So… I think we are in a simulation. Now while that is a strong proclamation, I did not say I KNOW we are in a simulation. I chose the words intentionally. Let me explain.
I was in a strange place in my life when I first heard this theory. I was in my forties and I was taking a high-school math class. Why? For months I had been feeling very depressed. I discovered that one of the main things that started pulling me out of this rut (exercise helped a lot), was learning new things. I wanted to focus on things I always wanted to learn but had some irrational hang up that prevented me from exploring them. Algebra was one of those things. I was visiting a friend who is also a nerd at heart and he introduced me to chatGPT. I was blown away! It as like science fiction had come alive in front of me. I instantly thought of the quote by Arthur C. Clarke, “Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic”. I started feeding it math questions and asking it to break down the concepts line by line. I discovered I suddenly had a math tutor with me 24/7!
My friend is a big fan of Tesla and its founder Elon Musk. He explained to me all the advancements in AI and tech that he was following. During the conversation he made a statement. “You know we are in a simulation right?” Now the thing about this statement is that many people it might dismiss it out of hand. Because of various things I was learning about technology in general, the idea had already been lurking in some unformed state in the recesses of my mind. “Yeah son, Elon said that shit”. I thought nothing of it as the months went by. It danced around and surfaced from time to time but mostly I forgot it.
I started studying web development in the winter of 2023. I learned the basics of HTML, CSS and JavsScript. I already knew from other skill aquisition experiences like trucking that knowing the basics is one thing. When you actual get out and start driving is where you really learn. I am still picking up my frosh week kit like a freshman in web dev at this point. During the course of my studies, I am introduced to the concept of lazy loading and conditional rendering. I learn that to save resources the images are not loaded util they appear in the viewport and JavaScript detects this and loads the images. Conditional rendering involves displaying content based on other conditions being met. After a while it started to dawn on me that this reminded me of something. The double slit experiment from quantum physics.
The double slit experiment was my first introduction to the truly weird nature of the quantum world. It illustrates the wave-particle duality of light and matter. When particles like electrons are directed through two closely spaced slits, they produce an interference pattern on a screen behind the slits, indicating wave-like behavior rather than behaving like discrete particles. This is weird. Things are either particles or waves. This suggests that particles can exhibit both wave-like and particle-like characteristics depending on the experimental setup. When I first learned this, it was both fascinating and baffling. Now it makes a lot more sense.
Bridging Quantum Mechanics and Web Development
The double slit experiment serves as a perfect metaphor for the complexities and potential 'rendering' processes of our universe, similar to web development practices like conditional rendering and lazy loading. Just as the particles exhibit different characteristics (wave-like or particle-like) based on whether they are observed, web content is rendered based on user interaction or viewport visibility. This selective rendering ensures that resources are allocated efficiently, loading only what is necessary when it is necessary.
In the realm of web development, lazy loading enhances user experience by speeding up initial page loads and saving bandwidth. Similarly, if we apply this principle to the universe as if it were a simulation, the observer effect in quantum mechanics could be seen as the universe's version of lazy loading. The universe, much like a sophisticated web application, only 'calculates' or 'renders' certain outcomes when they are required—when observation forces the system to commit to a state.
Conditional rendering in web development involves displaying components or content based on certain conditions or states. This parallels the quantum world, where the state of a particle is not definitively set until it is observed. It's as if the universe employs a form of conditional rendering, determining the state of reality based on the conditions of observation.
The Speed of Light
Light has always fascinated me. Once I learned more about its rapid yet constant speed I asked the question we humans constantly ask that got us this far. Why?
According to Wikepedia:
“The speed of light in vacuum, commonly denoted c, is a universal physical constant that is exactly equal to 299,792,458 metres per second (approximately 300,000 kilometres per second; 186,000 miles per second; 671 million miles per hour)
According to the special theory of relativity, c is the upper limit for the speed at which conventional matter or energy (and thus any signal carrying information) can travel through space.”
My question is why? I asked that to my math teacher one day and he did not have an answer. To be honest I don’t think he understood my crazy ass question. The intriguing part to me is this passage “c is the upper limit for the speed at which conventional matter or energy (and thus any signal carrying information) can travel through space”. What that now comes across to me is a sort of rate limiting mechanism inside the application.
The speed of light, previously noted, is not just a cosmic speed limit but also a defining parameter of our universe's structure and behavior.
This universal constant sets a boundary for the speed at which information and matter can interact, much like a rate limiting mechanism in web development ensures that a system remains stable and efficient by controlling the flow of requests.
