Is space a cosmic computer?

New research suggests gravity may not be a fundamental force. Instead, it emerges as the universe 'tidies up' information—like a self-cleaning room where objects, for example, scattered toys, return to shelves to reduce the mess and minimise clutter. An advocate of this radical theory, University of Portsmouth physicist Melvin M. Vopson, argues that matter moves to reduce informational disorder, creating the effect we call ‘gravity’, in a recent paper published in the journal AIP Advances. This hypothesis suggests that spacetime curvature, as described by Albert Einstein, could be a consequence of the universe's attempt to optimise information storage and processing, similar to how information is compressed by computers in digital space.

“My findings in this study fit with the thought that the universe might work like a giant computer, or our reality is a simulated construct,” says Vopson

What is gravity?

A stone furled above falls, giving us an intuitive notion of Earth's gravitational attraction since ancient times. However, Newton imagined it as a universal but mysterious tug between all objects having 'mass' in the universe. He said every mass attracts another—the bigger the mass, the stronger the pull, weakening with distance. His math (F = Gm₁m₂/r²) predicted orbits and tides, treating gravity as instant action at a distance.

Typical evolution of matter in the universe under gravitational attraction. The tendency is to merge smaller matter objects into larger cosmic objects. Images: Melvin M. Vopson, School of Mathematics and Physics, University of Portsmouth, United Kingdom

In sharp contrast, Einstein's theory of General Relativity proposes that gravity is not a force, but rather the curvature of spacetime caused by mass and energy. Imagine a trampoline: a heavy ball (like a star) creates a dip, causing smaller marbles (planets) to roll around it. They are not pulled by a force—they just follow the curve. Earth orbits the Sun because spacetime is warped, turning gravity into geometry, not an invisible tug. Motion becomes a natural path along cosmic contours. In this theory, massive objects warp the fabric of spacetime, causing other objects to move along curved paths, which we perceive as gravity.

The gravity puzzle

Newton described gravity as an invisible force acting instantly across space, mathematically precise but philosophically mysterious. Einstein revolutionised this view by recasting gravity as the curvature of spacetime, where planets and stars follow natural paths in a warped cosmic fabric. Yet, while both theories work brilliantly in their domains, they clash at extremes: relativity's smooth spacetime contradicts quantum mechanics' granular, probabilistic nature.

This unresolved tension leaves black holes and the Big Bang unexplained, as quantum gravity—a theory merging both frameworks—remains elusive. Leading candidates like string theory and loop quantum gravity attempt to bridge the gap, but experimental proof is lacking. Until then, gravity's true nature, from Newton's pull to Einstein's bends, remains one of physics’ most profound mysteries.

Data compression

The famous 'second law of thermodynamics' states that things naturally become more disordered over time, like a tidy room gathering dust or ice melting into water. Energy spreads out, and randomness grows unless effort is applied to reverse it. Think of a sandcastle crumbling on its own—it will not rebuild itself without work. Nature always tends toward mess, and the 'disorder' measured as 'entropy' is said to increase. In contrast, Vopson claims that in nature, 'information dynamics' tend towards a 'low information' state.

Imagine a chaotic classroom before the teacher arrives—students scattered, chatting, some standing, others moving around. To describe this disorderly scene, you would need detailed information: where each student is, what they are doing, and how they interact. This high-information state reflects the "disorder" in the system.

Now, the teacher enters. Students quickly settle into their assigned seats, facing forward in quiet rows. Suddenly, the whole system is ordered—you only need to say, "Everyone is in their correct seat." The description is now concise, requiring far less information. This mirrors the second law of information dynamics proposed earlier by Vopson: disorder demands more data to specify, while order compresses it.

“Simply put, tracking and computing the location and momentum of a single object in space is far more computationally effective than numerous objects. Therefore, it appears that the gravitational attraction is just another optimising mechanism in a computational process that has the role to compress information,” says Vopson.

Gravity as a Cosmic Zipping app

Imagine classroom space as a giant grid, like a checkerboard with squares. Each square can be empty (0) or occupied by a student (1). At first, all desks are empty, in perfect order, with zero "mess" (zero entropy). Now, imagine four students entering and sitting randomly. Suddenly, the pattern becomes less predictable, increasing the "messiness" (entropy rises).

