Simulation Vs Reality
The uncertainty about the realness of our experience is studied by many philosophers, like the 20th-century French thinker Jean Baudrillard, whose book, Simulacra and Simulation, ponders on the phenomenon of imitations/representations being mistaken as reality itself.
In recent times, the Simulation Theory ponders about the same questions about reality.
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The Matrix is a cult Sci-Fi movie and refers to a computer-generated dream world where all mankind is suspended, not knowing that they are being farmed by AI(artificial intelligence).
The first film of the Matrix Trilogy is now 20 years old. Apart from being a huge box office smash hit and cultural phenomenon, it has spawned discussions spanning decades about the nature of human life and reality itself.
Neo, the protagonist of the Matrix, is pushed into the rabbit hole when he takes the red pill to embrace the real reality, instead of the blue pill, which is a way to return to the normal, ignorant reality most of us live in.
This choice itself was based on a 1974 thought experiment by American philosopher Robert Nozick, pondering how an experience machine, by which we can have any reality we desire(a comfortable illusion) would be better than our current reality, with all its problems.
The 17th century Frenchman René Descartes had observed how easily our senses are fooled and noted the difficulty of being certain about any human experience, which he claimed can be faked.
We know it too well now with the advent of fake news, fake-reality TV and our fake online identities, hiding all which is not good enough to broadcast.
A Matrix-like scenario was discussed in a book by Plato, Republic, in which he imagined all human life akin to a group of prisoners who have lived their entire lives inside the walls of their prison, with the only experience of reality being the shadows on that wall.
If they are freed and discover the truth of reality, they may not be able to comprehend the vastness of life and may find it difficult to leave the captivity of ignorance.
According to 18th-century German philosopher Immanuel Kant, our senses are everything, creating our reality for us. The world, according to him, does not have one reality, but as many realities as there are people.
Through our senses, the world available to us is the only world we ever experience and is a fraction of reality.
RELATED IDEAS
- Ancient Greek philosophy extends from as far as the seventh century B.C. up until the beginning of the Roman Empire, in the first century A.D.
- It distinguishes itself from other early forms of philosophical and theological theorizing for its emphasis on reason as opposed to the senses or the emotions.
- During this period five great philosophical traditions originated: the Platonist, the Aristotelian, the Stoic, the Epicurean, and the Skeptic.
- Favorite themes include the principle of reality, the good; the life worth being lived; the distinction between appearance and reality, etc.
You are a slave. Like everyone else, you were born into bondage, born into a prison that you cannot smell or taste or touch. A prison for your mind.
Best Quotes from The Matrix Movies - 'The Matrix is everywhere.'
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Science fiction, by definition, is science that isn’t real. But looking beyond the fantastical elements there are some very innovative ideas, a lot of which have had a real influence on modern technology. Here are some examples:
- Star Trek: The motion Picture predicted the Internet as embodied in the movie by the all-enveloping sentient machine ‘V’Ger’.
- Ready Player One predicted VR technology and virtual workplaces.
- Total Recall predicted self-driving cars.
- iRobot predicted self-driving cars that would allow the driver to take over too.
- Minority Report predicted interactive augmented reality now being commercialized as wearable pair of glasses.
- Back to the Future predicted the self-tying shoes.
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