Re: Are we simulated by some massive computer?

[George Levy]

Russell Remember the creature must be consistent with the world it observes and vice versa. An unchanging one bit world does not seem to be able to support the existence of a consistent conscious entity - at least not with our kind of consciousness. Let's move the creature up to a richer world that it can observe. Let us also assume that the creature has no body. What does this means? That it can "observe" but cannot "control" objects in this world? Like a ghost? All I can say is that the consciousness of the creature will be shaped by the world it inhabits and vice versa. It consciousness will certainly be different from ours. It can certainly use the Anthropic Principle by asserting consistency of itself with its world by saying "I am what I am therefore my world is what it is." George Since the creature has no information whatsoever about any body it might have, what is to stop it's world being the simplest of all possible worlds? How about a one bit universe? Day 1. Q. What can I see today? A. A bit. Q. What is the value of the bit? A. 1 Day 2. Q. What can I see today? A. A bit. Q. What is the value of the bit? A. 1 ... Of course there is no conundrum at all if the creature is unconscious. George Russell Standish wrote: Sorry, but I fail to see it as self evident. Imagine being a creature immersed in a virtual reality setup its entire life, a virtual reality that does not include a representation (ie a body) of the creature itself. Would that creature deduce that it is in a virtual reality, and that it has a body in another (unobservable to it) reality? Or would it even be conscious? Cheers On Tue, May 11, 2004 at 04:10:15PM -0700, George Levy wrote: Russell wrote However, the mind-body problem doesn't completely disappear - rather it is transformed into "Why the Anthropic Principle?". Once you have accepted that "I" exist and that "I" am capable of logical thinking and capable of following a logical chain, then the Anthropic principle becomes trivial. What "I" am and what "I" observe becomes the initial boundary condition for a logical chain leading to the proof of the existence of the world: "I am therefore the world is." This is the Anthropic Principle. George