From: hal@finney.org
Date: Fri Mar 16 2001 - 11:27:49 MST
Robert writes, regarding simulatd people:
> Ok, but they are not "real" in the sense that their existence is purposeless.
> Our universe, if it is the "real" universe, does not exist for any reason.
> It simply "is" (as far as I can tell). Sim-ed universes exist for some
> reason be it scientific exploration, a need for entertainment, or a desire
> for company, etc. If the creator of those universes exhausts their usefullness,
> I believe they have every right to fold them up and reallocate the resources
> to something else.
How would you characterize the individuals in The Matrix who were trapped
in the simulation? Are they real people or not? We know they have
physical bodies which lie in gel-filled pods, while their consciousness
interacts in virtual reality. They are unaware of their true nature and
their existence is essentially purposeless. It seems like this would
satisfy your definition of saying that these people are not "real".
Yet we can stand there and look at them in their pods. Does it make
sense to say that these physical people, lying there and thinking in
front of us, are not real?
Hal
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