering confidence in its framework, even if not a direct experimental test.

Contrary to bottom-up models, cosmological natural selection predicts that supermassive black holes formed first in the early universe via direct collapse. Galaxies then formed around these primordial seeds, explaining the rapid, early galaxy formation observed by the James Webb Telescope.

The universe builds complexity by repurposing existing structures for new functions, a process known as exaptation. For example, the CNO cycle evolved to make stars more efficient at producing black holes, but its components (carbon, nitrogen, oxygen) were later exapted as the building blocks for life.

The Big Bang may not have been a singular event. According to string theory, our universe is like an expanding bubble in a "bubble bath" of other universes existing in an 11-dimensional hyperspace, all created by similar phenomena.

The force of gravity is precisely tuned for life to exist. If it were slightly weaker, stars wouldn't ignite; slightly stronger, the universe would have collapsed. This 'Goldilocks' condition is so improbable that some scientists argue it suggests our universe is just one of many, most of which are sterile.