Simulation theory

[BaaLocks]

On 30/09/2023 at 15:13, GboroRam said:

So the stars are like the mountains at the edge of Skyrim, just for decoration and you can't actually get there?  

How does the phrase 'edge of skyrim' make it past the swear filter? See, it just proves that we are being played......

[BaaLocks]

17 hours ago, Stive Pesley said:

As per my earlier post - if you're designing a simulation, where one of the fundamental features that makes it interesting is that the playing characters have absolutely no idea (or at least proof) that they are anything other than "real" then you have to design into the simulation an environment in which the laws of physics (aka the rules of the game) prevent anyone from ever categorically proving that it isn't real. Because then the simulation would cease to be interesting

In that respect the vastness and the unexplorability of the universe is the perfect design

 

Point one would be who are we to say it is detailed and vast? We are only living in the universe we know, if a Space Invader was transported to Call Of Duty they would think the new universe is both immensely vast and detailed.

Point two, I don't believe any simulation as such would be built for us to played like characters in SiMS. More that they would be interested in macro analysis, possibly to try and evaluate what events in their own evolution had led them to where they are (for example, if they had not discovered the wheel at the time they did etc).

Elon Musk is completely convinced his wife Grimes is a computer simulation created for him and she apparently agrees. Make of that what you will.

As for whether or not we live in a simulation, it is has long been suggested (see above) that if we can move from Space Invaders to 3D virtual reality in 50 years imagine what gaming / virtual reality will look like in 500 years. But that still doesn't mean there is ability or even willing to create and manage some sort of simulated universe. Not sure there's much point. It feels a bit like religion, the thing some put in place to justify the utter and complete randomness (and inability for the human brain to comprehend) the utter vastness and meaningness of it all.

But all I know is that if we are in a virtual reality I hope I am not the twonk who can't make it past the Despair Squid. Dwayne Dibley? Please no!

[Archied]

47 minutes ago, BaaLocks said:

Point one would be who are we to say it is detailed and vast? We are only living in the universe we know, if a Space Invader was transported to Call Of Duty they would think the new universe is both immensely vast and detailed.

Point two, I don't believe any simulation as such would be built for us to played like characters in SiMS. More that they would be interested in macro analysis, possibly to try and evaluate what events in their own evolution had led them to where they are (for example, if they had not discovered the wheel at the time they did etc).

Elon Musk is completely convinced his wife Grimes is a computer simulation created for him and she apparently agrees. Make of that what you will.

As for whether or not we live in a simulation, it is has long been suggested (see above) that if we can move from Space Invaders to 3D virtual reality in 50 years imagine what gaming / virtual reality will look like in 500 years. But that still doesn't mean there is ability or even willing to create and manage some sort of simulated universe. Not sure there's much point. It feels a bit like religion, the thing some put in place to justify the utter and complete randomness (and inability for the human brain to comprehend) the utter vastness and meaningness of it all.

But all I know is that if we are in a virtual reality I hope I am not the twonk who can't make it past the Despair Squid. Dwayne Dibley? Please no!

I do confess to having posted the topic on the day I got sad news that a friend had passed away with cancer , younger than me , strong as an oxe , full of life , had it in 2014 , returned this year and he was gone in a few short months , at times you do wonder if there’s any rhyme or reason beyond what we are able to comprehend 

[Eddie]

5 hours ago, Archied said:

Me and you Eddie , just me and you🤷🏻‍♂️😂

A friend of mine lent me "Surrealistic Pillow" after we had been to see Yen Years After at the boat club in Nottingham back in 68 or 69. Some great songs on that album.

[BaaLocks]

2 hours ago, Archied said:

I do confess to having posted the topic on the day I got sad news that a friend had passed away with cancer , younger than me , strong as an oxe , full of life , had it in 2014 , returned this year and he was gone in a few short months , at times you do wonder if there’s any rhyme or reason beyond what we are able to comprehend 

There isn't, the world is a horribly random and brutal place. We are all at the whim of the fates.

Sorry to hear it.

[BaaLocks]

8 hours ago, Archied said:

Me and you Eddie , just me and you🤷🏻‍♂️😂

No, I got the reference - very clever indeed, probably deserved one of these at the time but you can have it now (even if it was a mushroom they were on about)

[TigerTedd]

7 hours ago, ramit said:

Heaven would eventually turn to hell I think.  No challenges, no self improvement, no new experiences, no growth in an endless frozen smile?  That does not appeal to me in the least.  Happiness is not something that can exist for long without it's opposite being known and kept for reference.

