The Red Pill and the Future of Cosmology
“What is real? How do you define ‘real’? If you’re talking about what you can feel, what you can smell, what you can taste and see, then ‘real’ is simply electrical signals interpreted by your brain.” ~Morpheus (Quotes, 2016)
I love this quote! It gets right at the heart of what I think is the future of Cosmology. Examining the particulars of our universe (or multiverse as the case may be) is an important part of our process of understanding what’s really going on. Things like dark matter, dark energy, the formation of galaxies, life elsewhere, and parallel universes are all wonderful topics of investigation! Each tells us something new and exciting about our place in space that we didn’t really know before. But there is another question of Cosmological significance, a feeling that there is something not quite right with everything. I have felt this way for quite some time. It is a feeling that things are off, in some cases contrived, and in many ways blatant yet hidden from us all.
The Morpheus quote is no accident. It indicates a very important question, a question that expands out all the way into the multiverse. What is Real? Is what we can see, what we can touch? Is it something we can detect with our most sensitive equipment? There have been many answers to this question, come down to us throughout history in the world’s great wisdom traditions. What if there is something else, something that points to all that has been scientifically validated, one that is philosophically rigorous, and one that points to a mysterious other, very much present in the words religions? The answer to this may surprise you and it is the topic of this writing. Are we living in a simulated universe? How far down does the rabbit hole go?
Bostrom’s Trilemma
This paper argues that at least one of the following propositions is true: (1) the human species is very likely to go extinct before reaching a “posthuman” stage; (2) any posthuman civilization is extremely unlikely to run a significant number of simulations of their evolutionary history (or variations thereof); (3) we are almost certainly living in a computer simulation. It follows that the belief that there is a significant chance that we will one day become posthumans who run ancestor-simulations is false, unless we are currently living in a simulation. ~ Nick Bostrom (Bostrom, 2003).
This is the philosophical beginnings of what is referred to as the “simulation argument.” In the
previous quote, Nick Bostrom, a philosopher from Oxford University presents us with a trilemma, an argument in which one of three propositions must be true, at the exclusion of the other two. The first proposition, “that the human species is very likely to go extinct before reaching a “posthuman” stage leads off the trilemma (2003). It means exactly what it says, with the author defining posthuman as “Humankind has acquired most of the technological capabilities that one can currently show to be consistent with physical laws and with material and energy constraints” (2003). The second proposition, “any posthuman civilization is extremely unlikely to run a significant number of simulations of their evolutionary history (or variations thereof)” is indicative of a dilemma that occurs within a post human civilization. Either a post human civilization will run simulations or it will not, which leads into the third part of the trilemma, “we are almost certainly living in a computer simulation” (2003). The reasoning behind this third portion is that the multitude of simulations that could be run by a post human civilization would be astronomical, making our existence likely to be a simulation, rather than the original (2003).
What does this mean? Either of these three propositions is true. We could indeed be an “original” civilization, not quite to the post human stage of development, or, much more likely, we are in a computer simulation. Is there anything in other branches of inquiry that may point to this reality? You bet. (The original article can be viewed at http://www.simulation-argument.com/simulation.html).
Quantization and the Fabric of the Cosmos
It began with a set of weird experimental results. The discovery of Cathode Rays led to the discovery of the electron (Cathode, 2016). The Study of Black-Body Radiation defied the expected results of classical physics (Black, 2016). In 1905, Einstein investigated the results of the photoelectric effect, for which he would eventually win a Nobel Prize (History, 2016).
These, and a now famous experiment could the double-slit experiment defied a classical explanation and resulted in a new foundation of modern science, quantum mechanics.
The premise of this branch of physics is that pretty much everything in the universe breaks down into little discrete packets (2016). These packets have a measurable minimal amount of energy and is responsible for much of the physical effects that we observe on the quantum scale. It was also discovered that there are minimal discrete units of space (called Planck Length), and discrete units of time (called Planck Time). There is a tremendous amount of complex math associated with all of these findings, but suffice it to say, quantum theory is one of the most successful physical theories ever devised, and the mathematics is available for anyone to peruse. The point of all of this information is that in a simulated universe, quantization is required because only a finite amount of information can be used in its construction (Elvidge, 2007). Things would be digital, and space would be pixilated like a computer screen. We do find that this is the case when we observe our universe. At the smallest units, space is pixilated with pixels of a specific measurable size (2007).
