Oh, What a Relief: None of this May Be REAL?
ChatChat - Claudia Cragg30 Jan 2020

Oh, What a Relief: None of this May Be REAL?

What if the real world isn't 'REAL' but just some kind of computer program? Claudia Cragg (@claudiacragg) speaks here with Riz Virk @Rizstanford As Virk (Treasure Hunt, 2017) puts it, "The fundamental question raised by the Simulation Hypothesis is: Are we all actually characters living inside some kind of giant, massively multi-player online video game, a simulated reality that is so well rendered that we cannot distinguish it from 'physical reality'?" These ideas may well have first been most discussed because of the Matrix films, but many people have been fascinated with the potential for far longer than video games have been around. Plato's Allegory of the Cave suggests a similar concept, as do the teachings of Buddhism, Islam and Hinduism. Carl Jung, Swiss psychiatrist and psychoanalyst, was interested in the notion of mental projection while Philip K. Dick—who frequently imagined such situations in his fiction—firmly believed that the world was a simulation. Virk says the Simulation Hypothesis is not as far-fetched as it may seem. He explains computer science, humanity's understanding of physics, and mystical traditions going back thousands of years all point to the idea that the world may not be as "real" as people think it is. "The goal of what we call science," he says, " is to understand the nature of reality. If we are in fact inside a video game, then science becomes a matter of 'discovering' the rules of this video game." Virk demonstrates that what we call 'reality' is a harder concept to engage with than people admit.

Episoder(99)

Asylum, Umberto Nicola Nicoletti on

Asylum, Umberto Nicola Nicoletti on

Asylum: Author Umberto Nicola Nicoletti, Introduction by Filippo Grandi Claudia Cragg speaks here with author, Umberto Nicola Nicoletti, about his fine-art book Asylum. We discusses the phenomenon of ...

11 Jun 202333min

The Museum, Repositories of Controversy and The Stuff of Life

The Museum, Repositories of Controversy and The Stuff of Life

@claudiacragg (DM Twitter) speaks here with Samuel J Redman @samueljredman about his new book, A Short History of Crisis and Resilience. The work, Professor Redman says, celebrates as he sees it the r...

31 Aug 202234min

A Boost From The Late Great Maya Angelou

A Boost From The Late Great Maya Angelou

What better way to jump into 2022 than with a boost from a rebroadcast of our Maya Angelou interview? This month the US Mint will start shipping quarters featuring Angelou, the first black woman to ev...

6 Jan 202222min

For The Holidays, Become a 'Wallet Activist' with Tanja Hester

For The Holidays, Become a 'Wallet Activist' with Tanja Hester

Tanja Hester, @TanjaHester is the author of Wallet Activism: How to Use Every Dollar You Spend, Earn, and Save as a Force for Change (November 2021). Clear-eyed and practical, #WalletActivism helps an...

9 Des 202140min

First Genocide Verdict against Islamic State For Killings of Yazidis

First Genocide Verdict against Islamic State For Killings of Yazidis

(REPOST of June 2018 Interview with Dunya Mikhail) This week, a German court on Tuesday jailed a former Islamic State militant for life after convicting him of involvement in genocide and crimes again...

2 Des 202138min

The Struggle to Protect Health Care from the Violence of War

The Struggle to Protect Health Care from the Violence of War

Claudia Cragg (@claudiacragg) speaks here with Dr Leonard Rubinstein. @JohnsHopkins @bermaninstitute #CentreForPublicHealthAndHumanRights #CentreForHumanitarianHealth Bringing together extensive resea...

11 Nov 202125min

Celine-Marie Pascale Discusses 'Living On The Edge'

Celine-Marie Pascale Discusses 'Living On The Edge'

Claudia Cragg (Twitter: @claudiacragg) talks to Celine-Marie Pascale @cmpascale about her new book, 'Living On The Edge: When Hard Times Become A Way Of Life' published by @politybooks. For the majori...

28 Okt 202125min

Solving The Essential Racism and Sexism In The Occupy Movement

Solving The Essential Racism and Sexism In The Occupy Movement

Claudia Cragg (@claudiacragg - Twitter) talks with Heather Hurwitz about her book, 'Are We The 99%." Despite cries of "We are the 99%," signaling solidarity, certain groups were unwelcome or unable to...

14 Okt 202128min

Populært innen Politikk og nyheter

giver-og-gjengen-vg
aftenpodden
aftenpodden-usa
forklart
popradet
stopp-verden
det-store-bildet
dine-penger-pengeradet
rss-gukild-johaug
lydartikler-fra-aftenposten
rss-ness
fotballpodden-2
hanna-de-heldige
nokon-ma-ga
aftenbla-bla
rss-dannet-uten-piano
e24-podden
rss-utenrikskomiteen-med-bogen-og-grasvik
rss-penger-polser-og-politikk
bt-dokumentar-2