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Paul gude: All right. So...
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Can you see me?
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Rodney ascher: Hey!
Yeah, there you are. Hey, Paul.
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Paul: Hey! So I'm just now
starting the audio recorder.
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All right, so that's set up.
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And I'm starting
the video recorder.
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Paul: And I'm just making sure
that it's recording.
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Okay. So... hello!
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Rodney: One of the things that
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you wrote about was sort
of your first primitive idea
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- of simulation theory as a kid.
- Yeah.
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Rodney: Yeah, can you describe
what that was like?
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Can I do one thing before that?
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Rodney: Yeah.
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'Cause this is gonna set
the tenor for everything.
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Rodney: Please.
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Paul: Okay. I was in a class
when I was in college,
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I went to the university
of Missouri, Columbia.
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This was in the early "90s.
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And a teacher was
in front of the class
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and the teacher said,
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"something interesting
about the brain
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is that we actually can map
what we think
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about the human nervous system
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by the highest level
of technology of the day."
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So for example,
when the aqueducts were big,
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people thought that
humors controlled the body.
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That different liquids
would come in and teach you...
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Or make you feel
a different way.
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And then whenever
the telegraph came,
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then all of a sudden we thought,
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"well, these are nerve impulses
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that go down
sort of like wires."
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And then she said, "now we know
that the brain is a computer.”
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And I raised my hand, I said,
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"because that's our highest
level of technology."
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And she said, "no, the brain
is a computer."
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And I didn't do that well
in the class, but the thing is,
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so when we talk
about simulation theory...
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00:02:19,097 --> 00:02:20,962
We, right now, are living
in a time where,
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you know, you have
the ps4, psvr,
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you know,
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I'm a Sony brand whore,
so I apologize
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for not throwing out
other things.
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But the basic, you know,
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virtual reality level
of simulation
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is something
that we can use as a model.
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But it isn't necessarily
what is going on,
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and I think that's important.
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That we can use it
and we can understand
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that's what's going on,
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but we aren't necessarily
in a server room somewhere.
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It might be something different.
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You know, if you run into
a thing in the world
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that you don't understand,
your brain is gonna go,
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"okay, maybe
this is what this is.”
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And as technology
gets more advanced
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we'll have better ways
of describing it.
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So, everything
that I describe here
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keep in mind, you know,
I'm a 21st century guy,
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that's how my brain works.
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If you're watching this
in the future, we aren't dumb,
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to think of this stuff.
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The title of my address is...
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"If you find this world bad,
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you should see
some of the others."
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The subject of this speech...
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Is a topic which has been
discovered recently,
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and which may not exist at all.
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I may be talking about something
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that does not exist.
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Therefore, I am free to say
everything or nothing.
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We are living in
a computer programmed reality
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and the only clue we have to it
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is when some variable
is changed.
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And some alteration
in our reality occurs.
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Audience member:
So the idea is right,
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any sufficiently
advanced civilization
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could create simulation
that's like our existence,
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and so the theory follows
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that maybe
we're in the simulation.
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- Have you thought about this?
- A lot.
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Audience member: And are we...
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I am actually in a simulation,
and so are you.
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So, are we living
in a simulation?
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I find it hard to argue
against that possibility.
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If all of this is some kind
of informational process
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running in some machine.
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The machine is not
in this universe,
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it's somewhere else,
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and this universe is
a consequence of its running.
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This is kind of getting that
artifacting or whatever problem.
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Rodney: Brother mystwood,
hey, how are you?
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Hello. I am sorry about
the strange lighting.
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All I have is Christmas lights.
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You talked about, you know,
sort of this journey
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starting after a spade
of synchronicities.
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- What were those like?
- Yes.
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There's a number of rather
small examples.
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You know, the kind of everyday
things that you would,
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you know...
I'm thinking of someone,
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and I turn the corner
and there they are.
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I would start giving myself
sort of tests.
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I'm thinking of an orange fish.
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I would like to see an orange
fish in the next 10 minutes.
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And 10 minutes later
in the walk,
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I turn down a street
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and there's a restaurant
with an orange fish on it
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that I'd never seen before.
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So, small things like that
occur with enough regularity.
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I began to sort of track
my days numerically.
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And if you'll allow me to go
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on a tangent a little bit here,
Rodney.
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I don't enjoy the average
five-day week.
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I like to work in weeks
of 12 days.
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I would notice that sort
of on every 12th day
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I would see a certain
type of thing pop up
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and I tracked this over the
course of about a year.
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And long story short,
started to notice
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you know, things that would pop
up with a certain regularity.
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You know, on every third day,
for instance, I would kind of...
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That would be when something
would happen
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sort of related to my career.
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Or every fifth day
I would notice an interesting
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synchronicity related
to my family,
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so on and so forth.
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And at a certain point
of course,
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what becomes hard to delineate,
is this regularity
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something that I'm noticing
or something that I'm making?
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You know, is it a schrodinger
type of situation,
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where just by virtue
of staring at this thing,
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it becomes something
that it's not.
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One of the big things was
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that I would go to a lot
of places with my parents
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and they would be empty.
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Or very few people.
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Like a shopping mall with not
a lot of people in there.
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Driving down the road
and never seeing another car.
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Things like that.
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This is because I moved
from Pontiac, Illinois,
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which had more people,
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to dorsey, Illinois,
which had like 500 people.
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Our nearest neighbor was
a quarter of a mile
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down the road and all that.
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So I didn't interact
with a lot of people.
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And one of the things
that I thought,
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again, this is in my little,
you know,
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I moved there when I was in
like second grade...
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In my little brain
I was like, "a-ha!
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This is a great way
of saving time and money
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because they won't need
to have as many people."
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Occasionally, I would
go to St. Louis...
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Which was about 50 miles away.
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But whenever we did,
my dad had a very tight control
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over our schedule
and our itinerary, you know.
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Once I saw...
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The idea of a facade,
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you know, this is
on a western movie thing.
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Once I saw the idea of it,
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I was like, "oh, well,
that's what's happening.”
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All this time that
we're spending in the car,
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this 50 minutes
that it takes us,
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we're inside this car
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they're playing, you know,
this film of us driving
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while they're changing all the
sets into the St. Louis set.
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But I'm not gonna get to go
and see everything
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because my dad is gonna
be there to make sure
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that we hit the points
we're supposed to hit
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and then we get back in the car
and we go.
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Can you see me? There!
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I am an east coaster
who lives in Los Angeles.
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I have an electrical
engineering degree from Harvard.
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I'm an entrepreneur.
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And I've also...
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I've got crohn's disease.
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And it all plays in
to the simulation.
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I think the sort of
basic idea is that
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if you believed it enough...
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Are gonna be distributed
in society
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and that the computers
will get stronger and stronger
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like our cell phones...
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00:11:11,462 --> 00:11:13,578
Hey, you guys! Hey! No! Quiet!
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So, you know, if there are
in fact...
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Enough machines that are running
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video game-style
world simulations
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the question is, you know, if
there's that many fake realities
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and only one base reality,
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00:11:31,149 --> 00:11:34,562
what are the chances that you
happen to be in base reality?
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00:11:35,195 --> 00:11:36,731
The odds that we're
in base reality
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is one in billions.
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Well, I was at the time a...
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00:12:03,097 --> 00:12:06,089
Kind of post-doctoral fellow
at Yale university.
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00:12:06,434 --> 00:12:07,765
The ideas in some vague form
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00:12:07,894 --> 00:12:10,556
have been with me
for quite some time
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00:12:10,855 --> 00:12:13,642
that amounted to something more
than just idle speculation.
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00:12:14,317 --> 00:12:15,397
And so I wrote that up
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00:12:15,860 --> 00:12:17,942
and published that in
philosophical quarterly.
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00:12:19,239 --> 00:12:23,278
And it immediately evoked
a huge amount of interest.
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00:12:23,743 --> 00:12:27,327
And has continued to be
a huge amount of interest.
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00:12:27,538 --> 00:12:30,496
It seems to come in waves
every year or two.
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00:12:30,667 --> 00:12:33,909
Some new set of people
discover it for the first time.
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00:12:35,380 --> 00:12:38,087
So I make a distinction between
the simulation hypothesis
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00:12:38,258 --> 00:12:40,624
which is the hypothesis
that we are literally
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in a computer simulation
engineered
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00:12:42,929 --> 00:12:44,260
by some advanced civilization.
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00:12:44,472 --> 00:12:46,087
And the simulation argument.
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00:12:46,516 --> 00:12:49,724
And it uses some simple
probability theory,
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00:12:49,894 --> 00:12:52,636
but the basic idea can be
quite easily grasped.
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00:12:53,022 --> 00:12:56,185
Which is that at least one
of three propositions is true.
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00:12:57,277 --> 00:13:01,316
The first alternative is that
most all civilizations
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00:13:01,489 --> 00:13:03,980
at our current stage
of technological development
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00:13:04,867 --> 00:13:08,155
go extinct before they reach
technological maturity.
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00:13:13,209 --> 00:13:14,949
The second alternative is
that there is
216
00:13:15,211 --> 00:13:16,667
a very strong convergence
217
00:13:17,130 --> 00:13:20,213
in virtually all technologically
mature civilizations
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00:13:20,466 --> 00:13:22,548
in that they all lose interest
219
00:13:22,719 --> 00:13:25,756
in creating simulations
of this kind.
220
00:13:26,014 --> 00:13:26,924
They all lose interest
221
00:13:27,015 --> 00:13:28,425
in creating
ancestor simulations.
222
00:13:29,017 --> 00:13:31,120
And the third alternative
is the simulation hypothesis
223
00:13:31,144 --> 00:13:33,931
that we are almost certainly
in a computer simulation.
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00:13:36,149 --> 00:13:39,858
So if you reject these first two
propositions, it follows that
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00:13:41,070 --> 00:13:45,359
almost all people with our kinds
of experience are simulated.
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00:13:45,658 --> 00:13:48,491
And then, conditional on that
being the case, I argue
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00:13:48,703 --> 00:13:51,035
we should think we are probably
one of the simulated ones
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00:13:51,539 --> 00:13:53,575
rather than one
of the non-simulated,
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00:13:53,791 --> 00:13:55,281
exceptional, original ones.
230
00:13:55,960 --> 00:13:58,201
Personally, for me,
it's all about probabilities.
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00:13:58,338 --> 00:14:03,753
I'm someone who thinks in terms
of probabilities, anyway.
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00:14:04,594 --> 00:14:07,461
And I've just found in my life
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00:14:07,638 --> 00:14:10,721
that there's lots
of low probability outcomes
234
00:14:11,225 --> 00:14:13,386
happen again and again
and again, and again.
235
00:14:21,027 --> 00:14:22,027
Bam.
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00:14:22,153 --> 00:14:23,814
If I keep glancing off
to the side,
237
00:14:24,030 --> 00:14:25,691
it's 'cause my screen's
over there.
238
00:14:25,865 --> 00:14:26,865
Rodney: Oh, okay.
239
00:14:27,241 --> 00:14:28,651
You're actually
at my drawing table.
240
00:14:28,785 --> 00:14:29,928
So, if I keep
glancing over there,
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00:14:29,952 --> 00:14:31,032
I'm just looking at you.
242
00:14:32,121 --> 00:14:33,577
And I'll look back to camera.
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00:14:33,664 --> 00:14:35,184
Rodney:
What kind of drawing do you do?
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00:14:37,168 --> 00:14:40,376
- It depends. You know moebius?
- Sure.
245
00:14:40,797 --> 00:14:43,504
Yeah, I re-drew one
of his entire books
246
00:14:44,300 --> 00:14:48,088
with characters from peanuts
instead of characters from him.
247
00:14:48,679 --> 00:14:51,295
And then I just do
painting and stuff like...
248
00:14:52,141 --> 00:14:55,349
Just doodling like
fake mignola stuff.
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00:14:55,728 --> 00:14:56,728
Rodney: Uh-huh.
250
00:14:57,397 --> 00:14:59,638
Nothing that wonderful, but...
251
00:15:00,775 --> 00:15:02,169
I'm working more
on the moebius-style
252
00:15:02,193 --> 00:15:03,979
for an entire new book
right now.
253
00:15:04,112 --> 00:15:06,398
Rodney: That's cool.
So, are you a full-time...
254
00:15:07,073 --> 00:15:08,859
- Professional comic artist?
- No, no.
255
00:15:09,575 --> 00:15:12,658
I wish. No, I do
special ed teaching.
256
00:15:13,746 --> 00:15:15,349
Rodney: When did you start
thinking that there's more
257
00:15:15,373 --> 00:15:18,115
to simulation theory
than science fiction can see?
258
00:15:18,668 --> 00:15:21,660
Well, we know musk. When he
started talking about it
259
00:15:22,797 --> 00:15:24,378
I really started
thinking about it more.
260
00:15:24,882 --> 00:15:28,215
The strongest argument
for us being in a simulation...
261
00:15:28,386 --> 00:15:30,626
Probably being in a simulation,
I think is the following.
262
00:15:32,306 --> 00:15:36,470
That 40 years ago, we had pong.
263
00:15:36,686 --> 00:15:38,347
Like two rectangles and a dot.
264
00:15:38,729 --> 00:15:40,435
That was what games were.
265
00:15:41,607 --> 00:15:43,063
Now, 40 years later,
266
00:15:43,276 --> 00:15:46,018
we have photo-realistic
3D simulations
267
00:15:46,195 --> 00:15:48,060
with millions of people
playing simultaneously.
268
00:15:48,489 --> 00:15:49,899
And it's getting better
every year.
269
00:15:50,032 --> 00:15:53,445
If you assume any rate
of improvement at all
270
00:15:54,871 --> 00:15:58,034
then the games will become
indistinguishable from reality.
271
00:16:03,337 --> 00:16:07,546
I think that triggered me
to really think hard about it.
272
00:16:15,016 --> 00:16:18,053
Does any one of us remember
in any dim fashion
273
00:16:18,436 --> 00:16:22,020
a worse earth, circa 1977,
than this?
274
00:16:22,565 --> 00:16:25,932
Have our young men seen visions
and our old men dreamed dreams?
275
00:16:26,194 --> 00:16:27,194
I have.
276
00:16:27,862 --> 00:16:31,150
Nightmare dreams, specifically,
of prisons and jailers
277
00:16:31,616 --> 00:16:33,322
and ubiquitous police.
278
00:16:36,120 --> 00:16:39,863
I wrote out these dreams
in novel after novel,
279
00:16:40,166 --> 00:16:41,497
story after story.
280
00:16:41,959 --> 00:16:44,450
To name two in which
this prior ugly present
281
00:16:44,629 --> 00:16:45,789
obtained most clearly,
282
00:16:46,088 --> 00:16:47,953
I cite
the man in the high castle
283
00:16:48,341 --> 00:16:52,050
and my 1974 novel about
the us as a police state
284
00:16:52,386 --> 00:16:54,593
called flow my tears,
the policeman said.
285
00:16:55,473 --> 00:16:57,680
I'm going to be very candid
with you.
286
00:16:58,017 --> 00:17:01,885
I wrote both novels based on
fragmentary residual memories
287
00:17:02,104 --> 00:17:04,311
of such a horrid
slave state world.
288
00:17:04,857 --> 00:17:06,939
Or perhaps the term "world"
is the wrong one
289
00:17:07,068 --> 00:17:08,558
and I should say
"United States",
290
00:17:08,986 --> 00:17:10,101
since in both novels,
291
00:17:10,196 --> 00:17:12,107
I was writing
about my own country.
292
00:17:13,407 --> 00:17:15,489
Some people claim
to remember past lives.
293
00:17:15,660 --> 00:17:18,948
I claim to remember
a very different present life.
294
00:17:19,747 --> 00:17:22,784
I know of no one who has ever
made this claim before,
295
00:17:24,335 --> 00:17:26,121
that my experience
is not unique.
296
00:17:26,837 --> 00:17:29,294
I can even tell you
what caused me to remember.
297
00:17:30,132 --> 00:17:33,966
In late February of 1974,
I was given sodium pentothal
298
00:17:34,136 --> 00:17:36,343
for the extraction
of impacted wisdom teeth.
299
00:17:36,847 --> 00:17:39,384
Later that day, back home again
but still
300
00:17:39,517 --> 00:17:42,179
deeply under the influence
of the sodium pentothal,
301
00:17:42,520 --> 00:17:45,432
I had a short, acute flash
of recovered memory.
302
00:17:46,065 --> 00:17:48,021
In one instance,
I caught it all.
303
00:17:48,609 --> 00:17:51,567
You are free to believe me
or to disbelieve,
304
00:17:51,904 --> 00:17:54,361
but please take my word on it
that I am not joking.
305
00:17:54,574 --> 00:17:57,407
This is very serious,
a matter of importance.
306
00:17:57,910 --> 00:18:00,276
I am sure that,
at the very least, you'll agree
307
00:18:00,538 --> 00:18:03,951
that for me even to claim this
is in itself amazing.
308
00:18:32,570 --> 00:18:33,901
It was a great experience,
309
00:18:34,405 --> 00:18:38,023
although a kind of
crazy-making one in a way.
310
00:18:38,200 --> 00:18:43,365
And you're in the antechamber
of the guy's problems
311
00:18:43,623 --> 00:18:47,081
and his trauma, and his despair.
312
00:18:47,335 --> 00:18:49,747
It was so... such a vast text
313
00:18:49,962 --> 00:18:53,204
that you kinda had to do it
by attrition, really.
314
00:18:53,382 --> 00:18:55,302
There were a number of things
that really worked.
315
00:18:55,426 --> 00:18:57,382
One is that
when he was really engaging
316
00:18:57,511 --> 00:18:58,511
in his own writing...
317
00:18:58,638 --> 00:18:59,656
We included that.
318
00:18:59,680 --> 00:19:02,092
When he was
describing experiences,
319
00:19:02,308 --> 00:19:03,308
we included that.
320
00:19:03,392 --> 00:19:04,661
There's a part where
321
00:19:04,685 --> 00:19:08,177
dick describes the writing in
"exegesis" as a "hell chore".
322
00:19:08,397 --> 00:19:11,104
I think it really shows
the challenges
323
00:19:11,233 --> 00:19:14,100
of wrestling with
an extraordinary experience,
324
00:19:14,278 --> 00:19:15,688
and particularly experiences
325
00:19:15,946 --> 00:19:19,029
which we can find throughout
religious history
326
00:19:19,200 --> 00:19:22,863
of seeming insights
into reality that,
327
00:19:23,079 --> 00:19:25,035
for whatever positive vision
they give you
328
00:19:25,247 --> 00:19:26,657
about the true nature of things,
329
00:19:27,375 --> 00:19:28,865
do manage to undermine
330
00:19:29,126 --> 00:19:30,991
your sense
that the everyday world
331
00:19:31,170 --> 00:19:36,085
is at all a coherent,
realistic operation.
332
00:19:36,300 --> 00:19:39,633
And that's quite
a harrowing ride.
