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Virtual friends

• mitchellbowling 20 Posts

  Fri, Feb 7 2014 4:32 PM

  I so enjoy escaping into this game, I struggle in perceived reality like many who feel they landed on the wrong planet. I can play golf well for virtual real, satisfies and soothes the parts of me that get broken living and working. Golf has been part of my development in several wonderful ways, my dad bought me a set when I was very young and the experience of playing over the years has definitely enriched my life.

   I wonder if these limited vessels that carry our souls here are just as virtual as the game I enjoy. If we can fathom that its a distinct possibility that reality is subjective, based on our limited spectrums (auditory, visual, etc), and our conditioning (both operant and classical), than maybe a cognitive door opens. Maybe some program on some matrix is really all we are. Both comforting and tragic. For me, I choose the blue pill.

• keidan 311 Posts

  Mon, Feb 10 2014 1:33 PM

  Hi, Welcome!  ...and interesting introduction!

  The thought of us living in a simulation is a possibility considered by many.  Essentially units of consciousness that are constrained by a physical rule set... from which we cannot "escape" or easily see beyond.  One thought is that this confinement enhances creativity.  Just floating around as conscious thought with unrestricted boundaries might be insufferably boring.  The challenges of a constrained world/cosmos with untold challenges can potentially enhance/accelerate consciousness evolution.

  In this theoretical framework, one requirement is the ability of a consciousness unit or soul or avatar to self-modify as it learns and grows via experiences within the simulation.  Popular virtual reality and gaming scenarios are few and far between that employ this tactic i.e. create an avatar with specific characteristics and self-modifying abilities, then "let it go" in a virtual environment with an assorment of rule sets or constraints... and watch what happens.

  Current research in AI, or strong AI or artificial general intellingence is the most mature field along these lines, with lots of interesting (and sometimes worrisome) predictions for our future.  The thought is: what happens when an artificially created, self-modifying avatar, or robot, or (as you put it) "limited vessel" is sophisticated enough to rival our own brains?  Suddenly we may have a new consciousness hiearchy at our machine virtual reality level.  And some think that the web, in its entirety, is already there: it meets most of the requirements of a conscious, self modifying organism or mind.  

  Anyway, enjoy your new virtual-within-virtual experience!  I am not a real world golfer but in reading the forums there seem to be lots of interesting parallels, and plenty of challenges/constraints to keep our creative juices flowing.  Got another blue one?  :)

  -Keith

   

• mkg335 5,491 Posts

  Mon, Feb 10 2014 2:35 PM

  A lyrical and refreshing introduction from Mitchell and then an interesting reply from Keith...thanks to both for temporarily lifting us out of the "WGT screwed me!" morass.

  It's tempting to buy into the Matrix myth as an explanation of the "How do I know what's real?" problem, the existential question, until one gets a firm grasp on the false dichotomy of the mind/body, or more accurately, the brain/body split.

  Not to write a thesis here, but much has been written concerning our natural capacity for self-deception and how it's played a crucial role in our evolution.  It allows us to convince the other of our undying love, for example.  Those who are good at it tend to have more reproductive success; in short, a competitive advantage.

  I bring this up in reference to the brain/body false dichotomy and the idea that each of us possesses an individual and autonomous soul or self.  Antonio Damasio writes about this in his book Descartes' Error so I'll spare you my layman's explanation. 

  As far as Keith's reference to AI and our "new consciousness hierarchy"...this is fascinating stuff.  The internet really is, or at least is becoming a cross-cultural model of the individual human brain, with all sorts of promising and possibly worrisome outcomes.