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Do we live in a simulation?

Discussion in 'Off-topic Discussion' started by Deleted Account, Mar 31, 2018.

  1. Could it be that we potentially live in a simulation? And no I'm not referring to the type of simulation in which a computer generated and sustains this entire world but rather a simulation in which the human soul or consciousness of a person that exists somewhere else uses a body (or avatar like in a game) to interface and interact with the world on the plane of existence known as Earth (Earth being like the 3d created world often seen in a simulated videogame.) So does anyone agree, are there variants of this theory that you would like to discuss or anything related to the matter you find worth discussing? Just post right here and please let's have a civilized discussion.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Apr 2, 2018
  2. Yes.

    I was just going to leave it at "yes" because it amused me. But It's also an interesting question. Reality is all in your mind. Literally. It is a figment of your imagination, as it is for everyone else.

    We have senses that deliver electrical signals to our brains. Our brains then proceed to mangle, distort, and otherwise interpret those signals. The result is delivered to our consciousness. Our noses don't have consciousness, nor do our eyes, ears, nor any of the other peripheral senses.

    Our consciousness sits behind layer upon layer of information processing equipment which it relies upon to make sense of the world. We must imagine the world from that incredibly processed and reprocessed faulty input.

    If you think you have a clear view of the world outside your brain, it is an illusion your brain has created.
     
  3. Wow this is so true. I often find myself wondering if my view of reality is real and I wonder if my brain is just making up the reality that I live in. This also explains why our worldviews are so faulty and limited and possibly untrustworthy. Our brain could quite possibly create and maintain it's own view of the world that is comfortable to it and we might just be the ones being used to project that imagined, comfortable view of the world even if it might not match with reality. And speaking of projection, our brain loves for us to project our (or it's) own view of the world even though there are literally billions of other people on the planet with billions of varying worldviews... but again it probably does this to protect itself and feel comfortable. This then leads into the group think dynamic and collective consciousness and the entire premise of the egotistical... well ego, that we all have, that makes us want to feel important, special and better than everyone else and even the political side of the discussion where our brain sometimes (and for some people all the time) tries to force our worldview onto the world again even when it does not or may not be logical or rational. Ah, this could go on forever but your post explained the idea quite brilliantly.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Apr 2, 2018
  4. Thanks :D

    We seek to influence others, and are influenced by others to some degree. That attempt to reach conformity is our brains synchronising with other brains to form a larger entity. The ability to do this and have large groups of brains work with a common purpose is one of the reasons our species is so successful. I think I pretty much just repeated what you said ("group think dynamic and collective consciousness"). We're the same. Long live the hive.

    And memories? Forget about it. This article describes why witness testimony in the legal system should not be considered to be reliable evidence. The fact that one person can influence what another person thinks they remember about something goes to the brain synchronisation idea.

    I don't want to cause anyone to lose their minds or anything, but how closely do we identify with our memories? Very closely is probably the answer for most people. Your consciousness of every single moment from this very moment back is emulated (simulated?) from memory. Memory is a faulty reconstruction from a jigsaw puzzle of bits and pieces of stored faulty information.

    Live in the moment and enjoy. Don't worry about anything else. It's all an illusion.
     
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  5. Exactly. Our brain reaches out (so to speak) in order to find others like it that will help it survive, navigate this world and better understand existence.
    I read the article and there were some interesting points in it. I can totally relate to remembering an event differently from how it actually happened years after it initially happened. My brain subtly changed the memory without me even realizing it. It's remarkable and yes the article provided evidence that our brain tries to synchronize in order conform, fit in and be accepted.
    Now this is where I may disagree. I do believe that our brain manipulates information, memory and consciousness but I don't believe it to be a complete illusion. One can think of life as being a videogame where we have different missions (tests, trials and tribulations) until we get to the end and get a prize or reward (possibly paradise) or maybe even overcoming the 3 T's above can lead to happiness by itself so I won't say that it's all meaningless and an illusion. The real question should be who programmed this simulation? Who's the original programmer?
     
    Deleted Account likes this.
  6. Yo wouldn't that be a bitch? Lmao

    You live your entire life and then you're old and say you know I had a good life overall. Overall, the dark times I've had to deal with its decent in the end. You die.

    Then it's just some alien videogame..
     