All is not lost though. My theory goes one step further, encompassing the quantum nature of the universe, and reincarnation as the true afterlife. 

so the universe is infinite. It’s a fair theory that it expands and collapses. All that energy and mass eventually collapses into a singularity, creating another big bang. Round and round this goes, without beginning or end.

this is a similar theory to parallel universes, but it’s more linear (and who knows, maybe it’s sinultaneouly parallel, it’s only our perception of time that makes us think of things in a linear format). On each iteration of the universe, anything is possible.

a finger print is unique. But in an infinite universe eventually the finger print will be recreated.

a brain wave is unique. And somewhere in that brain wave is the thing that makes you you. Your soul, for want of a better word. So in an infinite universe, your soul will be recreated infinite times, in every being that could exist, would exist, might exist, infinitely. So there will be an iteration where you are reunited with your loved ones, just as there would be an iteration of the universe where you are a slug.

so my theory of life and death, is that when you die, you’re brain is flooded with chemicals that make you feel bliss, for that split second before death, which, as far as your concerned, lasts forever. And the next thing that happens is your born as a completely different version of you, many billions of years and billions of iterations of the universe in the future. And that one day you’ll be born as exactly the same iteration of you.

so with that, I’ve managed to scientifically theorise the existence of heaven and reincarnation.

And what does this have to do with simulations. Imagine if all of that was a simulation. The matrix had been through about 6 iterations, linearly. Imagine if it had been through billions and billions of iterations. Imagine what could be learnt from that. What if this is all just a big experiment by some all powerful race, and from their perception universes are exploding and imploding in the blink of an eye, and that’s where we exist. Imagine how our world must seem to a bacteria. Imagine if we told that bacteria that there’s a whole universe beyond our world that we don’t understand. It’s all a bit mind blowing. 

[Eddie]

2 hours ago, BaaLocks said:

No, I got the reference - very clever indeed, probably deserved one of these at the time but you can have it now (even if it was a mushroom they were on about)

I've never looked at caterpillars the same way since.

Next up: the meaning behind the lyrics of "Lather"

[Stive Pesley]

2 hours ago, TigerTedd said:

All is not lost though. My theory goes one step further, encompassing the quantum nature of the universe, and reincarnation as the true afterlife. 

so the universe is infinite. It’s a fair theory that it expands and collapses. All that energy and mass eventually collapses into a singularity, creating another big bang. Round and round this goes, without beginning or end.

this is a similar theory to parallel universes, but it’s more linear (and who knows, maybe it’s sinultaneouly parallel, it’s only our perception of time that makes us think of things in a linear format). On each iteration of the universe, anything is possible.

a finger print is unique. But in an infinite universe eventually the finger print will be recreated.

a brain wave is unique. And somewhere in that brain wave is the thing that makes you you. Your soul, for want of a better word. So in an infinite universe, your soul will be recreated infinite times, in every being that could exist, would exist, might exist, infinitely. So there will be an iteration where you are reunited with your loved ones, just as there would be an iteration of the universe where you are a slug.

so my theory of life and death, is that when you die, you’re brain is flooded with chemicals that make you feel bliss, for that split second before death, which, as far as your concerned, lasts forever. And the next thing that happens is your born as a completely different version of you, many billions of years and billions of iterations of the universe in the future. And that one day you’ll be born as exactly the same iteration of you.

so with that, I’ve managed to scientifically theorise the existence of heaven and reincarnation.

And what does this have to do with simulations. Imagine if all of that was a simulation. The matrix had been through about 6 iterations, linearly. Imagine if it had been through billions and billions of iterations. Imagine what could be learnt from that. What if this is all just a big experiment by some all powerful race, and from their perception universes are exploding and imploding in the blink of an eye, and that’s where we exist. Imagine how our world must seem to a bacteria. Imagine if we told that bacteria that there’s a whole universe beyond our world that we don’t understand. It’s all a bit mind blowing. 

It's Ok Tedd I remember the first time I did magic mushrooms too 😂

[ramit]

Am enjoying this thread, keep up the good work

[BaaLocks]

15 hours ago, TigerTedd said:

so the universe is infinite. It’s a fair theory that it expands and collapses. All that energy and mass eventually collapses into a singularity, creating another big bang. Round and round this goes, without beginning or end.

Sadly, current research suggests this is not the case and that the universe is constantly expanding and will continue to do so. It's beyond our mortal comprehension to understand but the recognised future for our universe is an immense ball of more or less nothing.

But the rest of the theory is spot on, Nobel Prize winning stuff

[Carl Sagan]

Lovely to see this thread. What's the universe made of? What is the nature of reality? It seems to me (and many others) that the most fundamental thing in the universe is information, rather than fundamental particles, and that suggests to me we're living in a kind of simulation - I prefer to call it a programmed construct.

Some interesting thoughts from Nick Bostrom about it here, including his paper "Are you living in a simulation" where he uses statistical arguments to demonstrate we likely are: https://simulation-argument.com/

We've chatted about this from time to time and I've suggested the original simulation argument is too narrow, and should be extended to the possibility that non-human intelligences have programmed our universe, and Bostrom's agreed it would make sense to extend it along those lines. As it happens, at work I'm presenting a book idea on this subject tomorrow, with a view to offering a prominent astronomer a contract to write a book that asks this question!

