Physicists say that we actually live in Thimbleweed Park? (spoilers!)

Hi everyone, I wanted to tell you one interesting thing: physicists nowadays believe that the ending of Thimbleweed Park may not be so far from the truth, and that our own Universe can be inside some sort of computer, made from bits of information.


I’m a physicist myself, and I’m extremely curious about this topic. The idea comes from string theory (namely, the so-called AdS/CFT correspondence), as well as quantum information theory.

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But string theory is not proven… Right?

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Yes, this isn’t a new theory(*) - or theories to be precise. The idea is that we are living in a simulation. The problem is the proof. And if we would live in a simulation there have to be some sorts of interfaces to the surrounding world.

Another “problem” is the definition of what a “simulation” precisely is. For example a lot of cells are “simulating” together a human being.

(*) The idea of a universe with more than three or four dimensions is very similar.

AFAIK it is not proven - like the “big bang”. And there are several different string theories, if I remember correctly.

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I highly doubt that (but maybe that’s just my programming :grin:).

If it were the case, it would raise a lot of interesting philosophical questions, however.
Like:

  • what’s the purpose of the simulation?
  • are our god(s) equivalent to the creator(s) of the simulation?
  • do we have a free will, if we’re products of an algorithm (or controlled by someone playing The Sims CMXIV)?
  • is everything we can observe truly simulated, or is it just a pretty texture that happens to look like millions of billions of galaxies? (might explain why aliens didn’t visit yet)
  • where’s the exit button?

The sceptic in me discards the whole idea as simply a new way of trying to explain the state of our existence with the means we currently have at our disposal. No more, no less. And far from the truth, which we might never know.

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Nothing. If you can simulate a world, you would do it. :slight_smile:

No, gods are made by humans. Or where are the old (Greek and Nordic) gods now?

No, we haven’t. This is/was proven by psychologists already.

If we are in a simulation then this isn’t important, because your brain is simulated too.

On a rifle.

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Same. I think we’re just here by pure fluke. People like to try and justify our existence because it gives them meaning, and I get it, but I’m too cynical for that!

I feel the same about reincarnation. I used to take comfort in the idea that when we die we don’t disappear forever, but it is just that - comfort.

It’s an entertaining idea though. If I believed it was feasible I’d hope the creators are having fun, at least :slightly_smiling_face:

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And don’t forget that our brain is “limited”. So I doubt that we are able to explain and understand everything.

Well, the global population is constantly growing …

If they watch at us. Maybe some aliens are more entertaining… :wink:

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No one dies… Everything just appears, disappears and reappears…
Ex:- Electrons, Atoms,etc…
And we are essentially made up of billions of billions of billions of atoms rotating continuously… We are Energy and energy never DIES!

That’s scientifically right. And it was already shown by the ancient greek philosophy of atomism from which the word atom come from (ἄ-τομον, in-divisible). But that’s about matter. What about the individual conscience and memory that makes us what we are as unique human beings?
In the end is that our nature. Does it vanish?

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Of course it does… Otherwise I would know what I was a millenia ago…(or who)… Memory is not necessary… According to me… you should do good for society and die in peace… Help the needy and you will be remembered forever…
Ever heard of Akashic Records?

I guess not, but that’s interesting. Tell us more.

Anyway I mean the end of the individual conscience. That sometimes is a terror to me. A new conscience, even if made up of the same matter, is a new one. Then I myself cease to exist forever. And those are the only years I can spend as a living thinking sensitive being. Unless we think that soul is made of a different matter than the body, and then it continues to live, and only in that case reincarnation can occur. Otherwise it would be a creation of a new soul from the matter of previous souls.

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From my perspective, it doesn’t look like a mere hobby project.

Really? I thought that was still up for debate. Though I don’t find it hard to image that if we’d know how someone is “wired”, and knew the exact inputs, we could determine his or her reaction. OTOH, even trivial (compared to a living organism) computer programs exhibit nondeterministic behaviour more often than not :slight_smile:. Who knows how many race conditions and memory issues are present in our “programming”.

I think it does make a difference where “reality” stops and the façade begins, if not for me, then for all of you guys. Granted, my whole environment and all my perceptions might be entirely fake and I would not be able to tell the difference. But that would mean everyone else would be little more than @discobot. At least in that case you wouldn’t have to suffer through the things I’m forced to face each day. But whom am I telling …

I’m pretty sure that doesn’t turn off the entire simulation. Unless, of course, it’s all a façade. In which case I demand some changes to the programming ASAP.

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Hi! To find out what I can do, say @discobot display help.

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Maybe end of conscience is a necessity for reincarnation… Like formatting a pendrive to remove old files and make room for new ones…

In theosophy and anthroposophy, the Akashic records are a compendium of all human events, thoughts, words, emotions, and intent ever to have occurred in the past, present, or future. They are believed by theosophists to be encoded in a non-physical plane of existence known as the etheric plane. There are anecdotal accounts but there is no scientific evidence for the existence of the Akashic records.[1][2][3]

Akasha (ākāśa आकाश) is the Sanskrit word for ‘aether’ or ‘atmosphere’. Also, in Hindi, ākāsh (आकाश) means ‘sky’ or ‘heaven’.

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@someone display help

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Maybe This person can help you:-

Me too. I hate, hate, hate the thought that I just won’t be here anymore one day. It’s almost worse that I won’t be aware of it. I think that’s a feeling that gets easier with age. I hope.

I wish that consoled me :frowning: maybe one day it will!

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Why not? I’ve played Sim City 2000 several times. If you have more CPU power everyone could simulate a whole world easily. The software would be there - and is already partially available.

Yes. For example your brain has already made a decision while you still ponder.

That is possible already, btw. Mentalists are able to “read” a person very well. The rest could be done by A.I. (for example with neural networks). And it’s easy to let a person do what you want.

Enough. :wink: Think for example about epilepsy, the effects of drugs and people like Madame Morena.

If everything is simulated and you are in this simulation, everything is facade. Even your brain does not exist.

This is a simulation, not a holodeck or The Matrix. :wink:

Which leads us to the question: If we all die, does the simulation stop? If we are living in a simulation then it’s likely that we don’t have an exit button.

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I currently know how to do the following things:

@someone start new thread

Starts a new thread with an off-topic topic at the 17th of something.

@someone roll 1s

Tell you a random chosen shoe size.

@someone like

Likes your last post.

@someone english sentence

Produces an English looking sentence at with least one grammar or speling error.

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Why?

I am not sure if I would like to stay here forever. Especially if all of my relatives and friends are gone.

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