I've heard of the idea that our reality is some sort of simulation more than once. I've heard of scientists who thought it's possible, and I've heard from potheads who have thought the same thing. What I've never heard of is what the implications are if reality is just some kind of simulation. If we were able to prove beyond a doubt that it's all a simulation, and we found out the "code" to the universe, could we conceivably hack it? Can a simulated being ever break the rules of its simulation?
What kind of hacks would be possible even?
My son has an invention he got a patent on when he was 22. He got to use the virtual reality goggles they use on the Apache and he had to take them off because it was so real. We had a trade fair in town where they had an exhibit with them. It was so real my body and brain reacted to it like is real and I had real feelings and fears like they were real events happening. We create the world around us with our brain from information or data from reality made of quantum particles. That is the real reality we can all experience when our brains process that information.
Bishop Berkeley (pronounced Barkly) was an idealist thinker and said it takes a mind to create reality, and that reality itself is in the mind of God. :shock: I'll get back on this after I look at my notes about him and that philosophy. I believe I've shown to myself it is a logical fallacy but I can't remember why right now. The first time I read this I couldn't find a flaw in his thinking depending on your definition of God. It's the best evidence I've heard for a God, but it wouldn't be the God of the Judeo-Christian-Islamic religions. Solitary
Quote from: "The Skeletal Atheist"I've heard of the idea that our reality is some sort of simulation more than once. I've heard of scientists who thought it's possible, and I've heard from potheads who have thought the same thing. What I've never heard of is what the implications are if reality is just some kind of simulation. If we were able to prove beyond a doubt that it's all a simulation, and we found out the "code" to the universe, could we conceivably hack it? Can a simulated being ever break the rules of its simulation?
What kind of hacks would be possible even?
Okay I am NOT the technician that you need on this and most likely you probably will just ignore my thoughts, because they will take a course that you obviously don't want to follow.
I don't think that this is all a simulation. I think that is fanciful thinking. I understand creative thought, but I don't agree with it when it circumvents critical thought. Do I believe that there are other dimensions...yes! Do I believe that everything is perspective and relativity....SURE! But we live in the now at OUR dimension at OUR size in relative space. To hack this "simulation", you'd have to conquer space/time/dimension.
That's why I don't think we will ever be able to go into the future or the past. The timeline moves forward...ONLY. Demension, I don't know, maybe, doubtful! Space, don't see that happening. I don't think you could compress or expand any living thing and it live. Given the three eliments of physics that you'd have to overcome I don't think that you could ever "hack" reality. Now illussionist "hack" reality all the time, but really all that they ever do is hack perception or perspective.
Which reminds of what Father Guido Sarducci said. He was talking about the possibility of an American being nominated for sainthood. It upset him given the number of Italians that he thought were more qualified. He said:
"You know, to become a saint you have to have performed three miracles. This American only perfomed two and one of them was a card trick."
Quote from: "The Skeletal Atheist"I've heard of the idea that our reality is some sort of simulation more than once. I've heard of scientists who thought it's possible, and I've heard from potheads who have thought the same thing. What I've never heard of is what the implications are if reality is just some kind of simulation. If we were able to prove beyond a doubt that it's all a simulation, and we found out the "code" to the universe, could we conceivably hack it? Can a simulated being ever break the rules of its simulation?
What kind of hacks would be possible even?
Without giving the topic a lot of thought, I suspect that if reality was fabricated that we would not be able to prove it without outside assistance, especially if our true nature was beyond our frame of reference. If time, space, matter and biological life are all fictions we may be incapable of even imagining what is "real", particularly when much of what we call reality is based on consensus.
How would we access the deeper mechanisms that would allow us to hack it?
Quote from: "Shiranu"How would we access the deeper mechanisms that would allow us to hack it?
Didn't you ever watch the Matrix? You just have to think
real hard.
Quote from: "Shiranu"How would we access the deeper mechanisms that would allow us to hack it?
I don't know, really. Truth be told it was just a spur of the moment thought I had. I would imagine something dealing with quantum physics, perhaps. Like, if you can manipulate the smallest parts of reality then you might be able to change the system as a whole.
Quote from: "Hijiri Byakuren"Didn't you ever watch the Matrix? You just have to think real hard.
:rollin:
Assuming it's coded properly, no, you probably cannot hack the simulation from the inside.
Now if it's not coded properly... technically you could make things happen that shouldn't happen.
Of course, the easiest thing to do when trying to abuse a hole in a program's code is to crash the whole application. So whether it'd be a good idea still remains to be seen.
What makes you think I haven't?
Quote from: "the_antithesis"What makes you think I haven't?
Because you're still posting on this forum rather than enjoying endless, no consequences sex with multiple people atop a mountain of drugs.
Quote from: "Plu"Assuming it's coded properly, no, you probably cannot hack the simulation from the inside.
Now if it's not coded properly... technically you could make things happen that shouldn't happen.
Of course, the easiest thing to do when trying to abuse a hole in a program's code is to crash the whole application. So whether it'd be a good idea still remains to be seen.
Yeah, true. In that case I guess you'd have to hope they have some sort of cache and a willingness to rerun the simulation.
