Conceptions regarding life & the universe

It is said that the universe exists so as to provide the necessary ingredients for life to evolve. The universe is immense but also more theories are being formulated to describe the universe not just as a three-dimensional manifestation, but a reality that comprises many dimensions, space-times and realities that inter-penetrate our own reality. It is conceivable that life could develop in any of these myriad dimensions or alternate realities. Certainly the stuff of science fiction at present. Perhaps some forms of paranormal phenomena like ghosts, UFOs and other manifestations can be explained by treating the observation as a window into another dimension of nature.

The Anthropic Principle implies that the universe is old enough for planets to have formed sufficiently, and that intelligent life has had time to develop. While some theorists see the universe as an accidental property of a system defined by mathematical principles alone, others feel a more cosmic underlying creative force that has created circumstances whereby life is not only inevitable, but is part of an overall universal scheme. There seems to be too many factors contributing to the development of life that could be put down to chance alone. In addition to this is the notion that life is not only particular to our experiential view of the physical universe, but a common characteristic of all dimensions and manifestations of existence.