Which after reading it, brought me to think, is it possible for anything in the universe to exist forever? As the article mentions, as-well as other brilliant sources, "we are made of star stuff" - so could perhaps the entire universe be conscious, therefore alive? If so, can it live forever?
Let me just put something into perspective for you. A teaspoon of neutron star weighs about 10m. tons, or 2.E13 (20,000,000,000,000) 20 trillion pounds. Therefore, 3lbs. of neutron star (10m. tons per teaspoon * 6 teaspoons per ounce * 16oz. per pound * 3 pounds) would weigh about 7.84E40 (78,400,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000) pounds. Now take 7.84E40 * even just 10 (it would definitely be exponentially higher) atoms per pound inside of the neutron star and it would equal approximately 7.84E42 atoms per pound * 3 pounds = 2.352E43 atoms in 3 pounds of a neutron star.
Now let's take a look at the human brain, the human brain weighs about 3 pounds. (Which is why I chose to use 3 pounds of neutron star in comparison) To figure out how many atoms are in a 3 pound human brain, you would just take 1E25 neurons in the 3 pound brain * 100 trillion atoms per neuron = 1E39 atoms in a 3 pound human brain, or 3E38 atoms per pound. Compare that to 7.84E40 atoms in 3 pounds of neutron star, or 2.6E40 atoms per pound. And that is only with measuring around 10 atoms per pound of neutron star, when, it would be exponentially, perhaps millions or billions of times higher. (You're dealing with the number of atoms per pound of a neutron star afterall) So the number of atoms inside the same amount of weight of a neutron star as a human brain would, in-turn, be exponentially higher - and look what we are capable of doing with our 1.E39 atom brain - compared to 7.84E40 (on the exponentially lower end) atoms in just 3 pounds of neutron star - just 3 pounds, when they weigh altogether up to 1.4 solar masses (or 1.4 times the size of our sun). The math here is unreal.
So let's regroup. We have a neutron star with very roughly around 2.6E40 atoms per pound, (7.8E40 atoms per 3 pounds) that weighs approximately 40E30 pounds; and a human brain with approximately 3E38 atoms per pound (1E39 atoms per 3 pounds). As you can see, a neutron star has a lot more atoms in the equivalent weight of a human brain, and human brains are capable of so many wonderful things, from consciousness, to the ability to accept its own ultimate fate in the universe.
Again, that's just the number of atoms in the neutron stars alone, imagine the number of atoms throughout the entire, not just observable, universe - which as far as we know, could extend infinitely. We don't just have neutron stars either making up exponential amounts of atoms in the observable universe. We have black holes, entire galaxies with exponential amounts of stars and structures inside them, vast cosmic structures such as the Sloan great wall or Virgo supercluster, which are light-years in size, containing, well, pretty much unfathomable amounts of atoms. Just attempt to multiply the possible infinite spatial extent of the universe by the number of atoms in our observable universe alone, and you may just cause the universe itself to just disappear or implode out of sheer profound quantities.
Which brings me back to the fact that we are indeed made of star stuff. At the very basic level, everything that exists is made of atoms, that includes us as-well as the milky way, and every other galaxy or piece of moldy dog poop there is. So what makes us different than say the observable universe as humans? Our ability to be aware and conscious of our existence and ultimate fate in the universe? Our ability to change the outcome of our time we have based on our decisions we consciously, and willingly make? Our ability to accept our most probable ultimate fate? How do we know the entire universe itself isn't conscious, from a very single atom to every square measurement of physical space there is - even in some other similar sense, or aware that it does indeed exist, and how do we know that it does not have the same ability to change the outcome of its time in existence, based on actions that it does indeed take, whatever they may be? How do we know the universe isn't aware of its ultimate fate?
Then again, how do we know that the universe has an ultimately non-existent fate, and will eventually, whether in 1 second, or a googolplex millenium, cease to exist? As far as our knowledge and technology tells and shows us, we have no clue what was 'before' the physical existence of the known universe. (Some theories speculate many different possibilities, from the universe going through 'cycles' to it just always being there in some form or another.) On the other hand, we do know that our universe as we know it now will in-fact eventually come to some form of an end, when its visible expansion inevitably slows down, and it starts to retreat and collapse in on itself, but will this be an 'actual', ultimate ending? Or as previously hypothesized just part of an endless cycle?
So now let's say that the universe itself was indeed alive and conscious. Again, look what human brains are capable of with the amount of atoms inside the brain alone. Now just imagine, what something alive and aware with the same number of atoms in the (possibly infinite) universe would be able to do. The possibilities would hypothetically be literally infinite, including the ability to exist, or live forever. But what exactly does 'forever' mean? Because forever is just a measurement of time, simply an endless one, and time is in essence just a man-made concept which is still relatively unknown.
But as I have talked about before, in a spatially and chronologically infinite universe, anything and everything could and would be possible and take place, including the universe never even existing in the first place, or the said universe continuing to exist for the rest of what we as humans know of as eternity.
So we must then discuss what it means for something to exist forever, in terms of how we describe and perceive time as humans. (Seeing as how again, time is a man-made concept) Could forever actually be never, and never be forever? Or could forever just be, well, forever, and never just be never? Also, could the universe exist because 'something' has to exist as 'nothing' can not exist? If so, that would mean it always existed, and always will exist, in some form or another.
But life itself finds a way to survive, that's greatly a part of what makes life, well, life. Again, what if the universe itself was alive? Would it find a way to survive, either because it is alive, and/or because as previously mentioned something has to exist as nothing can not? According to the law of conservation of energy, energy cannot be created or destroyed, only transformed, and everything is made of energy. Those are both undeniable facts. So when a human being 'dies' his or her atoms that he or she was made of, return to the stars; as-well as when a black hole evaporates, its atoms return to the stars, or when a star explodes, its atoms too are just simply returned to the vast possibly infinite space containing them.
So what is the ultimate fate of any existence, whether conscious or unconscious? Some people believe human being perception and consciousness create existence, some people believe there is a God, or God's that create(d) existence, some people believe that 'there is no existence' and everything is just an illusion, and some people believe... well, they don't know what to believe. But if the universe and everything that exists were conscious and alive, as-well as aware, what would they believe? What would their perception and consciousness create?
We just simply don't, and cannot know. Unless my blanket or bed start talking to me and telling me about their existence in the past, present and future, or the universe starts speaking about what it feels, experiences and believes. But you know what I do know? I myself exist in some form or context right now, otherwise I would not be writing this. You know what I don't know? What the next instant of my existence will bring. So with that being known and taken into consideration, I, as a coherent, conscious being, with free-will, can do everything and anything it takes in the current, here and now moment, to do one or both of two things. 1.) Take care of myself and do what makes me happy and survive in the current, here and now, because that is the only thing guaranteed 100%, and/or 2.) Do my best to take care of other beings and/or atoms of the universe, as for all I know, they could have an eternal existence and I, being "made of star stuff" along with everything else, would exist eternally as part of them.