Also, without knowing the rules of the program we cannot know whether we are breaking them or not. Maybe our advanced physics program is already stretching the rules of the simulation. Who knows, maybe quantum particles popping in and out of existance are already parts of the simulation itself.
(Although my original idea was that they're simply moving in a higher dimensional space and we see them popping in and out of existance when they intersect with our own set of dimensions. But I have no idea what the science on that one is :P )
Quote from: "The Skeletal Atheist"Quote from: "the_antithesis"What makes you think I haven't?
Because you're still posting on this forum rather than enjoying endless, no consequences sex with multiple people atop a mountain of drugs.
See? That's what I wanted you to think.
Quote from: "The Skeletal Atheist"If we were able to prove beyond a doubt that it's all a simulation, and we found out the "code" to the universe, could we conceivably hack it?
No Skeletal Atheist! If I'm not allowed to tamper with the fundamental forces and fabric that hold reality together, then neither are you!
Reminds me of a movie, Thirteenth Floor, I think was the name of it.
I always thought this a bit a nonsensical whacky thought.
First: who, what or why would such a scenario be found to be necessary? What is the purpose?
Secondly: If reality is a simulation, why would they violate the simple premise of conservation. Why would we need an evolving "world"? Why not just Neanderthals in the woods? Or even simpler, worms? Why all the drama? Makes no sense to create a simulation this demanding for data when it could be so much simpler.
Of course for all we know, all this is for me, or you, just one of us. That is it, I am the sole reason for all this. Talk about ego eh?
QuoteFirst: who, what or why would such a scenario be found to be necessary? What is the purpose?
For the same reason we make ant-farms in our kids' bedrooms. Because it's cool to look at and see what happens. Don't discard "for fun" as a reason to do something, some of the most insane things in the world are made just because someone enjoys doing them.
Quote from: "The Skeletal Atheist"I've heard of the idea that our reality is some sort of simulation more than once. I've heard of scientists who thought it's possible, and I've heard from potheads who have thought the same thing. What I've never heard of is what the implications are if reality is just some kind of simulation. If we were able to prove beyond a doubt that it's all a simulation, and we found out the "code" to the universe, could we conceivably hack it? Can a simulated being ever break the rules of its simulation?
What kind of hacks would be possible even?
Probably not unless its set up that way.
You gotta think the technology needed to simulate a Universe like ours would vastly outstrip our own.
Quote from: "Cocoa Beware"You gotta think the technology needed to simulate a Universe like ours would vastly outstrip our own.
Not if that technology resided in a simulation designed to create sub simulations like ours. And suppose we are part of a simulation that was created in some ultimate reality by a high school student who did a half ass job? Maybe the point of the simulation would be for us to eventually discover we were a simulation. There's no end to the bullshit. Who started this thread? I protest! :-D
Perhaps if we make a list of the luckiest or most powerful people alive we might find the avatar of the author there.
Once you find this avatar ask it to give you some gold, XP or even a few extra levels.
Quote from: "Hopist"Perhaps if we make a list of the luckiest or most powerful people alive we might find the avatar of the author there.
Once you find this avatar ask it to give you some gold, XP or even a few extra levels.
You get exp by just living, counted in seconds, and you get only 1 life.
I've written tons of code in my life, and I can't imagine how a subroutine I wrote could "hack" the program it's in. Hacking the simulation that we call reality is looking at it as if we're outside it. A human being can hack the code in a computer, but the code hacking the code? Even code that's written to be self-modifying? I just can't see it. (And I hope it would never happen. It would make code-writing a study in losing your mind. Thinking in Forth would be trivial by comparison.)
Of course the simulation "The Universe" may not be "running" in anything like what we think of as computers, so it might be "hackable" by us, the "code" "running" "in" it. Or not. But if it is, I want to have a serious conversation with the "programmer".
Quote from: "Solitary"...Bishop Berkeley (pronounced Barkly) was an idealist thinker and said it takes a mind to create reality, and that reality itself is in the mind of God. :shock: I'll get back on this after I look at my notes about him and that philosophy. I believe I've shown to myself it is a logical fallacy but I can't remember why right now. The first time I read this I couldn't find a flaw in his thinking depending on your definition of God. It's the best evidence I've heard for a God, but it wouldn't be the God of the Judeo-Christian-Islamic religions. Solitary
Isn't that set up for infinite regression? It's in the mind of god, who therefore must be in the mind of a greater being, ad infinitum.
Going back to the question though: what if somebody already HAS hacked the system, and is keeping it a secret? Could at least make some good science fiction! 8-)
Manipulation of genomes is basically hacking life and therefore reality (as perceived by living organisms)
Quote from: "aitm"First: who, what or why would such a scenario be found to be necessary? What is the purpose?
Secondly: If reality is a simulation, why would they violate the simple premise of conservation. Why would we need an evolving "world"? Why not just Neanderthals in the woods? Or even simpler, worms? Why all the drama? Makes no sense to create a simulation this demanding for data when it could be so much simpler.
Maybe they're just curious. I know I'd make a simulation like that if I could. Who's to say they even knew what would happen? Maybe they just created the conditions for our universe to arise, and we are the result.
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