thx, - are we living in a computer simulation? (also called the brain-in-a-vat hypothesis). ...i.e. your "real" brain is being kept alive in a vat while simulations of an external environment are going on. Therefore, we are simulacra. The conclusion of one philosopher is that "no" - there's no way to prove that we are, or are not in such a situation (as in the Matrix movies which portrays one variant of the hypothesis). ... A secondary question would be: If we were such simulacra, how would this knowledge change our choices and experiences. Let's try testing it. OK, your "real" brain is in a vat and the "you" is a computer generated hologram. Write down your experiences for 10 years, then imagine that the you is the "real" you. How would your life differ? ... by William-Adolphe Bourquereau:...
http://www.museumsyndicate.com/images/1/7896.jpg http://www.museumsyndicate.com/images/1/7896.jpg. ---In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, <s3raphita@...> wrote: The article that I linked to is actually more interesting (and understandable) than my post made it sound! The top comment below the piece makes an astute observation though: "If we are in a simulation run on technology that is vastly superior to what we have currently that implies a level of scientific development in excess of what we currently are able to conceive. If we can conceive of any test that would prove that we are in a simulation then would not that possibility have already been conceived by the designers of our simulation? If the designers are able to respond to our actions and construct the simulation in such a way that we observe the results that they want us to, then how can we ever devise a test that can prove that we are in a simulation?" Nice one! ---In fairfieldlife@yahoogroups.com, <s3raphita@...> wrote: The article that I linked to is actually more interesting (and understandable) than my post made it sound! The top comment below the piece makes an astute observation though: "If we are in a simulation run on technology that is vastly superior to what we have currently that implies a level of scientific development in excess of what we currently are able to conceive. If we can conceive of any test that would prove that we are in a simulation then would not that possibility have already be conceived by the designers of our simulation? If the designers are able to respond to our actions and construct the simulation in such a way that we observe the results that they want us to, then how can we ever devise a test that can prove that we are in a simulation?" Nice one! ---In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, <s3raphita@...> wrote: If you believe The Matrix franchise, what we think is our everyday life is in fact a simulation generated by an all-powerful computer. However this idea may not simply be science fiction and 'cosmic rays' could reveal that we are indeed living in a simulated universe. According to Discover magazine, physicists can actually test whether we live in our own virtual matrix, by studying radiation from space. Cosmic rays are the fastest particles that exist and originate in far-flung galaxies. They always arrive at Earth with a specific maximum energy of 1020 electron volts. If there is a specific maximum energy for particles then this gives rise to the idea that energy levels are constrained by an outside force. (No, I don't understand that last sentence either.) More here: http://tinyurl.com/lhk68fd http://tinyurl.com/lhk68fd
