No Boundary Proposal

The No Boundary Proposal, developed by physicist James Hartle and Stephen Hawking, suggests that the universe didn't have a distinct beginning like a traditional "big bang." Instead, it proposes that the universe is finite but without boundaries—similar to how the Earth's surface is finite yet has no edge. In this view, time behaves differently near what we consider the start, preventing a singular point. This model uses quantum mechanics to describe the universe's origins, implying that the universe's existence is a result of quantum conditions that eliminate the need for a boundary or initial boundary conditions, providing a smooth, boundary-less conception of the cosmos's beginning.