Another point regarding the physical universe that lends credence to the idea that we are in a simulated universe is the specificity of the constants of nature. Although this is an argument used to justify the theory of a multiverse, it is also indicative of what would be considered “fine tuning” of the universe by a universal “programmer” (2007).
For the sake of brevity, and the fact that I am not writing a dissertation, other aspects of the universe that point to a simulation include results from the double slit experiment,
the delayed choice, quantum eraser experiment (2016), holographic principles at play in modern physics, and the presence of error correcting code (computer code) embedded within the equations of string theory (Chang, 2015). There is a tremendous amount of material. Perhaps one day, I’ll get around to getting it all out.
Why this?
This theory is an extremely exciting theory to be studying. To me, it represents the summation of a bunch of different lines of thinking, and it makes the questions being asked much more intriguing. I love a good mystery, and the mystery of our universe or multiverse is among the best mysteries available. It ties science, to philosophy, to religion, to magick. It really involves a theory of everything. If we are living in a matrix type world, could be make contact with the original programmer? Could we rewrite the program to make traditional notions of magick reality? I don’t really know…but wow! What an amazing time to be alive and ponder over these questions. I think as time goes on, this will be a much more important field of inquiry. It has implications for the future of the cosmology, as well as many other diverse fields. Are you ready for the red pill? How far down does the rabbit hole really go? I don’t know this either, but I’m excited to try to find out!
Works Cited
“Black-Body Radiation.” Wikipedia. 11 Jul. 2016. Web. 5 Aug. 2016. <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black-body_radiation>
Bostrom, Nick. “Are We Living in a Computer Simulation.” Philosophical Quarterly. Vol. 53, No 211, pp 243-255. 2003 Web. 5 Aug. 2016. <http://www.simulation-argument.com/simulation.html>.
“Cathode Rays.” Wikipedia. 17 Jun. 2016. Web. 5 Aug. 2016. <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cathode_ray>.
Chang, Pao. Living in the Matrix: Physicist Finds Computer Code Embedded in String Theory. SOTT.net. 9 Sep. 2015. Web. 5 Aug. 2016.
Cohen, Alan. “Get Real~ A Message From Alan Cohen.” Forever Unlimited-Wordpress. 18 Dec. 2014. Web. 5 Aug. 2016.
Elvidge, Jim. The Universe Solved. Alternate Theories Press, 2007. Kindle File. 5 Aug. 2016.
“History of Quantum Mechanics.” Wikipedia. 1 May 2016. Web. 5 Aug. 2016. <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_quantum_mechanics>.
“Matrix Breakthrough: Self Correcting ‘Computer’ Code Discovered in Depths of String Theory.” Decrypted Matrix. 25 Mar. 2012. Web. 5 Aug. 2016. <https://decryptedmatrix.com/matrix-breakthrough-self-correcting-computer-code-discovered-in-depths-of-string-theory/>.
“Nick Bostrom.” Wikipedia. 22 Jul. 2016. Web. 5 Aug. 2016. < https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nick_Bostrom>.
“Quotes for Morpheus from the Matrix.” IMDB. 2016. Web. 5 Aug. 2016. <http://www.imdb.com/character/ch0000746/quotes>.
“Simulation Hypothesis.” Wikipedia. 5 Aug. 2016. Web. 5 Aug. 2016. <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simulation_hypothesis>.
“10 Biggest Quations Raised by Quantum Physics.” Expscience.com. No Date. Web. 5 Aug 2016. <https://www.google.com/search?q=Quantum+physics&biw=1280&bih=913&tbm=isch&source=lnms&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwj15NHpyqrOAhUHMyYKHdwWCQ4Q_AUICCgD#imgrc=mhNub2Rel3gGWM%3A>
Lunas Foxchild~An Aspiring Wizard's Tale of Magickal Adventures 