333
00:19:47,561 --> 00:19:48,664
I could probably put together
a list
334
00:19:48,688 --> 00:19:52,397
of all the various
small synchronicities
335
00:19:52,566 --> 00:19:53,566
that kept popping up,
336
00:19:53,651 --> 00:19:56,108
but they were just so mundane,
but there was so many of them
337
00:19:56,278 --> 00:19:59,520
that eventually
I took one of these,
338
00:20:00,157 --> 00:20:02,273
you know, a particularly
auspicious day,
339
00:20:02,451 --> 00:20:03,451
I guess, for myself.
340
00:20:03,619 --> 00:20:07,362
And decided I was going to do
a sensory deprivation tank.
341
00:20:08,999 --> 00:20:10,785
Which is not something
I had done before.
342
00:20:11,460 --> 00:20:12,620
But it was just...
343
00:20:14,088 --> 00:20:17,751
Something that felt like it'd
be an interesting experience.
344
00:20:18,217 --> 00:20:19,217
And so, I did that.
345
00:20:19,260 --> 00:20:22,093
And there's a guy
in New York here,
346
00:20:22,221 --> 00:20:23,256
oh 23rd street
347
00:20:23,431 --> 00:20:24,887
who has
a sensory deprivation tank
348
00:20:25,015 --> 00:20:26,015
in his apartment,
349
00:20:26,100 --> 00:20:27,715
which is a strange thing,
but you go in,
350
00:20:27,935 --> 00:20:29,800
he gives you the spiel.
351
00:20:30,312 --> 00:20:32,312
You ask him any questions,
and then you go into it.
352
00:20:33,357 --> 00:20:35,348
And I, never having
had done this before,
353
00:20:35,526 --> 00:20:37,437
I kind of went into it
354
00:20:37,611 --> 00:20:38,880
not really knowing
what to expect.
355
00:20:38,904 --> 00:20:41,065
But he said, just sort of
ask for what you want
356
00:20:41,240 --> 00:20:43,356
or ask for, you know,
what you'd like to know.
357
00:20:43,576 --> 00:20:45,737
And the sense I got was like,
358
00:20:45,911 --> 00:20:47,551
"yes, I'm asking the universe,
or whatever
359
00:20:47,580 --> 00:20:49,036
but I'm also really
asking myself."
360
00:20:49,165 --> 00:20:52,282
And maybe those aren't
different things, right?
361
00:21:01,677 --> 00:21:03,133
The first few minutes
were very...
362
00:21:04,221 --> 00:21:05,927
I was very aware of where I was.
363
00:21:06,098 --> 00:21:07,508
But after a few more minutes,
364
00:21:08,225 --> 00:21:10,637
I sort of stopped
sensing my body.
365
00:21:10,936 --> 00:21:13,473
I could now hear my eyelids.
366
00:21:13,773 --> 00:21:15,375
I could actually hear
what I thought might be
367
00:21:15,399 --> 00:21:16,479
my nervous system.
368
00:21:16,650 --> 00:21:19,733
I kinda, in that state,
had to come out, and said,
369
00:21:20,237 --> 00:21:21,693
'listen, I get the sense
370
00:21:21,864 --> 00:21:23,479
that you're trying
to tell me something."
371
00:21:24,200 --> 00:21:26,691
I'm not sure I even knew who
the "you" was I was talking to.
372
00:21:26,827 --> 00:21:28,863
I don't know if it was
the universe or...
373
00:21:29,330 --> 00:21:32,197
I'm also an ordained minister,
so I was raised with that.
374
00:21:32,917 --> 00:21:34,202
So there's, you know,
375
00:21:34,335 --> 00:21:35,791
there's a god part of it for me.
376
00:21:39,298 --> 00:21:40,650
Brother mystwood:
Just sort of asking it,
377
00:21:40,674 --> 00:21:42,084
come out, just come out
378
00:21:42,176 --> 00:21:43,576
and do what it is
you'd like to say.
379
00:21:56,899 --> 00:21:59,857
Yeah, and I'm not
a new age guy at all.
380
00:22:00,027 --> 00:22:01,642
Or at least I wasn't
before I did this.
381
00:22:01,821 --> 00:22:04,528
But my head started to buzz.
382
00:22:04,907 --> 00:22:08,070
My forehead just started
to violent pounding.
383
00:22:08,285 --> 00:22:11,277
A swirling buzz that I...
384
00:22:11,664 --> 00:22:13,370
I felt like I opened up,
385
00:22:13,541 --> 00:22:15,247
and I just
became aware like, "okay
386
00:22:15,751 --> 00:22:18,117
I am not a body at all,
I am a code.
387
00:22:18,420 --> 00:22:20,661
I am a string of letters
and numbers
388
00:22:20,798 --> 00:22:22,004
and acids, and so forth.
389
00:22:22,174 --> 00:22:23,630
And I knew this, of course,
from DNA,
390
00:22:23,801 --> 00:22:26,838
but more than that,
it means, you know,
391
00:22:27,513 --> 00:22:30,926
nothing on me is real.”
392
00:22:31,851 --> 00:22:33,537
Brother mystwooa:
And nothing on anyone is real.
393
00:22:33,561 --> 00:22:36,223
I'm pattern, I'm a code
constantly replicating itself.
394
00:22:36,397 --> 00:22:38,729
I'm a vibration,
and that's what it is.
395
00:22:38,941 --> 00:22:39,805
Got out of the tank
396
00:22:39,900 --> 00:22:41,765
and I started talking
to the guy.
397
00:22:43,863 --> 00:22:44,943
And he was talking about,
398
00:22:45,030 --> 00:22:46,174
"oh, it's your third eye opening
399
00:22:46,198 --> 00:22:47,438
and sometimes that happens”
400
00:22:47,575 --> 00:22:49,052
and I asked him,
"well what do I do with that?"
401
00:22:49,076 --> 00:22:50,862
And he's like, "I don't know.
Enjoy it."
402
00:22:53,497 --> 00:22:56,489
I've always had a little bit
of a sense of this,
403
00:22:56,667 --> 00:22:58,123
but this is the big event.
404
00:23:02,798 --> 00:23:04,413
I was about 11 or 12...
405
00:23:05,467 --> 00:23:07,549
And I'm adopted.
406
00:23:08,012 --> 00:23:10,003
I'm a pastor's son.
407
00:23:10,639 --> 00:23:12,175
Paul: My adopted dad
is a pastor,
408
00:23:12,349 --> 00:23:13,930
so I go to church every Sunday.
409
00:23:14,435 --> 00:23:16,551
And I believe at this point
in time, though,
410
00:23:16,770 --> 00:23:17,850
it wasn't a Sunday service.
411
00:23:18,022 --> 00:23:19,499
I think it was like
an advent service.
412
00:23:19,523 --> 00:23:20,558
It was at nighttime.
413
00:23:21,275 --> 00:23:25,735
And most people have
some reference for church,
414
00:23:25,905 --> 00:23:26,940
but in case you don't,
415
00:23:27,865 --> 00:23:29,730
there are people,
they're dressed up
416
00:23:31,035 --> 00:23:33,367
and they're sitting in...
This is in the early 80s,
417
00:23:33,579 --> 00:23:35,945
so people dressed up more
than they maybe do now.
418
00:23:36,332 --> 00:23:39,870
And they're seating in pews.
Pews are like long benches.
419
00:23:40,878 --> 00:23:42,147
And they have
their hymnals open,
420
00:23:42,171 --> 00:23:43,171
and they're singing.
421
00:23:44,381 --> 00:23:47,623
Paul: And I look around
at everyone singing
422
00:23:48,594 --> 00:23:52,963
and I think to myself, "the way
we're making these noises,
423
00:23:53,682 --> 00:23:57,891
is that we have these meat
flaps and we're forcing air
424
00:23:58,020 --> 00:24:00,432
through these meat flaps
and we're making noise.
425
00:24:00,981 --> 00:24:02,517
And we're animals, basically,
426
00:24:02,733 --> 00:24:04,849
yet we put on all these clothes
427
00:24:05,069 --> 00:24:08,311
and we sit in this place,
and we're making these noises
428
00:24:08,447 --> 00:24:10,062
by forcing air
through our meat flaps,"
429
00:24:10,407 --> 00:24:12,989
and I start thinking about
how bodies move
430
00:24:13,369 --> 00:24:15,405
and how weird it is
that they move that way.
431
00:24:15,704 --> 00:24:17,569
And just the absurdity
of the situation
432
00:24:17,957 --> 00:24:19,663
keeps on going around,
around in my head.
433
00:24:20,042 --> 00:24:22,624
And I'm like,
"oh, none of this is real.
434
00:24:22,795 --> 00:24:23,875
That's what's going on.”
435
00:24:24,088 --> 00:24:25,999
And as soon as I had
that realization,
436
00:24:26,298 --> 00:24:28,129
the only way
I can describe it is,
437
00:24:28,467 --> 00:24:31,254
I was nowhere, I was nothing.
438
00:24:32,596 --> 00:24:36,134
I felt sort of like
loneliness was a thing.
439
00:24:36,308 --> 00:24:38,549
I was the personification of it.
440
00:24:38,811 --> 00:24:41,678
I was cut off from everything.
It was only me.
441
00:24:42,731 --> 00:24:46,565
And it was soul-crushing
and claustrophobic.
442
00:24:47,319 --> 00:24:50,607
But I didn't see anything.
It wasn't that I saw blackness.
443
00:24:50,781 --> 00:24:53,318
I wasn't seeing
and I wasn't feeling.
444
00:24:53,534 --> 00:24:56,867
It was this
almost negation of self
445
00:24:57,037 --> 00:24:58,493
except that I was there
446
00:24:58,956 --> 00:25:02,949
feeling this weird emptiness,
this gone-ness.
447
00:25:11,343 --> 00:25:14,050
My entire life,
I'm living with family,
448
00:25:14,179 --> 00:25:16,670
and I'm real used to it.
Specifically, my brother.
449
00:25:18,225 --> 00:25:19,840
And then I go off.
450
00:25:20,394 --> 00:25:22,555
You know, the parents
are always like, "you're 18.
451
00:25:22,730 --> 00:25:23,845
We're kicking you out.”
452
00:25:24,356 --> 00:25:25,846
But I kinda beat them
to the punch
453
00:25:26,066 --> 00:25:27,931
because, like,
the day after graduation,
454
00:25:28,027 --> 00:25:29,062
I was out of town.
455
00:25:29,361 --> 00:25:30,225
I had moved away.
456
00:25:30,320 --> 00:25:31,600
And I didn't come back
for years.
457
00:25:32,948 --> 00:25:35,610
But during that time,
I was just alone, you know.
458
00:25:35,701 --> 00:25:36,565
I lived with a friend,
459
00:25:36,660 --> 00:25:38,100
but I didn't have
my brother with me.
460
00:25:39,246 --> 00:25:42,158
And all we would do
for like two straight years
461
00:25:42,291 --> 00:25:43,291
is just play video games.
462
00:25:43,333 --> 00:25:44,948
I worked at a chili's,
463
00:25:45,961 --> 00:25:48,023
and I would always come home,
we would do stupid things
464
00:25:48,047 --> 00:25:52,586
like play guitar hero
for two straight days,
465
00:25:52,718 --> 00:25:56,961
or we would get a game
and do it from front to back,
466
00:25:57,139 --> 00:25:59,019
and then just go back in
and just beat it again.
467
00:25:59,808 --> 00:26:02,390
All the time, video games,
for years and years,
468
00:26:03,437 --> 00:26:04,802
that's literally all I did.
469
00:26:05,981 --> 00:26:07,812
Didn't draw, didn't do anything.
470
00:26:15,240 --> 00:26:17,481
And so I got into
a dark place there.
471
00:26:17,618 --> 00:26:20,451
It's like, "maybe I'm stuck
in this rut on purpose.
472
00:26:20,621 --> 00:26:22,703
Maybe it's not my design.
It's whatever."
473
00:26:22,873 --> 00:26:24,534
I'm not religious at all,
474
00:26:24,917 --> 00:26:28,330
but how do I reconcile feeling
like I'm in a rut, though?
475
00:26:29,088 --> 00:26:31,044
Like a preprogrammed rut.
476
00:26:31,507 --> 00:26:32,747
I have to go the science route.
477
00:26:33,675 --> 00:26:38,044
And the only really blending
of religion in science there is
478
00:26:38,347 --> 00:26:40,804
would probably be
a simulation theory,
479
00:26:41,558 --> 00:26:42,673
to be honest with you.
480
00:26:45,687 --> 00:26:47,177
Paul: When I had that
first experience
481
00:26:47,314 --> 00:26:49,396
in the church,
the analogy that I use is like,
482
00:26:49,566 --> 00:26:52,808
let's say that your grandpa
has a favorite radio.
483
00:26:53,403 --> 00:26:55,283
And he listens to it
all the time, and all that.
484
00:26:55,322 --> 00:26:58,189
And one day, you decide
to take that radio apart.
485
00:26:58,700 --> 00:27:00,236
And you're looking
at all the pieces
486
00:27:00,702 --> 00:27:02,033
and "hey, hey,
I took this apart."
487
00:27:02,204 --> 00:27:05,196
And then you realize you can't
put it back together again.
488
00:27:05,999 --> 00:27:07,239
That's the feeling that I had
489
00:27:07,417 --> 00:27:10,454
when I was in that sort
of null state, if you will.
490
00:27:11,046 --> 00:27:12,582
And in my mind...
491
00:27:13,757 --> 00:27:17,591
That is what's outside
of the simulation.
492
00:27:27,563 --> 00:27:29,144
Contemplating this possibility
493
00:27:29,314 --> 00:27:31,225
of a lateral arrangement
of worlds,
494
00:27:32,276 --> 00:27:34,062
a plurality
of overlapping earths
495
00:27:34,236 --> 00:27:37,273
along whose linking axis
a person can somehow move
496
00:27:37,614 --> 00:27:39,275
and travel in a mysterious way
497
00:27:39,449 --> 00:27:41,531
from worst to fair
to good to excellent.
498
00:27:42,035 --> 00:27:44,196
Contemplating this
in theological terms,
499
00:27:44,705 --> 00:27:47,868
perhaps we could say that
here with we suddenly decipher
500
00:27:48,167 --> 00:27:50,658
the elliptical utterances
which Christ expressed
501
00:27:50,794 --> 00:27:52,409
regarding the kingdom of god.
502
00:27:52,754 --> 00:27:54,540
Specifically,
where it is located.
503
00:27:55,299 --> 00:27:57,381
He seems to have given
contradictory
504
00:27:57,551 --> 00:27:58,586
and puzzling answers.
505
00:27:59,094 --> 00:28:01,585
But suppose, just suppose
for an instant
506
00:28:02,222 --> 00:28:03,928
that the cause of the perplexity
507
00:28:04,099 --> 00:28:05,259
lay not in any desire
508
00:28:05,392 --> 00:28:07,348
on his part
to baffle or to hide,
509
00:28:07,644 --> 00:28:09,635
but in the inadequacy
of the question.
510
00:28:10,647 --> 00:28:12,308
"My kingdom is not
of this world,"
511
00:28:12,441 --> 00:28:13,897
he is reported to have said.
512
00:28:14,526 --> 00:28:17,438
"The kingdom is within you,
or possibly it is among you."
513
00:28:18,739 --> 00:28:21,230
It was his mission
to teach his disciples
514
00:28:21,617 --> 00:28:24,984
the secret of crossing along
this orthogonal path.
515
00:28:25,579 --> 00:28:27,945
He did not merely report
what lay there.
516
00:28:28,373 --> 00:28:30,034
He taught the method
of getting there.
517
00:28:30,667 --> 00:28:32,749
But, tragically,
the secret was lost.
518
00:28:33,253 --> 00:28:35,460
The enemy, the Roman authority,
crushed it.
519
00:28:37,174 --> 00:28:39,381
When I saw star wars
this morning
520
00:28:40,427 --> 00:28:41,462
I thought to myself...
521
00:28:43,055 --> 00:28:44,055
Deja vu.
522
00:28:49,144 --> 00:28:51,760
Paul: The simulation idea
has been around way before
523
00:28:51,897 --> 00:28:54,639
all of us started thinking
about computers.
524
00:28:55,150 --> 00:28:58,187
The concept of people standing
at the pearly gates
525
00:28:58,362 --> 00:29:00,318
and looking at their lives,
right?
526
00:29:00,697 --> 00:29:05,407
What is that if not
a debrief, if you will,
527
00:29:05,535 --> 00:29:07,867
after you get out
of a simulation?
528
00:29:08,580 --> 00:29:10,696
Hey, Miller, look what I found.
529
00:29:10,916 --> 00:29:11,916
Wow.
530
00:29:12,793 --> 00:29:14,704
Realistic, isn't it, Mr. Miller?
531
00:29:15,295 --> 00:29:18,207
Nick bostrom: René descartes
tried to build an epistemology
532
00:29:18,674 --> 00:29:21,711
from a foundation of skepticism
and radical doubt.
533
00:29:22,177 --> 00:29:24,293
Narrator: / will suppose
that some malicious demon
534
00:29:24,513 --> 00:29:26,674
has employed his energies
to deceive me.
535
00:29:27,557 --> 00:29:30,390
I shall think that the sky,
the air, the earth
536
00:29:30,560 --> 00:29:32,892
and all external things
are merely the delusions
537
00:29:33,063 --> 00:29:35,349
which he has devised
to ensnare my judgement.
538
00:29:36,566 --> 00:29:40,309
I shall consider myself as not
having hands or flesh or senses
539
00:29:40,737 --> 00:29:43,194
but his falsely believing
that I have all these things.
540
00:29:44,032 --> 00:29:46,444
A slightly more modern version
of the same idea
541
00:29:46,618 --> 00:29:48,574
is the brain in a vat.
Where, again,
542
00:29:49,162 --> 00:29:52,154
you try to challenge
the philosopher
543
00:29:52,416 --> 00:29:54,077
to prove that
the external world exists
544
00:29:54,251 --> 00:29:57,334
and that he or she
is not a brain in a vat
545
00:29:57,671 --> 00:29:59,457
in some
mad scientist's laboratory
546
00:29:59,631 --> 00:30:01,496
being kind of fed inputs
547
00:30:01,967 --> 00:30:03,832
that mimic what
the external world
548
00:30:03,927 --> 00:30:05,167
would have done.
549
00:30:16,189 --> 00:30:17,629
It didn't really matter
how realistic
550
00:30:17,733 --> 00:30:18,876
these thought experiments were.
551
00:30:18,900 --> 00:30:20,481
They were just
logical possibilities,
552
00:30:20,652 --> 00:30:22,768
and the challenge was,
how can you disprove them?
553
00:30:34,541 --> 00:30:36,907
He describes, "imagine,
the situation.
554
00:30:37,377 --> 00:30:41,586
There are figures chained
inside of a cave from birth.
555
00:30:41,757 --> 00:30:43,748
They have no experience
of what's outside of it.
556
00:30:43,967 --> 00:30:45,007
They're looking at a wall,
557
00:30:45,177 --> 00:30:47,168
and on the wall they kind
of see this projection.”
