The universe does not exist 'out there,' independent of us. We are inescapably involved in bringing
about that which appears to be happening. We are not only observers. We are participators. In some
strange sense, this is a participatory universe. Physics is no longer satisfied with insights only into
particles, fields of force, into geometry, or even into time and space. Today we demand of physics some
understanding of existence itself. -John P. Wheeler III