  7. Not an alien videogame but a videogame created by an intelligent programmer.
     
  8. Of our existence or another?
     
  9. You're quite right. How could we go on if we thought nothing was real or had any meaning (whatever that is)?

    Our illusion has got us this far so there must be something to it. Our view of ourselves and accurate perceptions of the world is largely about models that work for us. For example, atomic theory has changed a lot and continues to change. How electrons, protons, neutrons, etc might look behave, and interact. Previous versions have been disproved and replaced by new models. We obviously never could see things that small ([inner monologue]yes, inner-nerd, electron microscopes, IBM..not the point[/inner monologue]) so the model was imaginary. Based on evidence, sure, but still imaginary.

    The model of myself that my consciousness uses has feet. It believes that I am in my foot as much as I am anywhere else in my body. I am not outside my body. This belief is not quite correct. I am not in my foot. I am only in my consciousness. The model I have of my body is imaginary but probably pretty close to what my body looks like. But still not my actual body. Just a model built (imagined) from all the faulty processing and memory previously discussed.
     
  10. Our existence.
    Well yes... our mind can't us give an objective, precise view of our body. It would take an objective observer to give us an accurate and exact image of our bodies. And yes, our view of the world is largely centered on what works for us not only with science but also with the development of language.
     
  11. I’m going to say, no. Why? Because there is no point for the simulation.
    Why would we need a collective consciousness for an illusion?
     
  12. HatePorn

    HatePorn Fapstronaut

    We might, and all the diseases are simply bugs in the code.
     
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  13. If that hive aspect is true, then why are people like me with mental disabilities still around? Not to mention I always seem to be the complete opposite of anyone I meet, so logically I can't think of an actual use for me, because I wouldn't be contributing anything as far as a collective conciousness goes.

    Unless we're in the Matrix and our bodies are being used as fuel and energy to power the machines. lol
     
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  14. MLMVSS

    MLMVSS Fapstronaut

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    Let’s see... I guess my beliefs do line up with a so called “simulation”.

    As I believe that God knows he future, wouldn’t that mean, in a sense, that things were, in some sense, pre-programmed? Now, I don’t mean predestination, as I personally don’t believe in that concept, but perhaps a foreknowledge of some sort.
     
  15. IronDog

    IronDog Fapstronaut

    This might have already been said, but life is exactly how you see it. So we do create our own realities. Everything that has ever happened or will happen to us changes and shapes how we see life and react to it. Its different for everyone based on their belief systems and experiences. It is entirely possible that it is a simulation, we might never know. But anything that can't be proven is pretty hard to dispute. Ghosts, god, aliens, alternate realities..... all possible, we can't prove otherwise. Of course people have their own "opinions" and some think they "know" things....but its all up for debate. Fun topic to get lost in.
     
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  16. Yes I believe in God also so I also do believe in that things in a sense are preprogrammed since God is all-knowing. But wouldn't the omniscience kinda lead to predestination since He knows everything that's going to happen? Just look at the book of Revelation for example... All the end time events that are predestined are going to happen no matter how hard we try to change it.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Apr 2, 2018
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  17. MLMVSS

    MLMVSS Fapstronaut

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    While events have been predestined to happen, I don’t like using the word predestination when it comes to our own spirituality, just because it sounds like something we cannot control and it was already decided for us before we were born (as in we cannot control our own fate in whether to believe or not, which doesn’t really give us free will). But I suppose, in a sense, God knows what will happen to everyone and everything in the long run.
     
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  18. SolitaryScribe

    SolitaryScribe Fapstronaut

    Not quite, knowledge doesn't equal causation. Just because I might have knowledge that someone was going to commit a crime, does not mean I caused this person to commit the crime.

    Another thing we need to understand is what is meant by when we say God is "all-knowing". Simply put, the knowledge of things that will happen is dependent on time, since God cannot exist in time since time in itself is created, God would exist both in the future, past and present all at once.
     
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  19. I worded my previous post wrongly. I didn't mean to imply that God's omniscience causes people to sin because then He wouldn't be all-loving. However though I kinda don't believe in free will but this is actually taking the thread off topic or is it? Actually, it kinda fits into the discussion since our brain can spontaneously make up thoughts that we have no control over. Also another argument against free will is that a lot of a person's personality traits are inherited from their parents and also developed due to their environment along with other economic, social, cultural and experiential factors and a myriad of other uncontrollable variables. I bet that it if I grew up in an atheist home in 1950s Germany and was of a higher socioeconomic background I would be a very different person than the one I am currently.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Apr 2, 2018
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  20. I used to think God was powerful and there was nothing he can't do, but I'm starting to think he's like a leader of a country in a democracy. Maybe he has to negotiate with Jesus, Satan, the angels and demons to get stuff done because at times he doesn't intervene at times when I think he should. But of course, I could be wrong... For me, that's how I explain some of the evil things in the world.
     

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