558
00:30:47,721 --> 00:30:49,641
Orson welles: You see men
passing along the wall,
559
00:30:49,723 --> 00:30:51,634
carrying all sorts of articles
560
00:30:51,808 --> 00:30:53,890
which they hold projected
above the wall.
561
00:30:54,227 --> 00:30:56,309
Statues of men and animals
562
00:30:56,480 --> 00:30:59,017
made of wood and stone
and various materials.
563
00:31:03,362 --> 00:31:06,525
Of the objects, which are
being carried in like manner,
564
00:31:07,199 --> 00:31:09,360
they would only see the shadows.
565
00:31:21,129 --> 00:31:23,085
Emily pothast:
It's a very cinematic metaphor,
566
00:31:23,131 --> 00:31:24,131
and I just love that,
567
00:31:24,174 --> 00:31:27,587
how that sort of imagination
of how film affects us.
568
00:31:28,512 --> 00:31:31,800
And just like there's
like that lossiness between
569
00:31:31,932 --> 00:31:34,765
what is really happening
and what perception shows us,
570
00:31:34,976 --> 00:31:38,013
there's sort of lossiness
between what media
571
00:31:38,146 --> 00:31:40,228
shows us and what
the real world outside
572
00:31:40,399 --> 00:31:42,105
of that media representation is.
573
00:31:42,275 --> 00:31:43,275
So now,
574
00:31:43,318 --> 00:31:45,604
it's not just what their senses
decide to show them,
575
00:31:45,779 --> 00:31:47,379
it's what the media
decides to show them.
576
00:31:47,531 --> 00:31:50,238
All: And this is extremely
dangerous to our democracy.
577
00:31:50,867 --> 00:31:53,233
Erik Davis:
Let's go back to hindu myths.
578
00:31:57,624 --> 00:32:00,457
You find these incredible myths
of like, you know,
579
00:32:00,502 --> 00:32:03,790
the king's going along and
stops for a well and he drinks
580
00:32:03,839 --> 00:32:06,046
and then he goes and has
a whole other existence,
581
00:32:06,216 --> 00:32:07,547
a whole other life.
582
00:32:07,884 --> 00:32:09,624
And then pop! He comes back in.
583
00:32:09,845 --> 00:32:12,086
And they'll even have worlds
within worlds within worlds.
584
00:32:12,222 --> 00:32:14,713
So, you have the structure
of worlds within worlds,
585
00:32:14,891 --> 00:32:16,097
and once you have that
586
00:32:16,435 --> 00:32:19,017
it undermines the primary world.
587
00:32:19,354 --> 00:32:20,935
It really kind of
crystalized for me
588
00:32:21,064 --> 00:32:22,554
when I started observing
589
00:32:22,732 --> 00:32:25,018
the experience
of the villager in minecraft.
590
00:32:26,695 --> 00:32:28,686
He's a massively simplified
version of us.
591
00:32:28,947 --> 00:32:32,656
He has free will. He moves
about the space as he sees fit.
592
00:32:32,993 --> 00:32:34,313
But the interesting thing,
though,
593
00:32:34,369 --> 00:32:36,049
is for me what it was
with the villager is,
594
00:32:36,288 --> 00:32:39,075
you know, what does he do
when you, the avatar
595
00:32:39,916 --> 00:32:42,077
come down into the game
of minecraft?
596
00:32:42,335 --> 00:32:44,417
When you inhabit your avatar
in minecraft
597
00:32:44,546 --> 00:32:46,207
and you descend to earth,
598
00:32:46,840 --> 00:32:49,456
what does the villager do
when you encounter him?
599
00:32:50,051 --> 00:32:51,962
He looks at you, you know?
600
00:32:52,554 --> 00:32:55,045
He looks at you as if
you are the same as him.
601
00:32:55,223 --> 00:32:57,383
Of course, you're not.
Because you are being controlled
602
00:32:57,726 --> 00:32:59,091
by an intelligence,
a higher power.
603
00:32:59,895 --> 00:33:01,806
Alex levine:
It'd be hilarious if elon musk
604
00:33:01,897 --> 00:33:02,932
was a player character.
605
00:33:04,024 --> 00:33:05,504
And he just comes
into the game, like,
606
00:33:05,650 --> 00:33:08,517
"hey, you guys know...
We're simulated."
607
00:33:09,821 --> 00:33:11,357
This could be some simulation.
608
00:33:11,448 --> 00:33:13,188
It could. Do you entertain that?
609
00:33:13,617 --> 00:33:15,497
Alex: But then he gets
to log off, go back to...
610
00:33:16,495 --> 00:33:18,110
Artificer, heaven or whatever,
611
00:33:18,288 --> 00:33:21,951
and laugh with his weird
extra-dimensional friends
612
00:33:22,375 --> 00:33:24,240
"hey, I was just playing around
613
00:33:24,419 --> 00:33:25,784
with that simulation
again today.
614
00:33:26,129 --> 00:33:28,489
And I keep dropping them hints,
but no one's picking it up."
615
00:33:29,633 --> 00:33:31,319
Brother mystwooad:
But it's interesting because,
616
00:33:31,343 --> 00:33:33,459
for me, the villager speaks to,
617
00:33:33,595 --> 00:33:36,086
there are a few different
levels of what, you know
618
00:33:36,389 --> 00:33:37,700
being raised in
the Christian faith,
619
00:33:37,724 --> 00:33:38,839
I would call god.
620
00:33:39,726 --> 00:33:41,512
There's the god
who made the world,
621
00:33:41,728 --> 00:33:42,934
and then there's the avatar
622
00:33:43,104 --> 00:33:44,790
who's descending in front
of you, and they're different
623
00:33:44,814 --> 00:33:46,042
because the god
who made the world
624
00:33:46,066 --> 00:33:47,806
is not the person
who's in front of you.
625
00:33:47,984 --> 00:33:49,940
We don't get to see that.
We don't get to see
626
00:33:50,111 --> 00:33:51,647
the creator of the game.
627
00:33:52,239 --> 00:33:55,982
To extend this metaphor
to perhaps ridiculous lengths.
628
00:33:56,243 --> 00:33:58,529
You know, one minute,
a pixel on your screen
629
00:33:59,120 --> 00:34:00,656
will be representing a flower.
630
00:34:01,623 --> 00:34:02,829
And it is that flower.
631
00:34:03,583 --> 00:34:05,228
And then the next minute,
a villager will walk in,
632
00:34:05,252 --> 00:34:07,493
and that pixel represents him.
633
00:34:07,963 --> 00:34:09,123
That pixel is part of him.
634
00:34:09,339 --> 00:34:10,816
It doesn't take much
to think about like,
635
00:34:10,840 --> 00:34:12,960
"well, if I just extrapolate
that to three dimensions,
636
00:34:14,010 --> 00:34:17,468
it's the same as atom
is in cells. You know, one year
637
00:34:18,014 --> 00:34:19,174
this cell's part of me,
638
00:34:19,349 --> 00:34:20,629
and then tomorrow
it'll flake off
639
00:34:20,725 --> 00:34:21,827
and it'll be part
of something else.
640
00:34:21,851 --> 00:34:22,761
And every seven years,
641
00:34:22,852 --> 00:34:25,138
our cells
replace themselves, anyway."
642
00:34:36,366 --> 00:34:37,646
Chris ware: Video game itself...
643
00:34:38,868 --> 00:34:40,404
Catches this sort of sense of...
644
00:34:41,413 --> 00:34:43,333
I don't know, more than
anything just like death.
645
00:34:43,415 --> 00:34:44,825
Whenever I play it
with my daughter,
646
00:34:45,041 --> 00:34:47,282
I feel like we're dead
and we're flying around
647
00:34:47,460 --> 00:34:48,771
looking at the world
or something.
648
00:34:48,795 --> 00:34:52,037
It's the only experience
I've had that kind of
649
00:34:52,340 --> 00:34:54,376
closely approximates
what I imagine
650
00:34:55,468 --> 00:34:58,380
a disembodied consciousness
might experience, or something.
651
00:34:58,597 --> 00:35:00,117
I don't know how else
to really put it.
652
00:35:01,391 --> 00:35:03,803
We build these peculiar
sculptures.
653
00:35:03,977 --> 00:35:06,719
She built giant... well,
"giant" is a relative term
654
00:35:06,938 --> 00:35:08,658
when you're talking
digitally being reality.
655
00:35:08,732 --> 00:35:11,519
But giant sculptures
of myself and my wife
656
00:35:12,068 --> 00:35:15,526
amidst kind of golden farmhouses
657
00:35:15,655 --> 00:35:18,772
that then would go underground,
658
00:35:19,367 --> 00:35:21,528
and train lines
or mine cart lines
659
00:35:21,703 --> 00:35:24,695
that would go underground
and connect between...
660
00:35:27,292 --> 00:35:29,328
The landscape
that kind of pre-existed.
661
00:35:31,087 --> 00:35:34,671
But now she's 14, so she's
kind of passed beyond.
662
00:35:34,841 --> 00:35:37,253
But now she's in this
sort of baroque phase
663
00:35:37,427 --> 00:35:39,292
where she
and some of her friends
664
00:35:39,471 --> 00:35:41,211
now have gone back to minecraft
665
00:35:41,389 --> 00:35:44,096
and are now looking at
their worlds that they made
666
00:35:44,392 --> 00:35:47,008
in their preadolescence
and kind of revisiting them,
667
00:35:47,187 --> 00:35:50,270
and listening to the music again
and getting all tearful.
668
00:35:50,440 --> 00:35:52,476
So it's a 14-year-old nostalgia
669
00:35:52,651 --> 00:35:54,642
for a lost world of innocence,
or something.
670
00:35:55,528 --> 00:35:59,396
I guess when she's 40
and I'm 85, or whatever
671
00:35:59,532 --> 00:36:03,741
and downloaded onto
a flash drive
672
00:36:03,912 --> 00:36:05,743
we cah continue to visit.
673
00:36:21,096 --> 00:36:23,303
Philip k. Dick: My relationship
with the United States
674
00:36:23,473 --> 00:36:24,758
has always been a very bad one.
675
00:36:26,935 --> 00:36:28,675
It has always seemed to me
676
00:36:29,979 --> 00:36:32,971
that I was about to be arrested
by the American police
677
00:36:33,525 --> 00:36:35,766
for some obscure reason.
678
00:36:35,944 --> 00:36:38,811
Perhaps that's because
of reading kafka's the trial.
679
00:36:39,155 --> 00:36:41,362
That book influenced me
very much.
680
00:36:41,616 --> 00:36:44,358
You know, where someone
is arrested for a crime,
681
00:36:44,536 --> 00:36:46,948
and he's never told
what crime he's committed.
682
00:36:50,542 --> 00:36:53,659
When I was a kid, and one of
the things I really keyed into
683
00:36:54,671 --> 00:36:57,834
was adults at the time
would repeat things
684
00:36:58,550 --> 00:36:59,550
over and over again.
685
00:36:59,676 --> 00:37:00,961
For instance, newsweek magazine,
686
00:37:01,177 --> 00:37:02,713
my dad used to get it
all the time.
687
00:37:03,513 --> 00:37:05,193
And we'd be sitting around
the dinner table
688
00:37:06,266 --> 00:37:08,131
and he'd say,
"well, you know..."
689
00:37:08,184 --> 00:37:10,391
And then he'd say word for word
690
00:37:11,104 --> 00:37:14,437
a sentence that was read
from the newsweek magazine.
691
00:37:17,277 --> 00:37:19,063
So, it was like the magazine
692
00:37:19,654 --> 00:37:21,815
programmed him to say
that thing.
693
00:37:21,948 --> 00:37:23,904
This wasn't an original thought
that he had.
694
00:37:24,826 --> 00:37:27,067
And that's really where
it started, I guess.
695
00:37:27,287 --> 00:37:32,202
You know, in my, like...
Early childhood,
696
00:37:32,417 --> 00:37:37,457
the concept that the people
that I was dealing with were,
697
00:37:37,589 --> 00:37:40,797
I used the term
"chemical robots" at the time,
698
00:37:41,468 --> 00:37:45,086
but the concept that
they weren't actually conscious.
699
00:37:45,722 --> 00:37:47,553
They had these
repeated behaviors
700
00:37:47,682 --> 00:37:49,297
that they would do
over and over again.
701
00:38:06,242 --> 00:38:08,608
Rodney: Does the idea
of ancestor simulations
702
00:38:08,745 --> 00:38:10,827
suggest that we are
retracing the steps
703
00:38:16,795 --> 00:38:19,161
Well, that's one possibility.
704
00:38:19,339 --> 00:38:21,250
There could also be
all kinds of variations
705
00:38:22,342 --> 00:38:24,128
ranging from
complete fantasy worlds
706
00:38:24,219 --> 00:38:25,254
that bear no resemblance
707
00:38:25,470 --> 00:38:28,928
to anything that existed
in physical reality
708
00:38:29,182 --> 00:38:31,013
to variations of history.
709
00:38:33,478 --> 00:38:36,686
All of that
is conceptually possible.
710
00:38:37,857 --> 00:38:41,065
But an ancestor simulation
that I talk about in the paper
711
00:38:41,194 --> 00:38:43,981
which is to consider
the type of simulation
712
00:38:44,155 --> 00:38:47,272
where the simulators
would be creating
713
00:38:48,201 --> 00:38:50,533
very detailed simulations
of people like
714
00:38:51,037 --> 00:38:53,278
their historical predecessors.
715
00:38:53,623 --> 00:38:55,909
Maybe not exactly
the same people,
716
00:38:56,668 --> 00:38:58,158
but the same kind of people.
717
00:38:58,837 --> 00:39:02,546
Back when I was 9? Nine or 10,
718
00:39:02,966 --> 00:39:05,173
I used to joke about
with my brothers and sister
719
00:39:05,760 --> 00:39:08,217
that people would just go home,
and just like sit down
720
00:39:08,388 --> 00:39:10,148
and stare at walls
while no one was watching.
721
00:39:10,306 --> 00:39:11,586
You know, they would
just like...
722
00:39:13,059 --> 00:39:15,220
You know, go home
and t-pose, effectively,
723
00:39:16,479 --> 00:39:18,279
in their private spaces
when they weren't seen
724
00:39:18,314 --> 00:39:19,314
'cause they would just...
725
00:39:20,400 --> 00:39:22,186
Deactivate their programming,
I guess.
726
00:39:23,236 --> 00:39:25,648
I used to joke about that,
but that idea ran with me
727
00:39:25,822 --> 00:39:27,153
a lot when I was older.
728
00:39:29,450 --> 00:39:30,906
It kind of became
a little horrifying
729
00:39:31,411 --> 00:39:32,721
that these people
I would talk to,
730
00:39:32,745 --> 00:39:35,953
since nobody was watching,
the program would stop working.
731
00:39:46,759 --> 00:39:48,215
Does not assume that
732
00:39:49,262 --> 00:39:52,174
all the details of our world
would be simulated
733
00:39:53,182 --> 00:39:55,594
to perfect subatomic precision
all the time.
734
00:39:56,144 --> 00:39:57,930
And indeed,
that kind of simulation
735
00:39:58,104 --> 00:40:00,436
might well be
completely intractable.
736
00:40:01,232 --> 00:40:03,348
Obviously, it depends on
the kind of computer power
737
00:40:03,526 --> 00:40:04,962
available in
the basement simulators.
738
00:40:04,986 --> 00:40:06,942
If you have
infinitely fast computers, sure.
739
00:40:07,363 --> 00:40:08,944
But, no, the idea rather
740
00:40:09,073 --> 00:40:10,438
is that you would
be able to create
741
00:40:10,617 --> 00:40:13,950
a simulation capturing
only enough that,
742
00:40:15,163 --> 00:40:16,243
fo the simulated creatures,
743
00:40:16,372 --> 00:40:17,641
they couldn't tell
the difference.
744
00:40:17,665 --> 00:40:21,203
And that would involve
some pretty clever footwork
745
00:40:21,377 --> 00:40:22,537
on behalf of the simulators
746
00:40:22,754 --> 00:40:24,194
that they would be able,
for example,
747
00:40:24,255 --> 00:40:26,667
to leave more detail
in a particular part of reality
748
00:40:26,841 --> 00:40:28,081
when we are paying attention.
749
00:40:28,509 --> 00:40:31,842
But then not simulating all
of those details all the time.
750
00:40:33,765 --> 00:40:37,974
I'm occupying maybe
20 square feet?
751
00:40:39,020 --> 00:40:41,511
And yet there's a whole
world that exists
752
00:40:41,773 --> 00:40:43,013
because I know about it.
753
00:40:43,608 --> 00:40:44,768
It is here in my brain.
754
00:40:45,735 --> 00:40:48,397
I worked with a company
for a little while
755
00:40:48,571 --> 00:40:53,736
that launched what is now
a very popular app
756
00:40:54,243 --> 00:40:57,406
that is
an interactive fiction app.
757
00:40:57,705 --> 00:40:59,600
You know, there's an element of,
"well, it's just like writing
758
00:40:59,624 --> 00:41:02,491
a choose-your-own-adventure.
But what became swiftly...
759
00:41:04,754 --> 00:41:05,754
Obvious to me...
760
00:41:08,132 --> 00:41:10,874
How simple some of our
own decision-making is,
761
00:41:11,094 --> 00:41:12,504
from a coding perspective.
762
00:41:21,771 --> 00:41:24,353
And... all right,
we're all good.
763
00:41:24,691 --> 00:41:26,898
So, a npc
764
00:41:27,068 --> 00:41:30,560
is a non-player character
that you will normally see
765
00:41:30,738 --> 00:41:31,898
in a video game.
766
00:41:32,573 --> 00:41:35,940
They're usually the people
that aren't controlled
767
00:41:36,244 --> 00:41:39,156
by the player of the video game.
768
00:41:39,455 --> 00:41:42,947
They are the characters
that were programmed in there.
769
00:41:44,419 --> 00:41:46,876
It's kind of like talking
to a person in real life,
770
00:41:47,171 --> 00:41:50,914
but they only have a set amount
of things that they can say.
771
00:41:51,259 --> 00:41:54,376
Hey, buddy, got a dead cat
in there or what?
772
00:41:54,804 --> 00:41:56,340
And you only have specific lines
773
00:41:56,514 --> 00:41:58,345
that you can say back to it
in response.
774
00:42:01,936 --> 00:42:04,143
I can only imagine
if I was really a gamer,
775
00:42:04,522 --> 00:42:06,558
how I would experience
social interaction.
776
00:42:06,774 --> 00:42:10,016
But even as a non-game player,
I sometimes find myself
777
00:42:10,278 --> 00:42:12,860
you know, dealing with
non-player characters.
778
00:42:13,656 --> 00:42:19,117
I work at a grocery store,
and I have a specific...
779
00:42:20,288 --> 00:42:22,244
List of things
that I need to accomplish
780
00:42:22,457 --> 00:42:25,449
when greeting a customer
and checking out their items.
