Meta Treks: A Star Trek Philosophy Podcast

Alternate Universes and Modal Realism.  The Star Trek franchise is full of alternate universes, from different quantum realities (TNG: "Parallels") and the alternate reality seen in the Kelvin timeline (Star Trek, 2009) to the Mirror Universe seen in the Original Series, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, and Star Trek: Discovery. In Star Trek, these alternate universes are just as real as the actual universe, a philosophical position known as "modal realism." In this episode of Meta Treks, hosts Zachary Fruhling and Mike Morrison debate modal realism, the reality of alternate universes, through the lens of the Star Trek universe and whether we should consider alternate realities or "possible worlds" to be as metaphysically real as our own actual universe.   Chapters Intro (00:01:19) Initial Thought on Modal Realism (00:04:04) What Difference Does It Make? (00:08:45) David Lewis and Counterfactuals (00:12:36) Modal Concepts (00:17:43) The Distinction and Contrast of the Mirror Universe in Star Trek (00:20:46) Quant