[TomBustler1884]

I've been sucked into the alien wormhole a little since the Congressional hearings. 

Personally, I think it's highly likely we have UFO craft and have been contacted. I think it's likely those craft are bio engineered - no propulsion or fuel, but powered by the pilot.

I think contact has been happening for millennia and is intertwined with all religions, whether as a way for humans to comprehend those interactions, or as a form of control who knows.

The last bit I think is the question of why. There are some really bizarre explanations out there, but whether aliens are extra terrestrial, extra dimensional or extra temporal, I like the theory that we are souls and consciousness, reincarnated after death. Does that make Earth a prison/simulation to keep us here from malevolent beings? Or our home that we can ascend from that would tie into beliefs like Buddhism - reach enlightenment and transcend Earthly being into enlightenment.

All probably absolute nonsense but fascinating nonetheless.

Main point is this - if we have UFOs, that is the least interesting part of the story.

[Ghost of Clough]

https://phys.org/news/2023-10-law-physics-idea-simulation.html

[FindernRam]

If we are a simulation who did the play(Beta) testing?

[Comrade 86]

On 10/10/2023 at 16:27, TomBustler1884 said:

Main point is this - if we have UFOs, that is the least interesting part of the story.

I take your point, but it's a pretty good start! 

[ramit]

Just thought of something while tossing and turning unable to sleep.  Some of the trickier questions in certain tests can best be solved if worked from back to front, or it's opposite.  We are all familiar with the statement nothing will come from nothing and it does make sense that it is factual, as we cannot extract something from nothing, well, in this perceived reality anyway.  In itself it is an observant statement but not really inducing extrapolation at first consideration.  That's where insomnia helps, one keeps pondering, stuck in a thought and voila a new idea emerges thereby insuring one gets no further sleep.

Yes, I am getting to the point.  If indeed nothing will come from nothing, then asserting that something will come from something should also be a valid statement.  That is a much more interesting idea really, for that means every thing has an origin and therefor that origin after origin stretches into infinity, for if not, it would begin with nothing, which it obviously cannot.  Now, this means one of two things to my warped mind, either origin stretches out endlessly, or it forms a circle, biting it's tail so to speak and of course also has an origin.  Either way, that reeks of programming, ergo a simulated reality in a simulated universe.

Edited January 26 by ramit
Something something

[richinspain]

1 hour ago, ramit said:

Just thought of something while tossing and turning unable to sleep.  Some of the trickier questions in certain tests can best be solved if worked from back to front, or it's opposite.  We are all familiar with the statement nothing will come from nothing and it does make sense that it is factual, as we cannot extract something from nothing, well, in this perceived reality anyway.  In itself it is an observant statement but not really inducing extrapolation at first consideration.  That's where insomnia helps, one keeps pondering, stuck in a thought and voila a new idea emerges thereby insuring one gets no further sleep.

Yes, I am getting to the point.  If indeed nothing will come from nothing, then asserting that something will come from something should also be a valid statement.  That is a much more interesting idea really, for that means every thing has an origin and therefor that origin after origin stretches into infinity, for if not, it would begin with nothing, which it obviously cannot.  Now, this means one of two things to my warped mind, either origin stretches out endlessly, or it forms a circle, biting it's tail so to speak and of course also has an origin.  Either way, that reeks of programming, ergo a simulated reality in a simulated universe.

Don't eat cheese before you go to bed.

[Stive Pesley]

1 hour ago, ramit said:

Just thought of something while tossing and turning unable to sleep.  Some of the trickier questions in certain tests can best be solved if worked from back to front, or it's opposite.  We are all familiar with the statement nothing will come from nothing and it does make sense that it is factual, as we cannot extract something from nothing, well, in this perceived reality anyway.  In itself it is an observant statement but not really inducing extrapolation at first consideration.  That's where insomnia helps, one keeps pondering, stuck in a thought and voila a new idea emerges thereby insuring one gets no further sleep.

Yes, I am getting to the point.  If indeed nothing will come from nothing, then asserting that something will come from something should also be a valid statement.  That is a much more interesting idea really, for that means every thing has an origin and therefor that origin after origin stretches into infinity, for if not, it would begin with nothing, which it obviously cannot.  Now, this means one of two things to my warped mind, either origin stretches out endlessly, or it forms a circle, biting it's tail so to speak and of course also has an origin.  Either way, that reeks of programming, ergo a simulated reality in a simulated universe.

Infinite regression isn't it? If we were created by something or someone, someone must have created them,  and so on etc 

[ramit]

8 hours ago, Stive Pesley said:

Infinite regression isn't it? If we were created by something or someone, someone must have created them,  and so on etc 

Yes and it gets worse, the more I think of it.  What is a thing, a something?  How can we define it?   Is a concept a thing?  If so, then nothing is a thing and therefor..