781
00:42:27,086 --> 00:42:30,453
And because of that,
it just made logical sense
782
00:42:30,631 --> 00:42:32,872
that I create kind of
a mental script
783
00:42:33,051 --> 00:42:34,632
that I go through
with each customer.
784
00:42:34,761 --> 00:42:36,113
Brother mystwooad:
When this stimuli happens
785
00:42:36,137 --> 00:42:37,877
to him, generally speaking,
786
00:42:38,139 --> 00:42:39,595
he reacts in this way.
787
00:42:39,807 --> 00:42:41,718
It's not terribly different from
788
00:42:42,143 --> 00:42:44,179
the code that tells the chickens
789
00:42:44,270 --> 00:42:45,350
of minecraft what to do
790
00:42:45,521 --> 00:42:47,386
or the turtles
in Mario brothers,
791
00:42:47,565 --> 00:42:50,272
or the mosquitoes of me.
792
00:42:50,526 --> 00:42:51,766
You know, they're all kind of
793
00:42:51,986 --> 00:42:53,266
operating on the same
principles.
794
00:42:53,529 --> 00:42:55,565
If this then that,
if not then don't.
795
00:42:55,782 --> 00:42:57,382
It's not too much of a leap
to think that
796
00:42:57,658 --> 00:42:59,398
consciousness may mean...
797
00:43:01,412 --> 00:43:02,492
We are being inhabited
798
00:43:02,663 --> 00:43:05,780
by some sort of
player-type intelligence.
799
00:43:06,084 --> 00:43:08,291
The reason everyone loves
to be like,
800
00:43:08,461 --> 00:43:11,043
"oh, small world,"
is because it is, actually.
801
00:43:11,172 --> 00:43:12,912
There just isn't enough
processing power
802
00:43:13,091 --> 00:43:15,707
to render seven billion
consciousnhesses.
803
00:43:16,552 --> 00:43:18,884
There are not seven billion
consciousnesses.
804
00:43:19,097 --> 00:43:20,633
Yeah, there might be
seven billion
805
00:43:20,848 --> 00:43:23,510
in the general algorithm
of how many people are on earth.
806
00:43:23,684 --> 00:43:25,037
But when you start talking
to people,
807
00:43:25,061 --> 00:43:28,098
there's probably like
a couple hundred thousand al's,
808
00:43:28,564 --> 00:43:33,479
that are serving as
the substream for the, you know,
809
00:43:34,112 --> 00:43:36,774
"people you know" experience
that everyone's having on earth.
810
00:43:36,948 --> 00:43:39,564
So, when you find that
you know the same people,
811
00:43:39,742 --> 00:43:42,734
or six degrees of separation,
it's just not a surprise at all.
812
00:43:42,954 --> 00:43:44,910
In fact, it's a flaw
in the system.
813
00:43:45,206 --> 00:43:47,492
And that's just the limit of
the actual processing power
814
00:43:47,583 --> 00:43:49,494
of the machine
that the sim's running on.
815
00:43:50,753 --> 00:43:52,273
Rodney:
Well, have you ever encountered
816
00:43:52,380 --> 00:43:53,790
a nhon-player character?
817
00:43:54,507 --> 00:43:56,187
Alex: Mean,
you encounter them all the time
818
00:43:56,217 --> 00:43:57,486
when you're walking down
the street
819
00:43:57,510 --> 00:43:58,875
and you don't interact
with people.
820
00:43:59,053 --> 00:44:01,135
Like, it's just like
in a video game.
821
00:44:01,305 --> 00:44:03,261
It's just, there's much less
processing power
822
00:44:03,432 --> 00:44:05,639
being attributed
to the automatons.
823
00:44:06,561 --> 00:44:08,097
But once you start interacting,
824
00:44:08,187 --> 00:44:10,348
then something has to
actually serve
825
00:44:10,481 --> 00:44:15,692
as the intelligence behind
that so-called human.
826
00:44:17,864 --> 00:44:20,571
Society is rapidly secularizing.
827
00:44:20,741 --> 00:44:23,073
You know, religion is
completely falling apart.
828
00:44:24,537 --> 00:44:26,994
And there's elements of that
that are wonderful.
829
00:44:27,582 --> 00:44:28,867
You know, I think religion plays
830
00:44:30,334 --> 00:44:33,451
an overly restrictive role
in people's lives too often.
831
00:44:34,630 --> 00:44:36,390
Certainly, the religion
I was raised in does.
832
00:44:36,632 --> 00:44:38,122
But I do know people
833
00:44:39,385 --> 00:44:40,841
from my childhood
834
00:44:40,970 --> 00:44:43,131
in a fairly
Evangelical Christian world
835
00:44:43,806 --> 00:44:47,640
who, you know, wanted to...
836
00:44:47,852 --> 00:44:49,638
Would've committed violent acts,
837
00:44:50,021 --> 00:44:52,763
if only god...
838
00:44:53,983 --> 00:44:55,814
If only god
wouldn't punish them for it.
839
00:44:56,110 --> 00:44:57,520
Now, why it takes god
to do that,
840
00:44:57,653 --> 00:44:59,814
as opposed to one's own honor
841
00:44:59,947 --> 00:45:01,967
and self-worth and love
for thy neighbor, I don't know.
842
00:45:01,991 --> 00:45:03,276
But that was case for me.
843
00:45:03,910 --> 00:45:05,030
I believe that this thought,
844
00:45:05,077 --> 00:45:06,738
that we are living
in a simulation,
845
00:45:06,913 --> 00:45:09,529
I think that is going
to just increase in popularity.
846
00:45:10,333 --> 00:45:13,291
And for people who are
content to see
847
00:45:13,461 --> 00:45:14,576
both sides of an argument
848
00:45:14,837 --> 00:45:16,623
and that doesn't
split our heads in two,
849
00:45:17,381 --> 00:45:20,168
you know, for people who are
content to see shades of grey,
850
00:45:20,384 --> 00:45:23,171
I think that's a fine...
It's a fine idea.
851
00:45:23,346 --> 00:45:25,803
Because we don't... you know,
it doesn't change anything
852
00:45:25,890 --> 00:45:27,596
about my daily life,
necessarily.
853
00:45:27,683 --> 00:45:30,800
And it shouldn't.
So I find the simulation okay.
854
00:45:31,270 --> 00:45:33,761
So, if I was created
by a creator god, okay.
855
00:45:33,940 --> 00:45:36,272
So, if I'm a random sparking
of cells, okay, fine.
856
00:45:36,442 --> 00:45:38,642
It doesn't change much about
how I am living day to day.
857
00:45:39,820 --> 00:45:42,778
But there's a lot of people
with very absolutist mindsets,
858
00:45:43,157 --> 00:45:46,945
and I think once you tell them,
"hey, you're a simulation,"
859
00:45:48,329 --> 00:45:50,285
the nihilistic side of humanity,
860
00:45:50,414 --> 00:45:51,574
their first reaction would be
861
00:45:51,707 --> 00:45:53,787
"well, it doesn't matter what
they do to anyone else,
862
00:45:54,502 --> 00:45:56,709
because I know that I'm real,
and I feel it."
863
00:45:56,921 --> 00:45:58,561
But if there's no proof
that they're real,
864
00:45:59,632 --> 00:46:01,873
you know,
then what's the point of laws?
865
00:46:02,051 --> 00:46:03,571
What's the point of all this,
you know?
866
00:46:08,266 --> 00:46:12,225
I do honestly think there is
a certain degree of...
867
00:46:13,896 --> 00:46:15,682
Inability to separate real world
868
00:46:15,731 --> 00:46:16,731
from digital realities
869
00:46:17,024 --> 00:46:18,230
when you have something like
870
00:46:18,484 --> 00:46:22,068
the shooter in New Zealand
live-streaming what he's doing
871
00:46:22,280 --> 00:46:25,067
and going after people like
he's in a first-person shooter.
872
00:46:25,283 --> 00:46:28,400
And going after the people who
were like muslims or, you know,
873
00:46:28,577 --> 00:46:29,596
people shoot up synagogues.
874
00:46:29,620 --> 00:46:32,657
Going after someone who is
constructed as an "other"
875
00:46:32,832 --> 00:46:34,993
by the media that they consume.
876
00:46:36,544 --> 00:46:40,002
We must meet the threat
with our valor, our blood,
877
00:46:40,298 --> 00:46:42,084
indeed, with our very lives
878
00:46:42,591 --> 00:46:45,298
fo ensure
that human civilization,
879
00:46:45,594 --> 00:46:46,754
not insect,
880
00:46:47,346 --> 00:46:51,180
dominates this galaxy
now and always!
881
00:46:52,018 --> 00:46:54,930
Emily: However, you end up
sort of in that place
882
00:46:55,479 --> 00:46:58,516
where everyone you shoot at
just kind of disappears
883
00:46:58,691 --> 00:47:00,227
and they were all pod people,
you know,
884
00:47:00,401 --> 00:47:02,232
and they weren't real,
or the npc meme,
885
00:47:02,486 --> 00:47:05,102
you get into a place where
you kind of treat reality
886
00:47:05,448 --> 00:47:07,780
like these are digital,
disposable bodies.
887
00:47:19,920 --> 00:47:21,376
Jesse:
And so one guy might plug in,
888
00:47:21,505 --> 00:47:22,505
he's kanye west.
889
00:47:22,590 --> 00:47:25,081
One person might plug in,
instead of doing that,
890
00:47:25,259 --> 00:47:28,296
he's Michael Phelps.
891
00:47:28,763 --> 00:47:32,221
They plug in and they play
and they stay at the top level
892
00:47:32,433 --> 00:47:34,970
in some way that they can,
doing different exploits.
893
00:47:35,936 --> 00:47:38,348
But then you have people
who log in,
894
00:47:38,522 --> 00:47:40,513
they used to play a lot
and they were really good,
895
00:47:40,733 --> 00:47:42,815
but then they unplugged
and didn't come back.
896
00:47:42,985 --> 00:47:45,047
Years and years since
they were plugged in our reality
897
00:47:45,071 --> 00:47:47,938
would be a celebrity
who was really good,
898
00:47:48,449 --> 00:47:50,677
and then just fell from grace
and never really came back.
899
00:47:50,701 --> 00:47:53,864
I can't name a specific
celebrity here,
900
00:47:54,038 --> 00:47:56,780
plus I don't want to throw
that into your film.
901
00:47:57,500 --> 00:48:00,913
Anyway, so they would
go totally like,
902
00:48:01,087 --> 00:48:02,167
they'd be going straight
903
00:48:02,338 --> 00:48:04,138
and all of a sudden
they'll be doing something
904
00:48:04,173 --> 00:48:05,293
that's totally perpendicular
905
00:48:05,341 --> 00:48:06,831
to their normal
behavior patterns.
906
00:48:07,259 --> 00:48:10,376
'Cause in a video game,
you're doing it well...
907
00:48:11,597 --> 00:48:13,157
Then all of a sudden,
you just get bored
908
00:48:13,432 --> 00:48:15,468
and you start doing something
totally different.
909
00:48:15,601 --> 00:48:16,966
I've done that myself, you know.
910
00:48:17,144 --> 00:48:18,554
I'm playing Grand Theft Auto
and...
911
00:48:19,063 --> 00:48:21,770
You know, you have millions
and millions of dollars
912
00:48:21,899 --> 00:48:23,685
and all of a sudden it's like,
"yeah, okay...
913
00:48:23,943 --> 00:48:25,921
I think I'm gonna hole up
in this apartment building...
914
00:48:25,945 --> 00:48:28,402
And just see how many police
I can get to try to kill me."
915
00:48:29,156 --> 00:48:32,068
You know, then you kind of
just go for something crazy.
916
00:48:38,833 --> 00:48:40,869
Paul: I once said to my uncle...
917
00:48:42,002 --> 00:48:43,788
"What if this is all fake?
918
00:48:44,046 --> 00:48:45,606
You know, what if
none of this is real?"
919
00:48:45,714 --> 00:48:47,500
And he said, "well, then what's
to keep me
920
00:48:47,675 --> 00:48:50,508
from going door to door just
shooting people in the head?"
921
00:48:51,262 --> 00:48:54,254
"Or what's to keep me from,
you know, shooting you?"
922
00:48:54,473 --> 00:48:58,887
And it always struck me as,
"is that what you want to do?"
923
00:48:59,478 --> 00:49:02,891
“Is the only thing
keeping you from doing that
924
00:49:03,566 --> 00:49:06,899
the fact that the world is real
and there are consequences?"
925
00:49:09,738 --> 00:49:11,729
Did you see that video
of the gentleman
926
00:49:11,824 --> 00:49:12,904
on the east coast...
927
00:49:13,617 --> 00:49:14,652
West coast, I'm sorry,
928
00:49:15,119 --> 00:49:16,905
who, he hijacked...
929
00:49:18,789 --> 00:49:21,155
A commercial air flight
that was empty?
930
00:49:21,709 --> 00:49:22,915
It was just him on board,
931
00:49:23,377 --> 00:49:25,083
and he had no training
whatsoever.
932
00:49:26,297 --> 00:49:28,288
And he started just flying
around the coast.
933
00:49:31,594 --> 00:49:32,879
Woman: What the hell?
934
00:49:34,555 --> 00:49:36,841
Oh, my god.
What is happening right now?
935
00:49:37,016 --> 00:49:38,016
Did you ever see that?
936
00:49:51,614 --> 00:49:53,650
He's flying and he's
talking about things.
937
00:49:54,617 --> 00:49:55,886
Hijacker: This is probably like
938
00:49:55,910 --> 00:49:57,150
jail time for life, huh?
939
00:49:57,411 --> 00:49:59,777
I would hope it is
for a guy like me.
940
00:50:05,961 --> 00:50:07,542
Jesse:
One of the things he's doing is
941
00:50:08,547 --> 00:50:10,150
he's kind of breaking
people's perceptions
942
00:50:10,174 --> 00:50:14,087
'cause he's doing stuff like,
he's doing loops and what not.
943
00:50:14,595 --> 00:50:16,315
He's getting remarkably close
to the ground.
944
00:50:16,430 --> 00:50:18,216
He's over the ocean,
over the land.
945
00:50:18,766 --> 00:50:19,972
He's doing tricks.
946
00:50:23,562 --> 00:50:25,562
Control:
Just flying the plane around,
947
00:50:25,648 --> 00:50:27,138
do you seem
comfortable with that?
948
00:50:27,316 --> 00:50:29,044
Hijacker:
Oh, hell yeah. It's a blast.
949
00:50:29,068 --> 00:50:31,059
I've played video games
before, so...
950
00:50:31,320 --> 00:50:33,936
I... I know what I'm doing
a little bit.
951
00:50:39,662 --> 00:50:42,950
And this is shortly before
he crashes purposefully
952
00:50:43,207 --> 00:50:46,040
into a, I believe an island.
953
00:50:47,670 --> 00:50:48,876
Just offshore.
954
00:50:50,506 --> 00:50:53,168
But yeah, it's nuts,
that one of his last thoughts
955
00:50:53,342 --> 00:50:56,254
is how much it's like
a video game to him.
956
00:50:57,346 --> 00:50:58,346
Then he crashes.
957
00:51:06,438 --> 00:51:09,976
But yeah, there is a dark side.
958
00:51:10,067 --> 00:51:11,102
There's people out there
959
00:51:11,193 --> 00:51:12,854
who are gonna be
chaotic about it.
960
00:51:28,919 --> 00:51:30,580
Philip: Very pronounced
impression
961
00:51:30,713 --> 00:51:35,173
would probably occur to us,
to many of us, again and again
962
00:51:35,467 --> 00:51:37,674
and always without explanation.
963
00:51:37,970 --> 00:51:42,885
The acute, absolute sensation
that we had done once before
964
00:51:43,392 --> 00:51:45,383
what we were
just about to do now.
965
00:51:45,644 --> 00:51:48,056
We would have
the overwhelming impression
966
00:51:48,897 --> 00:51:52,640
that we were reliving
the present. Déja vu.
967
00:51:54,820 --> 00:51:55,820
Deja vu.
968
00:51:58,782 --> 00:52:01,194
- Switch. Apoc.
- What is it?
969
00:52:01,452 --> 00:52:03,192
A deja vu is usually
a glitch in the matrix.
970
00:52:03,621 --> 00:52:05,101
It happens when
they change something.
971
00:52:05,664 --> 00:52:07,905
What we need at this point
is to locate,
972
00:52:08,083 --> 00:52:09,414
to bring forth as evidence
973
00:52:09,835 --> 00:52:11,917
someone who has managed somehow,
974
00:52:12,254 --> 00:52:13,460
it doesn't matter how,
975
00:52:14,214 --> 00:52:16,580
to retain memories
of a different present.
976
00:52:16,967 --> 00:52:19,083
Latent, alternate
world impressions,
977
00:52:19,303 --> 00:52:21,259
different in some
significant way from this.
978
00:52:29,396 --> 00:52:31,603
If you remember a kit-Kat
looking like this...
979
00:52:32,024 --> 00:52:34,356
Then you could be living
in an alternate reality.
980
00:52:35,235 --> 00:52:37,100
Welcome to
"conspiracy chat n'that."
981
00:52:37,404 --> 00:52:39,065
Today's topic is the
mind-warping,
982
00:52:39,198 --> 00:52:40,904
reality-bending mandela effect.
983
00:52:41,116 --> 00:52:42,606
It's called the mandela effect
984
00:52:42,785 --> 00:52:44,825
because hundreds and hundreds
of thousands of people
985
00:52:44,953 --> 00:52:48,366
remember Nelson Mandela
dying in prison,
986
00:52:48,540 --> 00:52:50,155
and that actually
never happened.
987
00:52:50,376 --> 00:52:52,228
But hundreds and hundreds
of thousands of people are like
988
00:52:52,252 --> 00:52:54,105
"no, I remember Nelson Mandela
dying in prison."
989
00:52:54,129 --> 00:52:55,190
But like that never happened.
990
00:52:55,214 --> 00:52:56,483
Lauren Clarke: So, when reports
991
00:52:56,507 --> 00:52:58,109
of the former south African
president's death
992
00:52:58,133 --> 00:52:59,589
became news in 2013,
993
00:52:59,802 --> 00:53:01,133
it re-sparked
the previous debate
994
00:53:01,303 --> 00:53:02,656
of whether or not
we've somehow slid
995
00:53:02,680 --> 00:53:04,136
into an alternate timeline.
996
00:53:04,306 --> 00:53:06,672
Narrator: The berenstein bears
children books have changed.
997
00:53:06,934 --> 00:53:08,720
They used to be called
"berenstein bears,"
998
00:53:08,894 --> 00:53:10,350
and now they've always
been known as
999
00:53:10,479 --> 00:53:11,479
"the berenstain bears".
1000
00:53:11,897 --> 00:53:14,604
Over 10 thousand mandela effects
1001
00:53:14,733 --> 00:53:16,974
have been logged and confirmed.
