"The Matrix" (De)Appreciation Thread

[Psychodelirium]

Originally posted by Mentat
True. And yet, I don't see how that answers the "free will" question. Yes, you could make all of the people's actions be programmed, and set; but, if that were so, no one would ever leave the Matrix (the agents wouldn't let them, and they (the people) would have no "will" to try it).

But users' idiosyncratic input historoies aren't programmed into VR simulations. What is programmed are the VR responses to possible inputs. This is precisely why a VR program that was as good as the Matrix would run into combinatorial explosion while trying to figure out how to respond to the user. There are just too many things that users can do, and the program has to react to all of them convincingly.

Also, how does one explain the fact that Neo bled (in the real world) after having hit the ground in the simulation? That questions been bothering me for a while.

That I don't know. I wouldn't be surprised if there was some kind of feedback mechanism that the brain could use to cause internal bleeding if the brain was convinced that there was, in fact, bleeding. [?]

 

[Mentat]

Originally posted by Psychodelirium
But users' idiosyncratic input historoies aren't programmed into VR simulations. What is programmed are the VR responses to possible inputs. This is precisely why a VR program that was as good as the Matrix would run into combinatorial explosion while trying to figure out how to respond to the user. There are just too many things that users can do, and the program has to react to all of them convincingly.

Do you mean that a computer has to be ready to handle all possible actions at any given time? This was my point, and I just don't see how it could be done. But, then again, I guess future technologies will allow for something like that.

That I don't know. I wouldn't be surprised if there was some kind of feedback mechanism that the brain could use to cause internal bleeding if the brain was convinced that there was, in fact, bleeding. [?]

Well, actually, it would have to (somehow) sever many layers of his flesh.