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This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at McMaster chapter.

Imagine every atom in existence, is a mini universe of its own…so really, we could be made up of billions of these types of mini universes. Does that mean the universe we’re in is part of something bigger? These concepts are the basics of the Universe in an Atom theory.

Read this article to hear more about this fascinating theory!

We are in a very odd position, existence-wise. What I mean is that we are trapped in a series of paradoxes. But all these contradictions seem to fit together so eloquently. Some examples include creation and destruction, good and evil, and peace and conflict. And the reason why they fit together so well is because they are encased in a cycle, one where both contradicting ideas follow each other on and on with no end in sight. This makes sense, as a real cycle doesn’t really have an end nor a beginning.

I think we are innately drawn to such cycles . Entrapping ourselves in a cycle of life is something very human. We find comfort and familiarity in our daily repetitive activities. I think this attraction to cyclical processes is what makes the Universe in an Atom Theory so fascinating. In case you’ve never heard of this theory before, it’s basically as the name implies: individual atoms are individual universes.

Many of the principles of the universe are repeated in atoms. For instance, an atom is made up of a central nucleus that makes up most of the mass of the atom. Similarly, the sun makes up most of the mass in our solar system. Additionally, electrons orbit the nucleus just like celestial bodies orbiting other celestial bodies. Atoms also have a “strong force” that is very similar to gravity, responsible for holding protons and neutrons together in the nucleus1. So, it’s not difficult to imagine a cycle of universes repeating in atoms.

But could this be mere coincidence? Could this be a simple correlation, or maybe an idea that exists with similar fundamental properties, but serving an alternate purpose in a different system? For example, just because a plant uses oxygen to be alive, that doesn’t necessarily mean that we—a species that also uses oxygen—are made up of smaller units of plants.

But this is really an incorrect and overly-simplistic analogy, because similar to plants, we have systems of oxygen usage. So, as it turns out, we actually are made up of systems similar—but not identical—to those in plants. What about the Universe in an Atom theory, then? While many principles are similar, there are some intricacies that place the theory in a bit of a fuzzy place. For one, the orbiting “style” of electrons in an atom is different from the organized way planets orbit the sun, because electrons are in electron clouds—locations where they “probably” exist. Additionally, this theory is difficult to prove because of a lack of evidence, as we currently lack the appropriate scientific means to evoke a logical justification.

So maybe atoms aren’t individual universes, but rather something else—something similar to a universe, but entirely beyond what we know about nature so far. This theory opens up an interesting avenue for exploration. What, exactly, is an atom? Sure, it’s a nucleus that is orbited by electrons, but what else is it? That is what I think this theory leads us to, and reducing it to simply being about an atom being a universe like the one we know doesn’t do justice to the wonders it opens.

Sources:

[1] https://www.britannica.com/science/strong-force

Puneet Jhooty

McMaster '26

Puneet Jhooty is a writer at the Her Campus at McMaster chapter. She is currently in her third year of the Biomedical Discovery and Commercialization Program at McMaster University.