1002
00:53:17,236 --> 00:53:18,338
Tana mongeau: If you go back
1003
00:53:18,362 --> 00:53:20,273
and literally find
like a vhs tape
1004
00:53:20,447 --> 00:53:23,154
of like snow white from 1998
1005
00:53:23,283 --> 00:53:25,023
and you put it in a vhs player,
1006
00:53:25,160 --> 00:53:27,776
they say,
"magic mirror on the wall".
1007
00:53:28,247 --> 00:53:32,911
Tell me! Tell me, bitch, that
you do not fucking remember
1008
00:53:33,085 --> 00:53:34,621
"mirror, mirror on the wall.”
1009
00:53:34,753 --> 00:53:36,493
Well, that doesn't exist.
Mandela effect?
1010
00:53:36,672 --> 00:53:38,583
Alternate reality? I think yes!
1011
00:53:54,481 --> 00:53:56,187
Alex: When I was young,
I lived in Mexico.
1012
00:53:57,484 --> 00:53:58,724
Very young, like 10 years old.
1013
00:53:58,902 --> 00:54:00,358
And then I returned there
1014
00:54:00,863 --> 00:54:03,320
for the summer
with my mother once.
1015
00:54:04,408 --> 00:54:05,989
I was 18 years old,
1016
00:54:06,201 --> 00:54:07,737
and I really didn't
know anybody.
1017
00:54:08,036 --> 00:54:10,027
I finally get a call
from some friends,
1018
00:54:10,539 --> 00:54:11,619
friends of friends.
1019
00:54:11,832 --> 00:54:12,662
These guys pick me up,
1020
00:54:12,833 --> 00:54:16,621
and they're in
a 1970 Jeep wagoneer.
1021
00:54:17,671 --> 00:54:18,911
Big old machine.
1022
00:54:19,381 --> 00:54:21,997
It immediately becomes clear
that they have been drinking
1023
00:54:22,217 --> 00:54:25,425
because they say, "hey,
help yourself to a beer."
1024
00:54:25,637 --> 00:54:27,157
And I look in the back
of the wagoneer,
1025
00:54:27,264 --> 00:54:28,984
and there's all
these empties rolling around
1026
00:54:29,141 --> 00:54:31,382
and couldn't find a seat belt,
and I just said,
1027
00:54:31,602 --> 00:54:33,082
"all right, fuck it,"
I opened a beer.
1028
00:54:33,687 --> 00:54:35,803
Then, we were driving
down a major street
1029
00:54:35,981 --> 00:54:37,437
in a city called cuernavaca.
1030
00:54:37,983 --> 00:54:40,599
It had a cement divider
between the two sides...
1031
00:54:40,778 --> 00:54:42,769
And the driver
1032
00:54:43,322 --> 00:54:47,235
for shits and giggles
decided to pop...
1033
00:54:47,659 --> 00:54:50,446
In an opening,
pop onto the wrong direction
1034
00:54:50,996 --> 00:54:53,203
and drive until
there was another opening.
1035
00:54:53,791 --> 00:54:55,531
So we were driving
against traffic
1036
00:54:55,834 --> 00:54:57,244
in the wrong side
1037
00:54:58,170 --> 00:55:01,833
and no cars came, you know,
we didn't get in an accident.
1038
00:55:02,007 --> 00:55:05,249
So that was the first near miss
but I don't count that.
1039
00:55:05,552 --> 00:55:07,008
And so we headed off.
1040
00:55:07,095 --> 00:55:08,585
They...
We went to a liquor store.
1041
00:55:08,764 --> 00:55:10,800
They bought some more liquor.
1042
00:55:11,975 --> 00:55:15,012
They said, "what should we do?
Let's go to the pyramids.”
1043
00:55:15,187 --> 00:55:19,100
So there was a pyramid in town,
and so we head over...
1044
00:55:19,274 --> 00:55:21,731
We climb a fence, we're
walking on a Mexican pyramid.
1045
00:55:22,402 --> 00:55:24,142
It's, you know, it's...
1046
00:55:25,405 --> 00:55:27,361
Kind of an awesome experience
in and of itself.
1047
00:55:29,284 --> 00:55:30,490
And they're getting bored.
1048
00:55:30,661 --> 00:55:33,528
They say, "all right,
that's it. Let's go home."
1049
00:55:34,873 --> 00:55:37,034
And we get back in
the wagoneer, and in Mexico
1050
00:55:37,251 --> 00:55:38,731
at that time of year,
this was summer,
1051
00:55:38,836 --> 00:55:41,828
they have monsoons
that last five minutes.
1052
00:55:42,631 --> 00:55:46,374
Now the road's completely wet,
and these guys are drunk
1053
00:55:46,552 --> 00:55:48,713
and I'm sitting
in the back seat.
1054
00:55:50,264 --> 00:55:53,176
The driver says
to the passenger,
1055
00:55:53,308 --> 00:55:57,301
"hey, man, why don't you take
the wheel for a sec?"
1056
00:55:57,938 --> 00:55:59,724
And I'm sitting in the back
and I'm like...
1057
00:56:00,315 --> 00:56:02,101
"That's the worst idea
I've ever heard!"
1058
00:56:02,317 --> 00:56:04,808
But it's too late, right?
It's too late.
1059
00:56:05,571 --> 00:56:08,404
And he grabs the wheel...
1060
00:56:08,615 --> 00:56:11,652
And the car hits the side
of the road right away,
1061
00:56:11,994 --> 00:56:14,076
but hits the curve and slides...
1062
00:56:14,580 --> 00:56:15,911
So it hits one side
of the street
1063
00:56:16,081 --> 00:56:18,037
and slides in
the other direction,
1064
00:56:18,250 --> 00:56:20,457
hits another curb
and flies through the air...
1065
00:56:21,712 --> 00:56:25,671
Probably about
a thousand feet through the air
1066
00:56:25,799 --> 00:56:27,630
and lands on the roof.
1067
00:56:32,931 --> 00:56:36,765
All the windows shattered,
and I broke ribs...
1068
00:56:37,144 --> 00:56:40,102
Cause I took the impact
of the roof.
1069
00:56:40,939 --> 00:56:43,521
And gasoline
started pouring out of the car,
1070
00:56:43,692 --> 00:56:45,603
and I got the wind
knocked out of me.
1071
00:56:45,819 --> 00:56:51,359
I crawled out of the window
and got as far away as I could,
1072
00:56:51,533 --> 00:56:54,366
and then a truck pulls up.
1073
00:56:56,914 --> 00:56:59,747
And they say,
"oh, great. Banditos."
1074
00:57:01,460 --> 00:57:04,452
And then another car pulls up,
and it's the federales,
1075
00:57:04,838 --> 00:57:06,328
the Mexican police.
1076
00:57:06,548 --> 00:57:08,288
You know, the banditos
just leave.
1077
00:57:08,383 --> 00:57:10,028
And I'm like, "oh, great,
the police are here."
1078
00:57:10,052 --> 00:57:11,772
And they're like,
"no, actually, it's worse.
1079
00:57:11,929 --> 00:57:13,129
It's worse that they're here.”
1080
00:57:13,764 --> 00:57:16,506
"Once they learn
that we've been drinking,
1081
00:57:16,683 --> 00:57:17,803
they're gonna arrest us all,
1082
00:57:17,976 --> 00:57:21,013
and then they're gonna ask
for a big bribe for you,
1083
00:57:21,188 --> 00:57:22,188
because you're American."
1084
00:57:23,440 --> 00:57:25,101
So [ Was standing
in the darkness,
1085
00:57:25,651 --> 00:57:27,642
and then another car pulls up.
1086
00:57:28,278 --> 00:57:30,644
A guy gets out, and he says...
1087
00:57:32,074 --> 00:57:34,861
"Excuse me.
I am the chief accountant
1088
00:57:35,160 --> 00:57:37,242
of the cuernavaca
police department”,
1089
00:57:37,579 --> 00:57:39,240
so the local city police.
1090
00:57:40,499 --> 00:57:43,491
And he knows about the
corruption of the federales.
1091
00:57:44,044 --> 00:57:49,835
And my hosts managed
to get the information to him
1092
00:57:50,008 --> 00:57:53,296
that they had hidden
an American in the darkness.
1093
00:57:54,388 --> 00:57:56,800
And they got me out of there.
1094
00:57:57,641 --> 00:58:00,178
But the whole thing,
it seemed so...
1095
00:58:00,560 --> 00:58:04,553
So implausible
that I had survived.
1096
00:58:05,023 --> 00:58:08,686
The likelihood of all of that
was just so low.
1097
00:58:09,361 --> 00:58:12,023
Somebody's gotta be
putting their hand on the scale
1098
00:58:12,197 --> 00:58:14,108
'cause I kinda just
looked at it in terms of
1099
00:58:14,241 --> 00:58:17,324
the algorithm tweaking
probabilities,
1100
00:58:17,619 --> 00:58:20,486
so that things are essentially
more interesting
1101
00:58:21,581 --> 00:58:22,821
'cause it's a game.
1102
00:58:27,337 --> 00:58:30,670
Okay, so I think the first
like "public" place where
1103
00:58:30,799 --> 00:58:33,916
I actually was able
to put a name to an idea,
1104
00:58:34,678 --> 00:58:37,385
probably the matrix movies,
you know?
1105
00:58:39,433 --> 00:58:43,392
You can't mention simulation
without mentioning that.
1106
00:58:44,604 --> 00:58:47,186
The book he keeps
all of his stuffin is...
1107
00:58:47,983 --> 00:58:49,939
What is it called,
simulation & simulacra?
1108
00:58:51,737 --> 00:58:53,337
It's right there,
beginning of the movie,
1109
00:58:53,363 --> 00:58:54,683
just throws it
right in your face.
1110
00:58:54,948 --> 00:58:58,657
After the trilogy was over,
they released that animation
1111
00:58:59,369 --> 00:59:00,369
the animatrix.
1112
00:59:00,495 --> 00:59:03,578
Yeah, I think that one
really hit it home.
1113
00:59:03,790 --> 00:59:04,950
Like, the idea was planted
1114
00:59:05,083 --> 00:59:07,119
and that thing really
pressed on it.
1115
00:59:08,045 --> 00:59:11,458
Inrenaissance, part I
and il, it's kinda hosted by
1116
00:59:11,757 --> 00:59:13,622
almost like this
technology demigod.
1117
00:59:14,509 --> 00:59:16,389
Just kind of bringing you
in and out of reality.
1118
00:59:16,845 --> 00:59:19,507
You know, as far as like what's
going on inside the matrix,
1119
00:59:19,681 --> 00:59:21,034
what's going on outside
the matrix,
1120
00:59:21,058 --> 00:59:24,016
the history of
how the simulation was built.
1121
00:59:28,356 --> 00:59:29,937
Paul: I moved to Canada,
1122
00:59:30,108 --> 00:59:31,708
I lived in Canada
for a couple of months.
1123
00:59:31,902 --> 00:59:37,568
And so my friend from Illinois
drives up to Canada,
1124
00:59:37,908 --> 00:59:38,943
we're hanging out.
1125
00:59:39,159 --> 00:59:40,720
"What do you want to see?"
"I don't know.
1126
00:59:40,744 --> 00:59:43,201
Let's go and see this dumb
Keanu Reeves action film."
1127
00:59:45,665 --> 00:59:47,701
So we go and see this movie
1128
00:59:47,876 --> 00:59:49,395
and it's pretty good,
pretty good, pretty good.
1129
00:59:49,419 --> 00:59:51,034
And then he gets out
of the tank,
1130
00:59:52,589 --> 00:59:54,079
and we're like, "whoa!"
1131
01:00:07,771 --> 01:00:09,811
Joshua Cooke:
So, I was riding in a car
1132
01:00:09,981 --> 01:00:13,018
on the way home,
and a friend of mine
1133
01:00:13,276 --> 01:00:14,982
- was in the car.
- Getin.
1134
01:00:15,237 --> 01:00:16,997
Joshua: She mentioned this movie
1135
01:00:17,155 --> 01:00:19,441
matrix that people
were going crazy over.
1136
01:00:19,616 --> 01:00:21,152
People were going
to the movie theaters
1137
01:00:21,326 --> 01:00:23,032
15 times in a row to see it.
1138
01:00:23,745 --> 01:00:26,111
And that people were getting
obsessed about it,
1139
01:00:26,289 --> 01:00:27,289
raving about it.
1140
01:00:27,374 --> 01:00:28,454
"Oh, man, you gotta see it!
1141
01:00:28,583 --> 01:00:30,699
You've never seen anything
like it. And the graphics.
1142
01:00:30,877 --> 01:00:31,877
Oh yeah!"
1143
01:00:32,462 --> 01:00:33,782
And then I heard him
say something
1144
01:00:33,839 --> 01:00:35,579
about a black trench coat
and stuff.
1145
01:00:35,757 --> 01:00:38,373
And that really hit me
for a few reasons.
1146
01:00:38,718 --> 01:00:40,925
One is, I had already had
a fascination,
1147
01:00:41,138 --> 01:00:43,049
an obsession really,
with the black trench coat
1148
01:00:43,431 --> 01:00:45,638
because of the movie the crow,
1149
01:00:46,226 --> 01:00:48,512
which was my first
movie obsession.
1150
01:00:48,728 --> 01:00:51,094
So I went to the
blockbuster video store.
1151
01:00:51,523 --> 01:00:54,606
And, from the very beginning
of the movie,
1152
01:00:55,735 --> 01:00:56,770
it had my attention.
1153
01:00:56,987 --> 01:01:01,071
And it had kind of like
a rough, aggressive,
1154
01:01:01,992 --> 01:01:03,448
you know, Rob zombie,
1155
01:01:03,618 --> 01:01:05,449
heavy metal theme to it.
1156
01:01:05,620 --> 01:01:06,484
Narrator: The matrix.
1157
01:01:06,580 --> 01:01:08,116
The soundtrack
that makes you go...
1158
01:01:08,290 --> 01:01:09,496
Whoa.
1159
01:01:09,583 --> 01:01:10,852
See, I thought about
the structure
1160
01:01:10,876 --> 01:01:11,740
of the whole thing,
1161
01:01:11,835 --> 01:01:13,235
like, what would it be
structurally?
1162
01:01:13,420 --> 01:01:16,378
And an idea came to my mind
of what it would look like.
1163
01:01:18,592 --> 01:01:21,709
I don't think it's just people
in pods somewhere else.
1164
01:01:21,845 --> 01:01:24,131
I think it's something
completely different than that.
1165
01:01:25,265 --> 01:01:27,597
I don't know. When I think
about it, I think of like
1166
01:01:27,809 --> 01:01:30,767
a giant white, brilliant white
marble hallway, right?
1167
01:01:30,937 --> 01:01:32,623
And then there's like a
pedestal in the center,
1168
01:01:32,647 --> 01:01:35,104
and this giant black sphere.
1169
01:01:35,734 --> 01:01:38,851
And that black sphere, to
these people in this reality,
1170
01:01:39,946 --> 01:01:42,278
that's effectively a computer,
you know?
1171
01:01:43,116 --> 01:01:44,731
No, and that
computer's running...
1172
01:01:45,076 --> 01:01:46,816
There could be
a little art museum card
1173
01:01:46,995 --> 01:01:49,202
next to it that says
"universe... whatever".
1174
01:01:49,998 --> 01:01:52,865
And they just see what happens
out of that black mass
1175
01:01:53,418 --> 01:01:56,455
of stars and clouds, and deep,
deep, deep down,
1176
01:01:57,088 --> 01:01:58,168
people, like us.
1177
01:02:00,175 --> 01:02:01,585
And then you go on
from that model,
1178
01:02:01,718 --> 01:02:04,710
you wonder, "okay
is it important to them?"
1179
01:02:05,138 --> 01:02:07,003
"Are we a very special case
1180
01:02:07,224 --> 01:02:10,136
that the entire reality
is focused on?"
1181
01:02:10,518 --> 01:02:11,662
'Cause they're trying
to figure out
1182
01:02:11,686 --> 01:02:12,726
what the point of life is,
1183
01:02:12,854 --> 01:02:14,765
and so they just keep
rerunning the universe.
1184
01:02:17,192 --> 01:02:20,935
I think what they want us
to do is improve upon
1185
01:02:22,155 --> 01:02:24,111
the simulation that
they've already made.
1186
01:02:24,824 --> 01:02:27,987
And this was where
we get into gans.
1187
01:02:29,079 --> 01:02:31,695
I don't know if that's how you
pronounce it, but g-a-n-s.
1188
01:02:33,416 --> 01:02:36,533
Generative adversarial networks.
1189
01:02:37,337 --> 01:02:39,874
Basically, the idea is
that you have two als...
1190
01:02:41,049 --> 01:02:42,529
And they're competing
with each other.
1191
01:02:43,176 --> 01:02:45,087
Al number one is the forger.
1192
01:02:45,971 --> 01:02:49,429
It wants to make pictures
of human beings...
1193
01:02:50,225 --> 01:02:54,013
That look like human beings,
enough to fool someone.
1194
01:02:54,562 --> 01:02:56,803
And then you have another one
that's the inspector.
1195
01:02:57,148 --> 01:02:58,934
The inspector's job
is to tell the difference
1196
01:02:59,109 --> 01:03:00,849
between fake pictures of people
1197
01:03:00,986 --> 01:03:02,396
and actual pictures of people.
1198
01:03:03,029 --> 01:03:05,441
And the two of them just run
at each other,
1199
01:03:05,615 --> 01:03:06,801
boom, boom, boom...
Trying to fail,
1200
01:03:06,825 --> 01:03:08,565
trying to win, all that...
1201
01:03:08,952 --> 01:03:11,910
Until, eventually, you and I
look at the pictures,
1202
01:03:12,330 --> 01:03:13,615
and they look real to us
1203
01:03:14,416 --> 01:03:16,657
because they've gone through
all these iterations.
1204
01:03:20,297 --> 01:03:24,165
But what are people if not...
1205
01:03:25,093 --> 01:03:26,674
Generative adversarial networks?
1206
01:03:30,765 --> 01:03:32,926
Cop tries to solve crime.
1207
01:03:33,184 --> 01:03:34,674
Criminal tries to beat cop.
1208
01:03:35,520 --> 01:03:36,760
I'm gonna kill you.
1209
01:03:37,897 --> 01:03:41,060
You idiot! You made me!
1210
01:03:44,904 --> 01:03:46,690
Hacker tries to hack a system.
1211
01:03:46,990 --> 01:03:48,946
A programmer tries
to fix the system.
1212
01:03:49,492 --> 01:03:53,076
Audience gets jaded
with this type of media.
1213
01:03:53,246 --> 01:03:54,782
So somebody new comes along
1214
01:03:54,914 --> 01:03:56,100
and tries to make
something better.
1215
01:03:56,124 --> 01:03:59,116
We are constantly getting back
and forth at each other.
1216
01:03:59,252 --> 01:04:00,354
If you look at social media,
1217
01:04:00,378 --> 01:04:02,334
maybe this is why we're
always arguing
1218
01:04:02,422 --> 01:04:07,667
because we exist specifically
to refine and hone things.
1219
01:04:08,595 --> 01:04:12,554
In the end,
what do we want to create
1220
01:04:12,807 --> 01:04:14,718
if not another simulation?