In computational systems, rate limiting is essential for managing resources, preventing overload, and ensuring equitable access to services. By analogy, the speed of light could be seen as the universe's way of rate limiting the flow of information, ensuring that the cosmos operates within the bounds of stability. This constraint might be necessary for the universe's 'operating system' to process and render the vast amounts of data (in the form of matter and energy) that make up our reality.
Why is there a speed limit at all? From a web development perspective, we implement rate limits to prevent any single user or process from consuming too many resources too quickly, which could degrade the experience for others or crash the system entirely. If we apply this logic to the universe, the speed of light could serve a similar purpose: to prevent information and matter from interacting in a way that could 'overload' the system. It ensures that the universe remains coherent and navigable, much as rate limits ensure that a web application remains accessible and functional under heavy use.
If the speed of light is akin to a rate limiting mechanism, it suggests that the universe is designed with efficiency and stability in mind, characteristics that are essential in both natural and artificial systems. This could imply that the fabric of our reality is managed in a way that optimizes for these principles, further hinting at the simulation hypothesis or at least suggesting that the principles governing the cosmos and those governing human-made systems have fascinating parallels.
Venturing Into Simulation Theory
With these foundational concepts in mind, we turn our gaze towards the Simulation Theory, a hypothesis that posits our reality might not be the ultimate reality! This theory, most famously associated with philosopher Nick Bostrom's seminal paper "Are You Living in a Computer Simulation?" (2003), suggests that at least one of the following propositions is true:
“Almost all civilizations at our level of technological development go extinct before becoming technologically mature.
Technologically mature civilizations are not interested in creating simulations of their evolutionary history.”
We are almost certainly living in a computer simulation.
Bostrom's argument hinges on the advancement of computational power. If a civilization reaches a point where simulating consciousness is feasible, it's probable they would create many such simulations. Consequently, the "original" reality might spawn countless simulated realities, making it statistically more likely for any conscious being to exist within a simulation rather than the base reality.
Elon Musk and the Probability of Simulation
As previously mentioned, it was Elon Musk’s comments on the subject that sparked my thinking. Elon Musk, the tech magnate known for his work with SpaceX and Tesla, has brought the Simulation Theory into popular discourse, suggesting the odds we're not in a simulation are "one in billions” which when I heard it I thought it sounded a bit dramatic. Musk draws on the rapid advancement of video game technology as an analogy:
“if games continue to improve at their current rate, it will become impossible to distinguish between game environments and reality.”
This line of reasoning echoes Bostrom's theory, suggesting that if it's possible to create such indistinguishable simulations, statistically, it's more likely we're inside one of these simulations rather than in base reality.
David Kipping's Bayesian Analysis
However, the discussion doesn't end with Musk's assertion. Astronomer David Kipping took a more analytical approach by applying Bayesian reasoning to the Simulation Hypothesis. Bayesian reasoning, a method in data science, involves using statistical techniques to update the probability of a hypothesis as more evidence or information becomes available. This approach is particularly relevant when dealing with complex, uncertain systems—much like our universe.
Kipping simplified Bostrom's trilemma into a dichotomy, focusing on the odds of us living in a base reality versus a simulated one. Through his analysis, Kipping concluded that the odds are roughly 50-50, with a slight lean towards us living in base reality. This more balanced perspective offers a counterpoint to Musk's more deterministic view and highlights the inherent uncertainties in these sorts of inquiries.
Implications of the Simulation Theory
The idea that our universe might be a simulation has profound implications. It challenges our understanding of reality, consciousness, and the nature of existence itself. If the principles of conditional rendering and rate limiting are observable within our universe, as in web development, could these be indications of our reality being a carefully managed simulation? These parallels not only make the abstract more tangible but also invite us to ponder the possibility that our universe operates on similar principles to those we've designed in our computational systems. In the Netflix series "Black Mirror" episode "San Junipero". This offers a vision of our future where technology has allowed us to decouple consciousness from physical limitations, allowing individuals to explore alternate realities.
Conclusion
As we continue to explore the boundaries of technology and philosophy, the Simulation Theory offers a compelling framework to question the very fabric of our existence. Whether or not we are living in a simulation, the parallels drawn between the quantum behaviors, the universal constants like the speed of light, and the principles underlying modern computing technologies provide a rich ground for speculation and exploration. As we push forward in our technological capabilities, perhaps the veil between reality and simulation will thin, revealing more about the universe we inhabit and our place within it.
References:
Bostrom, Nick. "Are You Living in a Computer Simulation?" Philosophical Quarterly (2003).
Musk, Elon. Various public statements on the likelihood of living in a simulation.
Kipping, David. "A Bayesian Approach to the Simulation Argument." The Astronomical Journal (2020).
