Is Our Universe a Fake?

At some point we are going to have the ability to simulate our consciousness so that we can survive the death of our physical bodies. We could even simulate a nice world for them to live in.
 
One that I always stuggle with philosphically is that none of you may exist.
Think about it, I can't prove that the world existed before me, because I wasn't in it. Technically I cannot prove that you are actually real or sentient, infact the only thing I can prove is I am aware of you and the things around me. With that in mind, when I wasn't alive (aware or existing) nothing may of existed.

It's a bit like if a tree falls in the woods does it make a sound, but in the sense that none of you did exist or will exist when I'm gone. Although that means if this world exist only for me, why isn't it my paradise! :(
 
Minstadave said:
At some point we are going to have the ability to simulate our consciousness so that we can survive the death of our physical bodies. We could even simulate a nice world for them to live in.
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How do you know it isn't already? And how do you know our machine overlords haven't already set something up to preserve our consciousness when we 'die'?
 
If it's a simulation, what GPUs are they using and where do I get one?

SLI GTX98000000s anyone?
 
The problem of hard solipsism has been around a long time. We can not disprove hard solipsism but to believe it to be true is equally unlikely. Who's to say you weren't placed here 15 seconds ago with the memories of a lifetime ? Who's to say you're not just a brain in a vat experiencing a Matrix like reality ?

Smart money is that non of the above is actually real. We are, always have been and always will be fleeting visitors to this thing we call life.
 
What a boring, inconsequencial concept. If it is impossible to find the difference between simulated reality and 'true' reality then simulated reality IS 'true' reality. This is very similar to the Creator problem - it doesn't matter if it actually exists or not, as long as it doesn't interact with anything in the Universe it's a waste of time/energy to focus on the subject. Nothing will ever come out of it other than philosophical claptrap such as religion.
 
Zethor said:
This is very similar to the Creator problem - it doesn't matter if it actually exists or not, as long as it doesn't interact with anything in the Universe it's a waste of time/energy to focus on the subject. Nothing will ever come out of it other than philosophical claptrap such as religion.
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Remember that religion was our first attempt at philosophy just like alchemy was our first attempt at chemistry and astrology our first attempt at astronomy. Religion gave birth to science and science has become an indispensable part of our lives today. So lets not be too hard on religion. I'm an atheist but I appreciate the role religion has played in our evolution from hunter gatherers into sophisticated civilised mammals.
 
Minstadave said:
I bought the first child DLC pack, it's rubbish, can I uninstall?
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Guess again, you mistakenly bought the family season pass.

Watch out for the skin pack for your car. The Focus S-MAX one installs itself when the second child DLC comes out and can't be removed until the final DLC entitled "University" comes out.
 
Sliver said:
Remember that religion was our first attempt at philosophy just like alchemy was our first attempt at chemistry and astrology our first attempt at astronomy. Religion gave birth to science and science has become an indispensable part of our lives today. So lets not be too hard on religion. I'm an atheist but I appreciate the role religion has played in our evolution from hunter gatherers into sophisticated civilised mammals.
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Religion didn't give birth to science, the use of rudimentary tools of the scientific method did. The wheel was not discovered through religious meditation, it was discovered through observation, measurement and experimentation. Yes, religion has played an important role in our evolution, particularly in the form of a social contract, but I think we would be in a much better position now if the hunter gatherers spent less time sacrificing animals/themselves and more time observing and experimenting..
 
Zethor said:
Religion didn't give birth to science.
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Educate yourself. The modern science we understand today came about from the 16th/17th century theists who tried using methodological techniques to answer questions about the world and universe. These people were a product of their time, religious. They set a path toward what we call modern science today.

Science acknowledges reason, empiricism, and evidence, while religions include revelation, faith and sacredness whilst also acknowledging Philosophical and Metaphysical explanations with regard to the study of the Universe. Despite these differences, most scientific and technical innovations prior to the Scientific revolution were achieved by societies organized by religious traditions. Much of the scientific method was pioneered first by Islamic scholars, and later by Christians. Hinduism has historically embraced reason and empiricism, holding that science brings legitimate, but incomplete knowledge of the world. Confucian thought has held different views of science over time. Most Buddhists today view science as complementary to their beliefs.
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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Relationship_between_religion_and_science
 
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Hmmm i wonder what the simulation is even for ?

I could think of better things to do with unlimited processing power. Actually thinking about it making a computer game simulation with it seems the right thing to do.
 
Hasn't it already been proved that matter does not exist until it is observed? Sounds like great way to save computational power.
 
Jeps said:
Hasn't it already been proved that matter does not exist until it is observed?
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I think you're confusing ordinary matter above the atomic level with sub atomic particles described by Quantum Physics. In Quantum Theory, specifically regarding quantum entanglement, it is not possible to know the spin of a pair of particles till at least one particle is observed. I believe that Schrödinger's cat thought experiment describes this paradox quite well.

A cat imagined as being enclosed in a box with a radioactive source and a poison that will be released when the source (unpredictably) emits radiation, the cat being considered (according to quantum mechanics) to be simultaneously both dead and alive until the box is opened and the cat observed.
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Above the atomic level though matter is matter whether you are observing it or not. A rock is still a rock even if nobody is looking at it.
 
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