1221
01:04:20,065 --> 01:04:21,125
Joshua: Yeah, I mean,
1222
01:04:21,149 --> 01:04:23,269
there were a few lines in there
that were pretty deep.
1223
01:04:24,361 --> 01:04:26,647
Neo asked morpheus,
"why do my eyes hurt?"
1224
01:04:27,655 --> 01:04:30,863
And morpheus looks at Neo
and says...
1225
01:04:31,117 --> 01:04:32,903
"Because you've never
used them before."
1226
01:04:33,828 --> 01:04:35,739
Well, I felt the same way.
And I felt like,
1227
01:04:35,914 --> 01:04:37,495
"man, there's gotta be
more than this."
1228
01:04:37,999 --> 01:04:39,239
Emily: Okay, "you've never used
1229
01:04:39,376 --> 01:04:42,118
your eyes before"
when he gets out of the matrix
1230
01:04:42,295 --> 01:04:44,251
and everything's blurry,
1231
01:04:44,464 --> 01:04:47,297
that's very, very similar
to sort of what happens
1232
01:04:47,467 --> 01:04:51,085
in Plato's cave, when he goes...
1233
01:04:51,513 --> 01:04:53,128
When you're taken
outside the cave,
1234
01:04:53,306 --> 01:04:55,297
it takes a while
for your eyes to adjust
1235
01:04:55,558 --> 01:04:57,298
to what you're seeing
oulside the cave.
1236
01:04:57,644 --> 01:04:59,930
And then, when he comes back
inside the cave
1237
01:05:00,146 --> 01:05:02,387
he can't see either
1238
01:05:02,565 --> 01:05:04,685
because he's used to seeing
things as they really are.
1239
01:05:04,818 --> 01:05:06,479
And so, you know, it says,
1240
01:05:06,694 --> 01:05:08,334
"oh, and your friends
are sort of watching
1241
01:05:08,405 --> 01:05:11,272
on the projection screen,
things.
1242
01:05:11,449 --> 01:05:14,657
And they give themselves awards
for being the fastest
1243
01:05:14,828 --> 01:05:16,784
and best at spotting
what's going on.
1244
01:05:16,996 --> 01:05:19,362
And you just aren't
interested in this anymore
1245
01:05:19,541 --> 01:05:21,202
because you've seen
so much more."
1246
01:05:21,709 --> 01:05:24,291
It's funny how this
just sort of like
1247
01:05:24,838 --> 01:05:28,672
value system
that allows us to believe
1248
01:05:28,842 --> 01:05:31,709
that we know something
that everyone else doesn't.
1249
01:05:32,137 --> 01:05:33,968
Like also contributes
to that othering,
1250
01:05:34,139 --> 01:05:35,241
when he's walking
down the street
1251
01:05:35,265 --> 01:05:36,880
and everyone is fake, you know?
1252
01:05:37,100 --> 01:05:39,011
And then, yeah,
the person in the red dress,
1253
01:05:39,185 --> 01:05:41,767
and later the guy's like,
"oh, I engineered her."
1254
01:05:43,148 --> 01:05:44,854
Yeah, that seems like...
1255
01:05:44,983 --> 01:05:47,395
That is such
a school shooter fantasy.
1256
01:05:50,697 --> 01:05:53,985
You have these unique eyes to
see what ho one else can see.
1257
01:05:54,242 --> 01:05:56,198
And everyone else
is just like...
1258
01:05:57,203 --> 01:05:59,819
They're just asleep.
1259
01:06:00,039 --> 01:06:03,657
Man: Sleep. Sleep.
1260
01:06:05,170 --> 01:06:06,660
Paul: Having told you my story
1261
01:06:06,838 --> 01:06:10,501
about when I was a kid,
when he got out of the tank...
1262
01:06:13,678 --> 01:06:16,886
The immediate thing that
flashed in my mind was, "okay,
1263
01:06:17,599 --> 01:06:20,932
this is kind of like what
happened to me at that point,
1264
01:06:21,519 --> 01:06:23,055
but there was no tank
to get out of."
1265
01:06:23,855 --> 01:06:27,473
And I maybe didn't even
have a body, per se.
1266
01:06:31,696 --> 01:06:33,176
Joshua: I went to a store
1267
01:06:33,323 --> 01:06:35,359
in the mall near my house,
it's called hot topic.
1268
01:06:35,533 --> 01:06:37,093
I don't know
if you've ever heard of it.
1269
01:06:37,619 --> 01:06:39,905
And they had all kind of
goth wear,
1270
01:06:40,079 --> 01:06:41,740
black clothes, black everything.
1271
01:06:42,540 --> 01:06:46,533
There was a line of
trench coats hanging on a rack
1272
01:06:46,920 --> 01:06:48,000
in the corner of the store.
1273
01:06:48,087 --> 01:06:50,248
And I was with my sister,
Tiffany.
1274
01:06:50,507 --> 01:06:54,546
And I made a beeline straight
for the trench coats, you know.
1275
01:06:55,178 --> 01:06:57,885
I ran. I ran to them
and I grabbed one,
1276
01:06:58,139 --> 01:06:59,970
and I held it to my chest
real tight...
1277
01:07:00,308 --> 01:07:02,028
Like it was like
my girlfriend or something.
1278
01:07:02,143 --> 01:07:03,143
It was, you know...
1279
01:07:03,269 --> 01:07:05,309
My sister's looking at me like,
"what are you doing?
1280
01:07:06,147 --> 01:07:08,209
Whenever I would be going
through something really bad,
1281
01:07:08,233 --> 01:07:10,519
whether it was
being bullied at school
1282
01:07:10,735 --> 01:07:12,566
or whether it was
being abused at home
1283
01:07:13,071 --> 01:07:14,811
I could escape.
I could leave the room.
1284
01:07:14,989 --> 01:07:17,605
I could escape
with the black trench coat on.
1285
01:07:18,451 --> 01:07:19,736
It was like the French coat
1286
01:07:19,911 --> 01:07:21,993
was like a living,
breathing organism to me.
1287
01:07:22,956 --> 01:07:25,197
You know. It made me feel...
1288
01:07:26,960 --> 01:07:28,871
When [I put it on,
it made me feel strong
1289
01:07:29,879 --> 01:07:32,996
it made me feel powerful,
unassailable.
1290
01:07:33,216 --> 01:07:35,548
It made me feel closer
to Neo than I ever been.
1291
01:07:36,010 --> 01:07:39,594
I would wear the trench coat
to the mall mainly.
1292
01:07:39,764 --> 01:07:41,925
I would walk around the mall
just all day
1293
01:07:43,142 --> 01:07:45,758
with the matrix music
on my headphones.
1294
01:07:45,937 --> 01:07:48,223
I had the soundtrack...
It was in my cd player,
1295
01:07:49,357 --> 01:07:50,688
and people would see me come in,
1296
01:07:50,858 --> 01:07:52,940
and they would just kind of
back away, you know.
1297
01:07:53,111 --> 01:07:55,727
And I had this sick thrill
of wearing it.
1298
01:07:56,364 --> 01:07:58,446
So being Neo, being Neo was...
1299
01:07:59,158 --> 01:08:01,319
I felt for a long time
it actually saved me,
1300
01:08:01,494 --> 01:08:03,234
but 'til a certain point.
1301
01:08:04,163 --> 01:08:05,949
You know, everything
that's really happened
1302
01:08:06,124 --> 01:08:07,660
with me has kind of dichotomy,
1303
01:08:08,001 --> 01:08:09,036
sometimes a paradox.
1304
01:08:11,004 --> 01:08:13,245
I've probably watched
the matrix movie...
1305
01:08:14,299 --> 01:08:15,163
I don't know exact,
1306
01:08:15,300 --> 01:08:16,700
but I know
it was hundreds of times.
1307
01:08:16,926 --> 01:08:19,633
After I saw it the first time,
I had to watch it again.
1308
01:08:20,138 --> 01:08:21,423
And then I had
to watch it again,
1309
01:08:21,639 --> 01:08:23,630
and I watched it again
and again and again.
1310
01:08:23,850 --> 01:08:25,306
There were days
when I would watch it
1311
01:08:25,476 --> 01:08:27,057
two or three times in a row.
1312
01:08:28,187 --> 01:08:30,394
And like the world
that they are in,
1313
01:08:31,024 --> 01:08:34,562
this boring, you know,
trite, mundane...
1314
01:08:35,570 --> 01:08:38,903
You know, just sickening world,
I felt the same way.
1315
01:08:39,532 --> 01:08:41,147
I just felt like
nothing was going right.
1316
01:08:41,367 --> 01:08:42,567
What the hell am I doing here?
1317
01:08:42,827 --> 01:08:43,887
And I felt like, "man,
there's gotta be
1318
01:08:43,911 --> 01:08:44,911
more than this."
1319
01:08:44,954 --> 01:08:46,819
Maybe there's something
with this matrix thing.
1320
01:08:47,290 --> 01:08:48,450
Maybe it's real.
1321
01:08:48,666 --> 01:08:51,408
Maybe it's not so fake
after all. You know, who knows?
1322
01:09:01,554 --> 01:09:03,715
Philip: One thing I really
want you to know,
1323
01:09:04,015 --> 01:09:06,176
these claims
can neither be proved
1324
01:09:06,851 --> 01:09:09,638
nor can they be even
made to sound rational
1325
01:09:09,812 --> 01:09:11,348
in the usual sense of the word.
1326
01:09:12,899 --> 01:09:15,641
It has taken me over
three years to reach the point
1327
01:09:15,860 --> 01:09:17,566
where I am willing
to tell anyone
1328
01:09:17,737 --> 01:09:20,274
but my closest friends
about my experience
1329
01:09:20,573 --> 01:09:23,986
beginning back
at the vernal equinox of 1974.
1330
01:09:29,207 --> 01:09:30,913
Philip: One of the reasons
motivating me
1331
01:09:31,084 --> 01:09:32,915
to speak about it publicly
at last
1332
01:09:33,419 --> 01:09:35,080
to openly make this claim
1333
01:09:35,254 --> 01:09:37,666
is a recent encounter
I have undergone
1334
01:09:38,508 --> 01:09:42,296
which, by the way,
bears a strange resemblance
1335
01:09:43,012 --> 01:09:45,503
to hawthorne abendsen's
experience in my novel
1336
01:09:45,682 --> 01:09:48,515
the man in the high castle
with the woman Juliana crain.
1337
01:09:54,440 --> 01:09:56,897
Juliana read abendsen's book
about a world
1338
01:09:57,068 --> 01:09:59,275
in which Germany and Japan
and Italy...
1339
01:10:01,531 --> 01:10:04,398
Now this is a little difficult
if you haven't read the book,
1340
01:10:04,992 --> 01:10:08,359
but he wrote a novel
in which Germany,
1341
01:10:08,996 --> 01:10:12,454
Italy and Japan
lost world war ll.
1342
01:10:13,292 --> 01:10:14,623
And he was living in a world
1343
01:10:14,794 --> 01:10:16,500
in which
they had won world war I.
1344
01:10:19,674 --> 01:10:20,880
She felt she should tell him
1345
01:10:21,008 --> 01:10:22,748
what she comprehended
about the book.
1346
01:10:24,220 --> 01:10:26,711
In other words,
that his novel was true.
1347
01:10:28,349 --> 01:10:30,029
Chris: When I was working
onjimmy corrigan,
1348
01:10:30,059 --> 01:10:32,345
the main character meets
his dad, and then his dad dies.
1349
01:10:35,773 --> 01:10:37,934
And as I was working
on the story itself,
1350
01:10:38,151 --> 01:10:40,688
I met my dad for the first time
and then he died.
1351
01:10:42,655 --> 01:10:44,566
John updike said something
once about...
1352
01:10:45,032 --> 01:10:47,739
About the strange predictability
of fiction.
1353
01:10:48,161 --> 01:10:49,742
And he just kinda
let it go at that,
1354
01:10:49,912 --> 01:10:51,098
and didn't really
follow up on that.
1355
01:10:51,122 --> 01:10:53,002
But there is something
when you get into this...
1356
01:10:53,166 --> 01:10:54,827
Imaginary world
1357
01:10:55,001 --> 01:10:57,287
of writing stories,
or reimagining memories
1358
01:10:57,420 --> 01:10:59,627
where you can kind of
start to feel like you're...
1359
01:11:00,506 --> 01:11:04,624
Not necessarily predicting
the world, but having some play
1360
01:11:04,719 --> 01:11:06,209
in the stream of it,
or something.
1361
01:11:08,556 --> 01:11:12,299
For several years, I've had
the feeling, a growing feeling,
1362
01:11:12,769 --> 01:11:16,057
that one day a woman, who would
be a complete stranger to me,
1363
01:11:16,481 --> 01:11:19,143
would contact me and tell me
1364
01:11:19,442 --> 01:11:22,149
that she had some information
to impart to me.
1365
01:11:22,987 --> 01:11:24,852
And then she would appear
at my door
1366
01:11:25,323 --> 01:11:28,531
just as Juliana appeared
at hawthorne abendsen's door.
1367
01:11:28,868 --> 01:11:32,326
She would tell me exactly
what Juliana told abendsen,
1368
01:11:32,789 --> 01:11:36,498
and that is that my book,
like his, was in a certain,
1369
01:11:36,667 --> 01:11:39,033
real, literal
and physical sense,
1370
01:11:39,170 --> 01:11:40,626
not fiction but the truth.
1371
01:11:42,965 --> 01:11:44,705
Well, this did
finally happen to me.
1372
01:11:46,260 --> 01:11:48,251
I even knew
that her hair would be black.
1373
01:11:50,598 --> 01:11:52,213
One of the first things
that a lot
1374
01:11:52,391 --> 01:11:53,831
of science fiction critics
remind you
1375
01:11:53,893 --> 01:11:55,329
when you're talking
about science fiction,
1376
01:11:55,353 --> 01:11:57,014
"science fiction is
not about prediction."
1377
01:11:57,188 --> 01:11:58,868
But of course people
think about it anyway.
1378
01:11:59,023 --> 01:12:02,015
And dick has quite a few.
Like he's no slacker
1379
01:12:02,151 --> 01:12:06,520
in the actually anticipating
the future department,
1380
01:12:06,781 --> 01:12:08,942
especially around
consumer gadgets
1381
01:12:09,033 --> 01:12:10,819
and ideas about
consumer gadgets.
1382
01:12:11,077 --> 01:12:13,534
But I think
what's more prophetic
1383
01:12:13,621 --> 01:12:14,621
is just...
1384
01:12:15,540 --> 01:12:19,124
What if feels like
to be alive right now.
1385
01:12:19,585 --> 01:12:24,500
You know, to be confused...
Ontologically confused.
1386
01:12:24,674 --> 01:12:27,962
Like, I'm not really sure
where reality is exactly.
1387
01:12:28,469 --> 01:12:31,336
I'm certainly convinced
that there's a lot of
1388
01:12:31,514 --> 01:12:34,096
very dark forces on the rise,
1389
01:12:34,267 --> 01:12:36,428
and there are things that
are trying to manipulate me
1390
01:12:36,727 --> 01:12:38,558
using information or using my...
1391
01:12:38,771 --> 01:12:41,308
The fact that I'm still
a subject of capitalism,
1392
01:12:41,524 --> 01:12:43,765
and they're kind of
manipulating that.
1393
01:12:44,026 --> 01:12:45,587
And, at the same time,
there's sort of like
1394
01:12:45,611 --> 01:12:47,147
deeper rumblings
1395
01:12:47,321 --> 01:12:50,529
in the nature of the world
that seem really unclear.
1396
01:12:50,867 --> 01:12:54,735
And at the same time,
people seem potentially drawn
1397
01:12:54,912 --> 01:12:58,120
into their own sort of
solipsistic world
1398
01:12:58,291 --> 01:13:00,703
of like manipulating
with the world
1399
01:13:00,877 --> 01:13:02,208
through all these interfaces
1400
01:13:02,336 --> 01:13:04,292
and kind of detaching in a way,
1401
01:13:04,589 --> 01:13:06,830
even at the same time
you're completely bound up.
1402
01:13:07,049 --> 01:13:09,040
And that's a primal theme
in dick,
1403
01:13:09,218 --> 01:13:11,584
is the tension between
our social reality,
1404
01:13:11,721 --> 01:13:13,552
the reality as
a social construction
1405
01:13:14,056 --> 01:13:17,093
that we are always able
to kind of fragment away from
1406
01:13:17,310 --> 01:13:19,972
in generally harrowing ways.
1407
01:13:20,146 --> 01:13:23,354
We go into solipsism,
we go into psychosis,
1408
01:13:23,649 --> 01:13:25,185
we go into paranoia.
1409
01:13:25,359 --> 01:13:26,974
Hey, guys, I used
to be one of you!
1410
01:13:27,486 --> 01:13:28,505
- Stop selling...
- Erik: And so,
1411
01:13:28,529 --> 01:13:32,647
I think he captures
the texture of our life.
1412
01:13:32,783 --> 01:13:34,944
I mean, especially, like,
just as a trivial example...
1413
01:13:35,119 --> 01:13:38,953
The texture of like lots
of little alerts all the time.
1414
01:13:39,081 --> 01:13:42,790
You know, pings on the phone
and here's your e-mail, ding!
1415
01:13:42,960 --> 01:13:44,280
And then,
"oh, don't forget this."
1416
01:13:44,921 --> 01:13:47,958
That kind of mind
that's constantly distracted
1417
01:13:48,132 --> 01:13:50,919
by these little bits
of information tugging at us.
1418
01:13:51,135 --> 01:13:53,095
Some of which are
advertisements trying to like...
1419
01:13:53,387 --> 01:13:55,127
Or you start thinking
about a trip
1420
01:13:55,348 --> 01:13:57,304
and then you write
somebody an e-mail,
1421
01:13:57,475 --> 01:13:58,869
and goggle reads your e-mail
and then suddenly
1422
01:13:58,893 --> 01:14:00,758
all the adds are like,
"trips! Trips! Trips!"
1423
01:14:01,020 --> 01:14:05,605
It's just like, "whoa," that
fabric of consciousness
1424
01:14:05,858 --> 01:14:09,316
is just straight out of this...
1425
01:14:11,614 --> 01:14:12,966
Joshua: I remember typing
1426
01:14:12,990 --> 01:14:14,275
"guns for sale”
1427
01:14:14,408 --> 01:14:15,648
on like Google.
1428
01:14:16,577 --> 01:14:18,693
And... in Fairfax, Virginia.
1429
01:14:18,871 --> 01:14:21,613
And I saw this place called
galyan's sporting goods store.
1430
01:14:21,999 --> 01:14:23,739
And I remember...
1431
01:14:25,753 --> 01:14:28,369
Like a few days after
I looked that up, my father.
1432
01:14:28,589 --> 01:14:30,295
I was in the basement
with my father.
1433
01:14:31,717 --> 01:14:33,673
And he said,
"I've seen your searches
1434
01:14:33,803 --> 01:14:34,918
for guns for sale.”
