If we are in a simulation, it implies an answer to the question of “Why do I exist?”
Suppose the following assumptions are true:
The universe is a construct of some larger set of simulations designed by some meta-level entity who is chiefly concerned with the results of the simulation
The cost of computation to that entity is non-zero
If true, these assumptions imply a specific answer to the question “Why do I exist?” Specifically, it implies you exist because you are computationally irreducible.
By computationally irreducible, I mean that the state of the universe cannot be computed in any manner more efficient than simulating your life.
If it could, and the assumptions stated above hold true, it seems extremely likely that the simulation designer would have run a more efficient algorithm capable of producing results.
Perhaps this argument is wrong. It’s certainly hard to speculate about the motivations of a universe-creating entity. But if correct, it implies a kind of meaning for our lives: there’s no better way to figure out what happens in the simulation than you living your life. I find that to be a strangely comforting thought.
If we are in a simulation, it implies an answer to the question of “Why do I exist?”
Suppose the following assumptions are true:
The universe is a construct of some larger set of simulations designed by some meta-level entity who is chiefly concerned with the results of the simulation
The cost of computation to that entity is non-zero
If true, these assumptions imply a specific answer to the question “Why do I exist?” Specifically, it implies you exist because you are computationally irreducible.
By computationally irreducible, I mean that the state of the universe cannot be computed in any manner more efficient than simulating your life.
If it could, and the assumptions stated above hold true, it seems extremely likely that the simulation designer would have run a more efficient algorithm capable of producing results.
Perhaps this argument is wrong. It’s certainly hard to speculate about the motivations of a universe-creating entity. But if correct, it implies a kind of meaning for our lives: there’s no better way to figure out what happens in the simulation than you living your life. I find that to be a strangely comforting thought.