Philosophy: How to Know One Is (Not) a Simulation

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Table of Contents

Introduction
Discussion
Conclusion
References

Introduction

A distinctive feature of philosophy is the constant presence of many different questions that drive continuous controversy and generate thousands of research, reflections, and discussions. One of them is the proof or refutation of whether a person is a simulation, matrix, or hologram, as well as the search for confirmation that a person is alive, unique, and vita. The study of this question is an essential element in studying philosophy and learning the application of various theories from epistemology and metaphysics in practice.

Discussion

There are many reasons why there is doubt that people do not exist as independent real objects but instead are just intangible software constructs that do not function independently, but according to a particular algorithm, reminiscent of a computer simulation. One of the main ones is the difficulty of proving the opposite. Since philosopher Nick Bostrom proposed that space and everything in it may be a simulation, society instantly became interested and initiated discussions of the nature of reality (Bryant, 2020). Although there are a lot of nonexperts’ suggestions surrounding this theory, several respected modern philosophers and physicists are carefully considering this notion and its implications.

According to simulation theory, our entire life is a faux reality, such as a computer simulation. Nick Bostrom popularized the idea in its current form, and the assumption that such a theory is consistent with all human perceptual experiences has significant epistemological consequences, resulting in philosophical skepticism (Irwin, 2022). The notion immediately gained popularity and was exploited in science fiction, serving as a primary narrative in several books and films.

The appropriate epistemological approach to the study of this issue is constructivism, in which cognition is perceived as an active construction by the subject of the interpretation of the model of the world. This approach will provide a broad field for reflection in the context of this issue. In philosophy, constructivism is a theory that holds that each cognitive action is a construction, that is, the formation of a specific structure. The method, in a general sense, relates to various features of worldview and self-awareness. Constructivists believe that there is just one reality that a person has constructed. Furthermore, radical constructivists assert that all reality and judgments about it are anthropogenic, anthropomorphic, and axiological. That is, no objective and independent reality is the same for everyone.

The simulation argument is based on the fact that our ancestors are the only species known to have created computers at all. Based on the constructivist claim that there is no other reality than manufactured reality, once our descendants build such computers, we will know for sure that we are not among the simulated beings in these computers because we will be able to point to them and convincingly say that we are not inside them. We cannot utilize how many simulated conscious creatures our descendants generate to assess the likelihood that we are in a simulation. In other words, their capacity to build simulated worlds in the future tells us nothing about whether or not we are in a simulation. We cannot compute chances using future numbers, and if we cannot calculate the chances, we do not have a trilemma and so cannot speak up. However, under the constructivist framework, we can only examine the past – either humans who existed before us in an unsimulated, genuine reality or extraterrestrial aliens that like creating simulated people. While either of these realities is feasible, we have no proof that it is genuine, and we have no means of knowing how many simulated creatures exist.

The concept that humans would not be human if they did not create a reality with their decisions and behaviors is central to constructivism. Man would be unable to accomplish these duties if he were not living, unique, and vita, as simulation theory argues (Sider, 2020). Because constructivism acknowledges reality as a mental construct, reality is regarded as subjective. However, subjective reality cannot exist in a creature that is fundamentally not a subject, as the simulation implies. If all knowledge is built on human experience, then this experience could not be absorbed, accumulated, or conveyed if the person was merely a component of the simulation. This viewpoint is founded on the interdependence between knowledge and the knower. Constructivism acknowledges that reality is the result of the human intellect interacting with real-world experience. If a human were a simulation that did not make independent decisions, such an interaction would be unable to occur, and so a constructivist reality would not exist.

Conclusion

The presence of experience, awareness, subjective understanding, and perception of the world in constructivism is the definition of the fact that a person is alive, unique, and vita. As soon as the mental activity of a person is included in the process of cognition of reality, a constructivist reality arises. Simulation theory excludes this, as it does not imply this vitality and uniqueness. Thus, if we consider the theory that people are only a simulation of this or that statement, then the very emergence of constructivism would be impossible.

References

Bryant, A. (2020). Epistemic Infrastructure for a Scientific Metaphysics. Grazer philosophische studien, 98(1), 27-49.

Irwin, W., Johnson, D. K. (2022). Introducing philosophy through pop culture: From Socrates to Star Wars and Beyond. John Wiley & Sons.

Sider, T. (2020). The tools of metaphysics and the metaphysics of science. Oxford University Press.

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Philosophy: How to Know One Is (Not) a Simulation

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