Contemplating the Possibility of a Simulated Universe

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Discussion Overview

The discussion centers on the concept of a simulated universe, exploring philosophical implications and the nature of reality. Participants reference various scenarios, including the awareness of beings within simulations and the potential for advanced simulations to mimic reality indistinguishably.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Conceptual clarification
  • Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants suggest that beings in a simulation, like goldfish in an aquarium, may not be aware of their environment as a simulation, raising questions about perception and knowledge.
  • Others argue that with sufficient intelligence and time, beings could potentially discover the nature of their environment and develop scientific understanding similar to humans.
  • A participant posits that a sophisticated simulation could be indistinguishable from reality, leading to the idea that the system running the simulation might itself be a simulation.
  • Another participant challenges the relevance of the discussion to physics, indicating a divide in the perceived applicability of the topic.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express differing views on the implications of simulated realities and the awareness of beings within them. There is no consensus on the relevance of the discussion to physics or the feasibility of creating indistinguishable simulations.

Contextual Notes

Limitations include assumptions about the capabilities of simulations, the nature of consciousness, and the definitions of reality and perception. The discussion does not resolve these complexities.

Gomar
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http://www.foxnews.com/tech/2012/12/17/what-if-reality-were-really-just-im-universe/

"millions of virtual universes with billions of simulated brains in them."

Reminds me of the last scenes in 2001:A Space Odyssey. The white room is not real; it is
a sim of Dave's memories. Do zoo or nature preserve animals know they are in it? No.
Do goldfish know they are in an aquarium? No. Food comes from above, and they swim around, some creatures look at them, that's life.
 
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Do goldfish know they are in an aquarium? No.
They could call their envionment "aquarium". Where is the problem?
They could see a correlation between the creatures looking at them and food coming from above (assuming they are fed manually). They could (given enough time) observe ageing of those creatures looking at them, and see the result of reproduction. With a human-scale intelligence, more fishs to work in science and the option to build special equipment, they could discover most of our modern physics, significant parts of biology and chemistry and evolution. They could study cells of the human skin falling into the aquarium, and even discover similarities between their DNA and ours.

I think it is very hard to run simulations so accurate that no deviation can be observed with current technology, unless the timescale of those simulations is very short (like hours or days of our time).
 
A sophisticated sim would be indistinguishable from 'reality'. In fact, the 'computer' running that sim could also be a sim.
 
@Chronos," turtles, all the way down."
 
This is not physics.
 

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