Universe as a cellular automaton

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In summary, the conversation discusses the idea of the universe being a cellular automaton with N-dimensional Planck-scale cells and unknown rules, and whether there have been any published papers on this topic. The concept is related to string theory and has been explored by scholars, as mentioned in the Wikipedia article on cellular automata. The person responding has not heard of this idea before and suggests checking the article's references for more information.
  • #1
Terrr
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Have there been any published papers promoting an idea that the universe is a cellular automaton with N-dimensional Planck-scale cells with some unknown but hopefully not incredibly complex set of rules?
 
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  • #2
What? I don't even know how that would begin to make any sense.
 
  • #3
Terrr said:
Have there been any published papers promoting an idea that the universe is a cellular automaton with N-dimensional Planck-scale cells with some unknown but hopefully not incredibly complex set of rules?

string theory?
 
  • #4
I don’t pretend to understand this, but there is a discussion of your subject matter here:

CA As Models of the Fundamental Physical Reality.

As Andrew Ilachinski points out in his Cellular Automata, many scholars have raised the question of whether the universe is a cellular automaton.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cellular_automaton
 
  • #5
Ah ok, after reading that article the OP makes a lot more sense. Other than the wikipedia article I've never heard of this before, so I can't be of much help. Have you looked at the references on the wikipedia article Terrr?
 

1. What is the concept of "Universe as a cellular automaton"?

The concept of "Universe as a cellular automaton" suggests that the universe, at its most fundamental level, operates like a grid of cells that follow a set of simple rules to determine their behavior. This means that the entire universe can be simulated and understood as a complex system of interacting cells.

2. How does this theory explain the laws of physics?

According to the theory, the laws of physics that govern our universe are a result of the rules that govern the behavior of the individual cells. These rules, when applied on a large scale, give rise to the fundamental forces and constants that we observe in our universe.

3. Is there evidence to support this theory?

While there is no direct evidence to support the idea of "Universe as a cellular automaton", there are certain phenomena that seem to align with the principles of this theory. For example, the universe appears to have a discrete and quantized nature, which is a characteristic of cellular automata models.

4. How does this theory relate to other theories of the universe, such as the Big Bang?

The concept of "Universe as a cellular automaton" does not necessarily contradict other theories, such as the Big Bang. In fact, some scientists suggest that the Big Bang could be seen as the initial state of the cellular automaton, from which the universe evolved according to the rules set in place.

5. Can this theory be tested?

Currently, there is no way to directly test the idea of "Universe as a cellular automaton". However, scientists are working on developing computer simulations and experiments that could potentially provide evidence for this theory. Additionally, this theory could also potentially lead to new ways of understanding and predicting the behavior of the universe.

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