1435
01:14:36,597 --> 01:14:37,962
And looked at me,
1436
01:14:38,432 --> 01:14:41,515
he had like this
worried/angry look on his face.
1437
01:14:42,645 --> 01:14:44,226
And I didn't say anything,
and I...
1438
01:14:44,855 --> 01:14:46,495
We looked at each other
for a good minute,
1439
01:14:47,191 --> 01:14:48,306
almost like a standoff.
1440
01:14:48,651 --> 01:14:51,108
And then I just walked up
the basement steps and left.
1441
01:14:51,278 --> 01:14:53,269
So we never had another
conversation about it.
1442
01:14:55,866 --> 01:14:58,027
Erik: He had this great line
about, that he thought
1443
01:14:58,202 --> 01:14:59,408
that the contemporary world
1444
01:14:59,578 --> 01:15:02,320
was sort of recreating
the animist world
1445
01:15:02,456 --> 01:15:05,072
that people,
pre-modern people saw.
1446
01:15:06,669 --> 01:15:08,785
And his work captures that sense
1447
01:15:08,921 --> 01:15:13,005
of a kind of
profane technological animism,
1448
01:15:13,217 --> 01:15:14,457
and aliveness
1449
01:15:14,927 --> 01:15:16,883
that is not very trustworthy.
1450
01:15:17,304 --> 01:15:18,304
I love you, daddy.
1451
01:15:18,889 --> 01:15:21,801
Erik: Dick was
always aware of the broken.
1452
01:15:21,976 --> 01:15:25,013
People are broken.
Technologies are broken.
1453
01:15:25,187 --> 01:15:28,224
Cosmologies are broken.
Gods are broken.
1454
01:15:30,860 --> 01:15:32,254
Even though it seems like
other people
1455
01:15:32,278 --> 01:15:34,314
are just always paying
attention to like the new
1456
01:15:34,488 --> 01:15:36,466
and how the new technologies
can solve this thing...
1457
01:15:36,490 --> 01:15:39,903
Narrator: Your plastic pal
who's fun to be with!
1458
01:15:40,036 --> 01:15:43,244
Erik: What I experience
my technological life is like
1459
01:15:43,414 --> 01:15:45,370
is just a lot of broken things.
1460
01:15:50,254 --> 01:15:52,040
Jesse: So, you have
your giant developers.
1461
01:15:52,214 --> 01:15:53,750
You have activision blizzard,
1462
01:15:54,675 --> 01:15:57,087
they do world of warcraft
and overwatch.
1463
01:15:57,762 --> 01:16:00,128
You have ea, which is...
1464
01:16:02,516 --> 01:16:05,303
I think I've seen ea
related to the Nazis
1465
01:16:05,478 --> 01:16:07,469
more than I've seen them
related to video games.
1466
01:16:08,105 --> 01:16:09,505
They're pushing out
these things now
1467
01:16:09,648 --> 01:16:11,528
where you're paying full price
for a video game,
1468
01:16:11,650 --> 01:16:14,767
but you're only getting like
40% of a video game.
1469
01:16:15,404 --> 01:16:19,898
And the portion you get
is broken and buggy.
1470
01:16:20,242 --> 01:16:23,484
And sometimes like literally,
in the case of some games,
1471
01:16:23,746 --> 01:16:27,489
like I think the latest one
was atlas, it's unplayable.
1472
01:16:27,666 --> 01:16:29,657
Like it's literally dead
on arrival.
1473
01:16:29,835 --> 01:16:31,496
People were still paying
full price for it
1474
01:16:31,754 --> 01:16:33,754
and getting tricked into it.
You can't get refunds.
1475
01:16:34,173 --> 01:16:35,663
They get patches
that don't work.
1476
01:16:36,675 --> 01:16:37,986
You're stuck
in these digital worlds
1477
01:16:38,010 --> 01:16:39,050
that aren't going so well.
1478
01:16:39,095 --> 01:16:40,455
And then,
when you get out of them,
1479
01:16:40,513 --> 01:16:41,548
you're stuck in a reality
1480
01:16:41,680 --> 01:16:43,261
that's not going so well either.
1481
01:16:44,725 --> 01:16:46,761
And you can't help
draw parallels.
1482
01:16:47,478 --> 01:16:50,015
The grass is dead
on both sides of this thing.
1483
01:16:51,774 --> 01:16:53,355
Perhaps right now,
maybe our artifices
1484
01:16:53,776 --> 01:16:56,188
are a little bit more active
than we thought.
1485
01:16:56,445 --> 01:16:58,590
And they're just like really
hot-fixing a lot of things,
1486
01:16:58,614 --> 01:17:00,605
and they're quick-patching
reality right now,
1487
01:17:00,783 --> 01:17:01,613
and it's just like,
1488
01:17:01,742 --> 01:17:03,022
shit's hitting
the fan right now.
1489
01:17:04,161 --> 01:17:05,361
Emily: That's what's happening
1490
01:17:05,454 --> 01:17:08,241
outside the matrix
in Neo's world, too.
1491
01:17:08,415 --> 01:17:09,746
It's like the real reality,
1492
01:17:09,875 --> 01:17:11,581
if you get outside of the matrix
1493
01:17:12,086 --> 01:17:13,747
is terrible.
1494
01:17:13,921 --> 01:17:16,788
The real reality is like war,
and you can't breathe.
1495
01:17:16,924 --> 01:17:19,666
To me, the subtext of that
is maybe there was
1496
01:17:20,094 --> 01:17:22,301
a taboo that we transgressed,
1497
01:17:22,471 --> 01:17:24,928
that we went past
the point of no return.
1498
01:17:25,975 --> 01:17:30,264
Joshua: February 17th, 2003.
1499
01:17:30,521 --> 01:17:31,521
It was a Monday.
1500
01:17:33,858 --> 01:17:36,270
I woke up. There was
a whole lot of show outside
1501
01:17:36,443 --> 01:17:38,900
from a recent blizzard
we had just had.
1502
01:17:39,530 --> 01:17:43,614
And I walked downstairs,
I saw my father shoveling snow.
1503
01:17:43,826 --> 01:17:46,818
So I got my clothes on
and helped him shovel the snow.
1504
01:17:47,413 --> 01:17:51,372
And in the middle of doing that
I remember my mother came out
1505
01:17:51,625 --> 01:17:54,412
and she looked up and she said,
"there's so much snow.
1506
01:17:54,545 --> 01:17:56,536
We're gonna remember this
for a long time."
1507
01:17:58,299 --> 01:18:00,585
I spent the rest of the day
in my room
1508
01:18:00,718 --> 01:18:02,128
playing violent video games
1509
01:18:02,344 --> 01:18:06,053
and watching the matrix movie
with my black trench coat on
1510
01:18:06,557 --> 01:18:08,047
and my gun in my hand.
1511
01:18:10,102 --> 01:18:11,808
As evening time continued...
1512
01:18:14,106 --> 01:18:17,098
Paranoia sunk in even further.
1513
01:18:17,818 --> 01:18:19,354
Lightning struck my brain.
1514
01:18:21,238 --> 01:18:22,273
And this is what hit me.
1515
01:18:23,157 --> 01:18:27,196
I said to myself, the only way
I could find out for sure,
1516
01:18:27,453 --> 01:18:29,614
I could find out for sure
1517
01:18:30,122 --> 01:18:31,828
if the matrix was real
1518
01:18:32,124 --> 01:18:33,614
and I wasn't losing my mind
1519
01:18:34,460 --> 01:18:37,577
was to simply pick up
the phone and call them.
1520
01:18:39,215 --> 01:18:43,379
I left my room
and I walked precariously
1521
01:18:44,386 --> 01:18:46,627
over to the house phone
in my parents' bedroom.
1522
01:19:00,945 --> 01:19:03,277
I slowly picked the phone
up off the hook
1523
01:19:04,031 --> 01:19:07,319
and then, taking a deep,
nervous breath
1524
01:19:07,868 --> 01:19:10,405
I spoke those powerful words,
his words,
1525
01:19:11,330 --> 01:19:12,536
the final words of Neo,
1526
01:19:13,457 --> 01:19:16,540
"I know you're out there.
I can feel you now.
1527
01:19:17,169 --> 01:19:18,375
I know that you're afraid.
1528
01:19:19,838 --> 01:19:22,705
You're afraid of us.
You're afraid of change.
1529
01:19:24,260 --> 01:19:25,500
I don't know the future.
1530
01:19:25,970 --> 01:19:28,586
I didn't come here to tell you
how this is going to end.
1531
01:19:29,098 --> 01:19:32,181
I came here to tell you how
it's going to begin.
1532
01:19:33,185 --> 01:19:34,516
You're gonna hang up this phone,
1533
01:19:34,979 --> 01:19:36,414
and then I'm going to show
these people
1534
01:19:36,438 --> 01:19:37,723
what you don't want them
[To see.
1535
01:19:38,440 --> 01:19:39,725
A world without you.
1536
01:19:40,693 --> 01:19:42,809
A world without rules
and controls,
1537
01:19:42,945 --> 01:19:44,185
without borders or boundaries.
1538
01:19:44,530 --> 01:19:47,272
A world where
anything's possible.
1539
01:19:50,869 --> 01:19:53,360
Where we go from there
is a choice up to you."
1540
01:19:53,706 --> 01:19:55,162
And I hung up the phone
1541
01:19:55,416 --> 01:19:58,624
and I walked calmly back
to the TV in my room
1542
01:19:59,128 --> 01:20:01,369
and began watching the matrix
all over again.
1543
01:20:02,881 --> 01:20:05,918
Joshua: And I remember
sitting there on my bed
1544
01:20:06,093 --> 01:20:07,629
looking up at the matrix poster,
1545
01:20:07,845 --> 01:20:11,758
just saying basically,
"fuck my life," you know?
1546
01:20:12,349 --> 01:20:14,681
I got my shotgun out and I...
1547
01:20:17,313 --> 01:20:19,850
I put some slugs in there,
in the chamber...
1548
01:20:21,066 --> 01:20:25,560
And I slid the action forward,
and I left my room.
1549
01:20:25,696 --> 01:20:30,861
But before I did,
I put a cd player on my head,
1550
01:20:31,452 --> 01:20:32,737
headphones on my head.
1551
01:20:32,911 --> 01:20:34,276
And this one was
a little different
1552
01:20:34,371 --> 01:20:35,235
than the matrix.
1553
01:20:35,331 --> 01:20:37,947
This one was by a band
called drowning pool.
1554
01:20:39,043 --> 01:20:41,159
The words to the song were,
1555
01:20:41,795 --> 01:20:45,037
"beaten why for
can't take much more
1556
01:20:45,466 --> 01:20:48,299
something's got to give
let the bodies hit the floor"
1557
01:20:48,594 --> 01:20:55,341
j j
1558
01:20:55,726 --> 01:20:58,433
that's what I was listening to
as I left my room
1559
01:20:58,979 --> 01:21:02,597
and I went downstairs to get
to the basement.
1560
01:21:03,525 --> 01:21:09,646
J j
1561
01:21:23,504 --> 01:21:25,085
And I remember
1562
01:21:25,130 --> 01:21:27,496
when I got to the
bottom of the basement stairs
1563
01:21:27,841 --> 01:21:30,173
I saw my mother was sitting
there at the computer
1564
01:21:30,344 --> 01:21:31,344
with a smile on her face.
1565
01:21:32,179 --> 01:21:35,717
And she turned, she swiveled
in her chair to face me
1566
01:21:35,891 --> 01:21:38,382
and when she saw the gun
in my hand,
1567
01:21:38,560 --> 01:21:41,427
which she's seeing
for the first time ever,
1568
01:21:46,193 --> 01:21:47,433
I shot her in the chest.
1569
01:21:48,487 --> 01:21:50,352
And I turned my attention
to my father,
1570
01:21:50,531 --> 01:21:52,131
who was on the other side
of the basement
1571
01:21:52,408 --> 01:21:55,775
and he dove.
He was at his computer, too.
1572
01:21:56,078 --> 01:21:57,659
And he dove under the table,
1573
01:21:58,038 --> 01:22:00,120
and he was looking at me
1574
01:22:00,290 --> 01:22:03,623
with a look I've never seen
on him before.
1575
01:22:04,128 --> 01:22:06,870
And just that look of shock
and disbelief.
1576
01:22:07,840 --> 01:22:11,048
And I remember I crouched down
to be level with him
1577
01:22:11,218 --> 01:22:13,174
and I shot him about
three times.
1578
01:22:28,694 --> 01:22:31,356
I went upstairs to reload
1579
01:22:31,864 --> 01:22:33,445
and when I came back down...
1580
01:22:34,283 --> 01:22:37,320
Oh, I still had
my headphones on.
1581
01:22:37,911 --> 01:22:40,323
The words that were forced
into my ears were,
1582
01:22:41,290 --> 01:22:43,997
"skin against skin
blood and bone
1583
01:22:44,543 --> 01:22:46,829
you're all by yourself
but you're not alone
1584
01:22:47,421 --> 01:22:49,457
you wanted in now you're here
1585
01:22:49,840 --> 01:22:51,956
driven by hate consumed by fear
1586
01:22:52,509 --> 01:22:53,874
let the bodies hit the floor"
1587
01:22:55,053 --> 01:22:56,543
that's what I was listening to
1588
01:22:56,763 --> 01:22:58,594
when I went down
for the second time
1589
01:22:58,724 --> 01:22:59,724
to the basement.
1590
01:23:07,483 --> 01:23:09,769
I was standing at the top
of the basement staircase,
1591
01:23:09,943 --> 01:23:12,480
and my mother was standing
at the bottom of the staircase,
1592
01:23:13,405 --> 01:23:14,986
holding her chest
as she bled out.
1593
01:23:15,657 --> 01:23:20,697
And I lifted the gun up
and I aimed it at her face.
1594
01:23:20,913 --> 01:23:22,528
She looked up at me
and she said...
1595
01:23:23,373 --> 01:23:25,830
She said, "Joshua."
1596
01:23:26,627 --> 01:23:27,912
She said, "what did you do?"
1597
01:23:29,087 --> 01:23:32,921
And she kept looking at me
for a minute, and she said...
1598
01:23:34,510 --> 01:23:35,545
She said, "you wouldn't.”
1599
01:23:36,470 --> 01:23:37,585
And I pulled the trigger.
1600
01:23:40,015 --> 01:23:41,880
When I pulled the trigger and...
1601
01:23:43,393 --> 01:23:44,508
Her face exploded.
1602
01:23:46,480 --> 01:23:48,971
Half her face, her eye
and her face exploded out
1603
01:23:49,149 --> 01:23:50,389
through the back of her head...
1604
01:23:51,068 --> 01:23:54,856
And her flesh was just
turned into like ripplets,
1605
01:23:54,988 --> 01:23:55,988
a bloody mess.
1606
01:23:56,073 --> 01:23:58,530
And it messed me up really bad
1607
01:23:58,700 --> 01:24:02,693
because it wasn't anything like
I had seen on the matrix.
1608
01:24:03,580 --> 01:24:06,913
You know? Real life
was so much more horrific.
1609
01:24:07,376 --> 01:24:09,913
It kind of jarred me.
I was still pretty numb,
1610
01:24:10,587 --> 01:24:11,997
but I remember it jarring me
1611
01:24:12,297 --> 01:24:15,004
'cause it was different than
what I thought of the matrix.
1612
01:24:18,512 --> 01:24:20,548
So I turned around
and I went upstairs
1613
01:24:20,973 --> 01:24:23,680
into the dining room.
1614
01:24:24,017 --> 01:24:25,723
I picked up the phone
in the kitchen,
1615
01:24:26,478 --> 01:24:28,264
and my sister was on the phone.
1616
01:24:28,438 --> 01:24:29,678
I didn't realize at the time
1617
01:24:29,856 --> 01:24:32,188
that my sister
was on the phone with my father
1618
01:24:32,776 --> 01:24:35,483
at the exact moment that
I killed him and my mother.
1619
01:24:35,904 --> 01:24:38,361
She heard the whole thing,
and I didn't realize it.
1620
01:24:38,532 --> 01:24:39,396
So here [ Am,
1621
01:24:39,491 --> 01:24:42,153
I'm at the phone in the kitchen
and I said, "hello?"
1622
01:24:43,036 --> 01:24:45,903
And my sister said, "Josh?"
And I said, "Tiffany?"
1623
01:24:46,290 --> 01:24:47,610
I said,
"what are you doing here?"
1624
01:24:47,666 --> 01:24:49,327
And she said,
"Josh, where's daddy?
1625
01:24:49,459 --> 01:24:50,619
I wanna talk to daddy."
1626
01:24:51,336 --> 01:24:52,496
And I told her, I said,
1627
01:24:52,629 --> 01:24:54,915
"hang up the phone, Tiffany.
I gotta call someone."
1628
01:24:55,882 --> 01:24:58,214
And she didn't hang up,
so I let the phone hang
1629
01:24:58,427 --> 01:25:01,794
and I went to,
my father had a cell phone.
1630
01:25:01,972 --> 01:25:03,963
I went to his cell phone.
I went outside.
1631
01:25:05,142 --> 01:25:09,055
I took a Coca-Cola
out of the refrigerator
1632
01:25:09,730 --> 01:25:10,765
and I started to drink...
1633
01:25:10,981 --> 01:25:12,661
I popped the top
and I started drinking it,
1634
01:25:12,691 --> 01:25:14,022
and I called 911.
1635
01:25:15,360 --> 01:25:16,600
When I hung the phone up...
1636
01:25:17,988 --> 01:25:21,526
I got a call on my dad's phone
from a friend of his.
1637
01:25:21,867 --> 01:25:26,406
And my dad's friend said,
"hey, Josh, is your dad there?"
1638
01:25:27,039 --> 01:25:29,200
And I said, "he can't come
to the phone right now."
1639
01:25:30,083 --> 01:25:31,163
And he said, "oh, okay.
1640
01:25:31,251 --> 01:25:33,162
Will you give him
a message for me?
1641
01:25:33,295 --> 01:25:34,295
Just tell him I called.”
1642
01:25:35,088 --> 01:25:37,204
Said, "will you give him that
message for me?"
1643
01:25:37,841 --> 01:25:38,921
And I said, "sure."
1644
01:25:39,885 --> 01:25:42,422
And he hung up the phone,
I hung up the phone.
1645
01:25:42,638 --> 01:25:44,299
And moments later,
1646
01:25:44,473 --> 01:25:46,964
the police arrived
at the driveway of my house
1647
01:25:47,184 --> 01:25:48,264
with their guns drawn.
1648
01:25:48,727 --> 01:25:52,015
About five or six of them
with their guns drawn on me...
1649
01:25:53,231 --> 01:25:54,971
Told me to get down on my knees,
1650
01:25:55,108 --> 01:25:57,099
and of course they arrested me.
