The Trouble with "Puddle Thinking": A User's Guide to the Anthropic Principle

Abstract

Are some cosmologists trying to return human beings to the centre of the cosmos? In the view of some critics, the so-called "anthropic principle" is a desperate attempt to salvage a scrap of dignity for our species after a few centuries of demotion at the hands of science. It is all things archaic and backwards - teleology, theology, religion, anthropocentrism - trying to sneak back in scientific camouflage. We argue that this is a mistake. The anthropic principle is not mere human arrogance, nor is it religion in disguise. It is a necessary part of the science of the universe.

Six page, accepted for publication in the Proceedings and Journal of the Royal Society of NSW (Vol. 154, No. 1, June 2021, with URL to follow)