Vopson’s theoretical model: (a) 2D diagram of discrete and empty space, where each elementary space cell can register information; (b) four static point masses are placed inside this space structure at random locations; (c) the point masses begin to move toward the center of mass; (d) all masses are joined together into a single object inside the cell that corresponds to the center of the mass location. Image: Melvin M. Vopson, School of Mathematics and Physics, University of Portsmouth, United Kingdom

But here is the twist: over time, students naturally gravitate towards each other, merging into one group at the centre. This reduces the "mess" (entropy) because fewer squares are unpredictably filled. No teacher forces them—they just prefer crowding together, which minimises disorder.

Likewise, we can imagine the universe as made of 'pixels', each with or without a particle.

Vopson explains that as a cell can accommodate more than one particle, the system will evolve by moving the particles to join into a larger particle inside a single cell. By treating each pixel of space as capable of storing a bit, and calculating how entropy changes as a particle shifts positions, the research shows that the resulting entropic force scales precisely with mass and distance in a way that reproduces Newton’s inverse-square law of gravity.

In this view, gravity is not a mysterious pull but a side effect of space's pixelated rules. In this analogy, the pixel with many particles coalesced together is the ZIP file, and gravity is the compressing force that optimises the amount of space it takes up. It accepts that objects appear to attract each other in line with classical laws. Still, it interprets this attraction as a byproduct of deeper information processing rules. In doing so, it bridges macroscopic forces and microscopic logic, potentially tying gravity to the same principles that drive quantum computation.

Vopson's computational universe hypothesis

Vopson's work proposes that the universe, like computer data compression, might operate based on discrete information units (bits) and that gravity could result from this information compression.

Landauer's principle shows that digital 'actions' like deleting computer data generate heat—information has physical energy. Like shredding documents burns calories, erasing bits (0s/1s) costs energy. The holographic principle was first proposed by physicist Gerard 't Hooft in 1993 and later refined by Leonard Susskind in the context of string theory. It suggests that a 3d projection can be made from 2D data, like a movie on a flat screen, creating depth. This idea grew from black hole thermodynamics, where Jacob Bekenstein and Stephen Hawking showed a black hole's entropy (information content) scales with its surface area, not volume, hinting at possibly a deeper holographic nature of reality.

Vopson's work reimagines gravity as an information effect. Building on Landauer's principle (information has energy) and holographic theory (reality is encoded data), he suggests mass distorts spacetime by changing its information content, like a heavy file warping a computer's memory, which is compressed. "Just like computers try to save space and run more efficiently, the universe might be doing the same. It's a new way to think about gravity — not just as a pull, but as something that happens when the universe is trying to stay organised," says Vopson.

According to Vopson's hypothesis, the universe's drive to reduce 'information entropy', or information disorder, results in the development of massive objects and the curvature of spacetime. This information compression is similar to how data is compressed in digital systems. This aligns with quantum mechanics (bits underlie reality) while preserving relativity’s curvature (information density as geometry). Just as entropy measures physical disorder, information entropy shrinks when structure emerges—whether in a classroom or the universe.

Why it matters

Newton's gravity is like a magnet pulling objects—Earth tugs apples down. Einstein's gravity is a trampoline bending under a bowling ball (mass); marbles (planets) roll around the dip. Vopson's idea suggests gravity is like a computer compressing data—mass warps space by "zipping" information, creating the pull. Newton saw force, Einstein saw curves, and Vopson sees code. Each reframes gravity: from tug, to bend, to a cosmic data squeeze.

If gravity is information exchange, it could unify quantum jitters with Einstein's bends, turning spacetime into a dynamic ‘cosmic hard drive’. Though speculative, this fits trends like black hole thermodynamics (information loss puzzles) and offers testable predictions, like gravity's link to entropy. It is a wild but intriguing contender in the quantum gravity race.

Nonetheless, Vopson's concepts are still in development and need to be validated by further study and testing. Despite its exquisite logic and mathematical consistency, the work is still speculative. It lacks direct experimental validation and works with a reduced 2D model. Future research is needed to expand this to 3D, add general relativity, and investigate whether entropic behaviour persists under complex quantum interactions or in real physical systems. Although the theory is consistent with Newtonian gravity, it has yet to show consistency with Einstein's equations, gravitational lensing, or black hole behaviour beyond entropy accounting. Finally, regardless of whether this concept holds up under more inspection, it demonstrates the rising confluence of physics and information science.

“Whether the Universe is indeed a computational construct remains an open question, but the entropic nature of gravity provides compelling evidence that information is a fundamental component of physical reality and data compression drives physical processes in the Universe,” Vopson writes in his paper.