1651
01:26:10,082 --> 01:26:11,822
Philip: /, in my stories
and novels,
1652
01:26:11,958 --> 01:26:13,914
often write about
counterfeit worlds
1653
01:26:14,544 --> 01:26:18,082
semi-real worlds, as well as
deranged private worlds
1654
01:26:18,382 --> 01:26:20,668
inhabited often
by just one person,
1655
01:26:21,093 --> 01:26:23,049
while meantime
the other characters
1656
01:26:23,220 --> 01:26:25,211
either remain
in their own worlds throughout
1657
01:26:25,639 --> 01:26:28,551
or are somehow drawn into
one of the peculiar ones.
1658
01:26:29,351 --> 01:26:32,684
This theme occurs in the corpus
of my 27 years of writing.
1659
01:26:33,313 --> 01:26:35,554
At no time did I have
a theoretical
1660
01:26:35,691 --> 01:26:38,307
or conscious explanation
for my preoccupation
1661
01:26:38,652 --> 01:26:40,859
with these pluriform
pseudo-worlds.
1662
01:26:41,196 --> 01:26:42,982
But now I think I understand.
1663
01:26:43,323 --> 01:26:45,405
What I was sensing
was the manifold
1664
01:26:45,575 --> 01:26:49,159
of partially actualized reality
lying tangent
1665
01:26:49,329 --> 01:26:52,071
to what evidently
is the most actualized one.
1666
01:26:52,499 --> 01:26:56,868
The one which the majority of us
by consensus gentium agree on.
1667
01:26:58,964 --> 01:27:00,420
The real nub of it,
1668
01:27:00,966 --> 01:27:04,584
morally, ethically,
even kind of cosmologically...
1669
01:27:04,761 --> 01:27:06,717
Is how we deal with each other.
1670
01:27:07,180 --> 01:27:09,592
Like, okay I'm in a simulation.
1671
01:27:09,808 --> 01:27:11,469
Okay, I'm in a false,
phenomenal world.
1672
01:27:11,643 --> 01:27:14,555
How do I deal with this person
I'm in love with?
1673
01:27:14,730 --> 01:27:17,346
How do I deal with this person
who is my enemy?
1674
01:27:17,607 --> 01:27:20,098
How do I deal
with a dying parent?
1675
01:27:20,485 --> 01:27:23,693
But if I have the hunch
that this is a simulation
1676
01:27:23,989 --> 01:27:26,480
and there are other people
like me there
1677
01:27:26,658 --> 01:27:28,899
who aren't just simulations,
1678
01:27:29,035 --> 01:27:31,651
it puts weird pressure
on my ethics.
1679
01:27:32,330 --> 01:27:35,288
How do I deal with somebody
else who's in a false world
1680
01:27:35,500 --> 01:27:39,539
but who's actually behind
that avatar is someone like me,
1681
01:27:39,713 --> 01:27:41,499
that I really want
to communicate with,
1682
01:27:41,673 --> 01:27:43,914
fall in love with,
bond together with.
1683
01:27:44,092 --> 01:27:46,299
And that's really key
to Phil dick.
1684
01:27:46,470 --> 01:27:48,085
Like yeah, Phil dick
was kinda crazy.
1685
01:27:48,472 --> 01:27:50,963
He had visions
1686
01:27:51,057 --> 01:27:52,537
he could never decide
what they meant,
1687
01:27:52,684 --> 01:27:55,221
he's neurotic and pathological
and paranoid
1688
01:27:55,395 --> 01:27:56,510
and all those things,
1689
01:27:56,855 --> 01:27:59,471
but at the same time,
constantly,
1690
01:27:59,816 --> 01:28:01,431
throughout all of the texts,
1691
01:28:01,943 --> 01:28:06,186
there's this
very grounded empathy
1692
01:28:06,448 --> 01:28:10,566
with people suffering
under these false conditions.
1693
01:28:12,579 --> 01:28:15,116
This very real portrayal,
1694
01:28:15,290 --> 01:28:18,202
very sobering portrayals of
human beings that are still...
1695
01:28:18,710 --> 01:28:19,745
They have a heart.
1696
01:28:20,128 --> 01:28:22,540
And that heart is what
kind of keeps you going
1697
01:28:22,756 --> 01:28:26,624
as you suffer these various
nightmare scenarios
1698
01:28:26,843 --> 01:28:29,084
that he throws your way,
including the ultimate one
1699
01:28:29,262 --> 01:28:30,547
of just not knowing.
1700
01:28:31,223 --> 01:28:33,430
And I think that that's
one of the ways that people
1701
01:28:33,600 --> 01:28:35,761
get attracted
to simulation hypothesis
1702
01:28:36,019 --> 01:28:39,261
is because it seems
to maybe solve problems.
1703
01:28:40,023 --> 01:28:43,186
But I think it just makes
the problems even more...
1704
01:28:44,152 --> 01:28:46,609
You know, kind of poignant
and in your face.
1705
01:28:50,283 --> 01:28:52,365
Joshua: So when I met my lawyers
1706
01:28:52,494 --> 01:28:55,110
for the first time
in Fairfax jail
1707
01:28:55,288 --> 01:28:58,451
they asked me about
my crime and...
1708
01:28:58,667 --> 01:28:59,667
And I told them I said,
1709
01:28:59,709 --> 01:29:02,041
"I did my thing
just like Neo in the matrix.
1710
01:29:02,921 --> 01:29:04,752
Like I was in virtual reality."
1711
01:29:06,091 --> 01:29:09,424
And that really took them
by surprise.
1712
01:29:09,594 --> 01:29:10,754
They weren't expecting that.
1713
01:29:11,263 --> 01:29:13,470
I also told them
that the moment of my crime,
1714
01:29:14,432 --> 01:29:16,423
I had also felt
a tinge of remorse,
1715
01:29:16,893 --> 01:29:19,509
because it was two strong things
1716
01:29:19,563 --> 01:29:20,678
at the same time,
1717
01:29:20,814 --> 01:29:23,556
that I was entering the world,
or exiting the world
1718
01:29:23,692 --> 01:29:24,692
of the matrix.
1719
01:29:24,734 --> 01:29:27,476
And then real life,
with what I did to my parents.
1720
01:29:28,780 --> 01:29:30,987
My lawyers later
went to my house,
1721
01:29:31,241 --> 01:29:32,947
and they went upstairs
to my room
1722
01:29:33,076 --> 01:29:38,616
and they saw my enormous
matrix movie poster on my wall.
1723
01:29:39,207 --> 01:29:40,947
And they saw
my black trench coat
1724
01:29:41,126 --> 01:29:43,162
laying out on my bed,
smoothed out on my bed.
1725
01:29:43,336 --> 01:29:44,542
They saw my black boots.
1726
01:29:45,630 --> 01:29:46,961
The ones like Neo wore.
1727
01:29:48,091 --> 01:29:49,581
And they began to think
1728
01:29:50,010 --> 01:29:52,752
that they may have
an insanity defense.
1729
01:29:56,016 --> 01:29:59,429
They said that I, quote,
"harbored a bona fide belief
1730
01:29:59,603 --> 01:30:02,390
that I was living in
the virtual world of the matrix
1731
01:30:02,981 --> 01:30:04,141
at the time of the murders."
1732
01:30:05,150 --> 01:30:06,640
That was part of my defense.
1733
01:30:08,111 --> 01:30:10,067
- This isn't real?
- What is real?
1734
01:30:10,363 --> 01:30:12,024
Joshua: Which was later dubbed
1735
01:30:12,240 --> 01:30:13,320
the matrix defense.
1736
01:30:30,091 --> 01:30:32,051
Joshua:
The doctor, the psychologist,
1737
01:30:32,552 --> 01:30:34,383
Dr. shostak, he diagnosed me
1738
01:30:34,512 --> 01:30:37,049
with a form of schizophrenia
called simple schizophrenia,
1739
01:30:37,349 --> 01:30:39,385
and that's when he made
the declaration
1740
01:30:39,601 --> 01:30:42,343
that people are scarcely real
to me and things like that.
1741
01:30:43,563 --> 01:30:46,521
There were different events
that happened in my life,
1742
01:30:50,654 --> 01:30:52,064
led up to me exploding.
1743
01:30:53,114 --> 01:30:54,399
The abuse I had been suffering
1744
01:30:54,532 --> 01:30:56,944
from my parents at home
for many, many years.
1745
01:30:57,243 --> 01:30:58,904
And then I had the bullying
at school
1746
01:30:59,412 --> 01:31:02,950
and the undiagnosed
mental illness I had for years.
1747
01:31:03,124 --> 01:31:04,660
And all of that together
1748
01:31:04,793 --> 01:31:06,408
kind of formed
a ticking time bomb.
1749
01:31:07,379 --> 01:31:08,994
I call it the perfect storm.
1750
01:31:09,130 --> 01:31:14,716
But I, myself, I never made
any excuses for my crime.
1751
01:31:15,178 --> 01:31:17,339
And I just wanted to die,
you know?
1752
01:31:17,472 --> 01:31:20,179
It was like, just forget about
all of this stuff, you know.
1753
01:31:20,976 --> 01:31:22,011
And as a matter of fact,
1754
01:31:22,185 --> 01:31:23,766
at the end
of my sentence hearing
1755
01:31:23,937 --> 01:31:26,178
I got to say a written statement
1756
01:31:26,314 --> 01:31:27,850
to the judge out loud there.
1757
01:31:28,024 --> 01:31:30,766
And there I just,
I told him that
1758
01:31:31,277 --> 01:31:32,517
I wasn't making any excuses,
1759
01:31:32,696 --> 01:31:34,027
and I deserved
the death penalty,
1760
01:31:34,114 --> 01:31:35,114
I deserved to die.
1761
01:31:35,824 --> 01:31:38,156
And I think about
what I did every day.
1762
01:31:38,368 --> 01:31:40,199
I wish I could take it back.
You know?
1763
01:31:54,801 --> 01:31:56,320
Joshua: The movie,
the matrix movie
1764
01:31:56,344 --> 01:31:58,801
has affected people
in all sorts of different ways.
1765
01:31:59,055 --> 01:32:00,695
It all depends
on where you're coming from
1766
01:32:00,807 --> 01:32:02,013
and the psychology of it.
1767
01:32:02,600 --> 01:32:04,556
Mine is just kind of
an extreme case.
1768
01:32:05,478 --> 01:32:07,309
There are people out there today
1769
01:32:07,814 --> 01:32:09,179
who may be listening to this
1770
01:32:09,315 --> 01:32:11,806
that are going through
the same things that I was.
1771
01:32:12,694 --> 01:32:14,230
And this is the whole reason why
1772
01:32:14,404 --> 01:32:16,395
I'm even talking
about this today
1773
01:32:17,157 --> 01:32:19,864
because I know I have a purpose,
1774
01:32:19,993 --> 01:32:21,858
a calling in my life
to try to reach them.
1775
01:32:32,338 --> 01:32:34,499
Now that I'm in my mid-40's...
1776
01:32:35,508 --> 01:32:38,841
I am actually finally able
to deal with people
1777
01:32:39,012 --> 01:32:40,012
as human beings.
1778
01:32:40,972 --> 01:32:42,587
And you could
think of it one way,
1779
01:32:42,849 --> 01:32:45,056
if people are simulated,
they're getting better
1780
01:32:45,226 --> 01:32:46,682
and they're easier to relate to,
1781
01:32:46,853 --> 01:32:50,220
but is it possible
that I saw everyone
1782
01:32:50,398 --> 01:32:53,185
as these sort of robotic
humans walking around
1783
01:32:53,485 --> 01:32:55,976
because I couldn't
figure them out
1784
01:32:56,196 --> 01:32:57,732
because of a problem
with my brain?
1785
01:32:58,281 --> 01:32:59,521
And that's the thing,
1786
01:32:59,699 --> 01:33:01,781
I never wanna get locked
into the idea
1787
01:33:01,951 --> 01:33:02,951
that this is all fake
1788
01:33:03,161 --> 01:33:05,117
if in fact the reason
I thought it was fake
1789
01:33:05,330 --> 01:33:07,946
is because it was an easier
way for me to deal
1790
01:33:08,124 --> 01:33:10,615
with the complexity
of human existence.
1791
01:33:12,212 --> 01:33:18,458
I feel like being fully
in the body with another
1792
01:33:19,260 --> 01:33:22,172
is like sort of maybe
like seeing the light, you know?
1793
01:33:22,347 --> 01:33:25,430
It's the "petite mort”
of orgasm.
1794
01:33:25,558 --> 01:33:28,641
Or just like the fusing
of consciousness with an other.
1795
01:33:28,770 --> 01:33:30,351
Audre lorde talks about
the erotic.
1796
01:33:30,522 --> 01:33:35,733
And I think the erotic
as a dynamic in reality
1797
01:33:35,902 --> 01:33:38,188
is an antidote to solipsism.
1798
01:33:38,363 --> 01:33:40,194
It's an antidote
to a lack of empathy.
1799
01:33:40,365 --> 01:33:41,980
Because it allows us to sort of
1800
01:33:42,158 --> 01:33:44,649
have a playful relationship
to the other.
1801
01:33:45,036 --> 01:33:47,322
There's that scene
in the matrix reloaded
1802
01:33:47,497 --> 01:33:50,864
where morpheus gives a speech
and tells everyone
1803
01:33:51,000 --> 01:33:52,581
that they're about
to be attacked
1804
01:33:52,710 --> 01:33:53,790
by the machines.
1805
01:33:54,087 --> 01:33:56,123
This might be
their last night alive.
1806
01:33:56,589 --> 01:34:00,173
The machines have gathered
an army, and as I speak
1807
01:34:00,802 --> 01:34:03,339
that army is drawing nearer
to our home.
1808
01:34:06,683 --> 01:34:07,923
Emily: So, what do they do?
1809
01:34:08,393 --> 01:34:10,429
They play music. They dance.
1810
01:34:10,645 --> 01:34:13,682
And in the midst
of this stew of flesh...
1811
01:34:14,357 --> 01:34:18,066
Trinity and Neo sneak off
to this catacomb and make love.
1812
01:34:18,987 --> 01:34:21,194
This is a scene
that gets parodied a lot.
1813
01:34:21,447 --> 01:34:23,278
I think it's easy
to not take it seriously
1814
01:34:23,449 --> 01:34:24,564
because it's so earnest.
1815
01:34:25,410 --> 01:34:26,900
But it's also very tender.
1816
01:34:27,162 --> 01:34:29,198
It shows the characters
at their most vulnerable
1817
01:34:29,247 --> 01:34:30,247
with each other.
1818
01:34:30,957 --> 01:34:34,415
Neo tells Trinity
that he's afraid of losing her.
1819
01:34:34,878 --> 01:34:38,666
And she says,
"you're not gonna lose me."
1820
01:34:39,132 --> 01:34:41,123
She holds his hand,
"you feel this?"
1821
01:34:42,927 --> 01:34:44,383
"I'm never letting go."
1822
01:34:45,180 --> 01:34:46,215
That's love.
1823
01:34:47,056 --> 01:34:49,263
You have to be
very vulnerable to feel it.
1824
01:34:50,560 --> 01:34:53,893
I think loneliness
and isolation and trauma
1825
01:34:54,063 --> 01:34:56,395
play very heavily
in the kinds of realities
1826
01:34:56,566 --> 01:34:58,431
that people construct
for themselves.
1827
01:35:03,615 --> 01:35:05,215
Brother mystwood:
And if there's a player
1828
01:35:05,283 --> 01:35:07,774
that is responsible for me
and is playing me...
1829
01:35:09,412 --> 01:35:12,529
Then, you know,
maybe he's a genius,
1830
01:35:12,790 --> 01:35:14,326
but maybe he's like
a 12-year-old kid.
1831
01:35:16,461 --> 01:35:19,578
So the thing I've gotta do
is I've gotta keep leveling up
1832
01:35:19,964 --> 01:35:22,125
and I've gotta stay interesting
for him.
1833
01:35:23,051 --> 01:35:25,508
Rodney: Do you make different
choices than you might
1834
01:35:25,637 --> 01:35:28,174
otherwise in order to keep
your player interested?
1835
01:35:28,556 --> 01:35:29,916
The way I think about is,
you know,
1836
01:35:30,058 --> 01:35:31,160
if you're playing a video game
1837
01:35:31,184 --> 01:35:33,891
and sometimes you see
like a giant blinking cursor
1838
01:35:34,062 --> 01:35:35,497
telling you to go
to a certain place.
1839
01:35:35,521 --> 01:35:37,227
I keep looking for those.
1840
01:35:37,398 --> 01:35:40,014
And when I see one, I'll stop
and I'll pause and I'll say...
1841
01:35:40,693 --> 01:35:42,979
"Thank you for that,”
and I'll, you know...
1842
01:35:43,196 --> 01:35:44,423
And then every once in a while,
1843
01:35:44,447 --> 01:35:46,133
I'll just make a completely
batshit decision
1844
01:35:46,157 --> 01:35:47,772
that no one seems to understand.
1845
01:35:48,034 --> 01:35:49,774
Including myself!
Like, "well, well, well!"
1846
01:35:49,953 --> 01:35:50,953
I hope you're interested.
1847
01:35:50,995 --> 01:35:52,451
Just like
all the other theories,
1848
01:35:52,622 --> 01:35:55,284
no one's gonna know
until they're dead.
1849
01:35:57,502 --> 01:35:59,993
And I don't believe
that it's flawed enough
1850
01:36:00,171 --> 01:36:01,877
that it could somehow tear...
1851
01:36:02,674 --> 01:36:06,633
And we'd find ourselves exposed
out of the matrix.
1852
01:36:07,220 --> 01:36:08,540
I don't think
that's how it works.
1853
01:36:08,680 --> 01:36:11,012
I think that
it's a solid system.
1854
01:36:11,182 --> 01:36:13,673
And whatever it is,
ends when you die.
1855
01:36:14,477 --> 01:36:17,264
But it's totally plausible
that you then wake up
1856
01:36:17,689 --> 01:36:21,181
in an arcade in the year 3000
and put another quarter in
1857
01:36:21,401 --> 01:36:24,108
and do another life on earth
in the year 2019, you know?
1858
01:36:24,404 --> 01:36:26,816
There are these kind of
fundamental metaphors
1859
01:36:26,990 --> 01:36:31,404
about reality that we develop
through being humans
1860
01:36:31,577 --> 01:36:34,410
moving through time and space
on a planet.
1861
01:36:34,664 --> 01:36:38,452
So the metaphor of the journey,
"life is like a journey."
1862
01:36:38,710 --> 01:36:41,452
Well, another one we have,
and we all have it is,
1863
01:36:41,754 --> 01:36:44,040
waking up from a dream.
1864
01:36:46,884 --> 01:36:50,217
"What? Oh, I'm in this world!"
1865
01:36:50,471 --> 01:36:54,339
And just that. Not what
the nature of this world was,
1866
01:36:54,517 --> 01:36:55,757
or the nature of that world is.
1867
01:36:55,935 --> 01:36:59,098
We have this fundamental
cognitive experience
1868
01:37:00,023 --> 01:37:02,435
of shifting between
ontological frames,
1869
01:37:02,567 --> 01:37:04,182
sometimes quite abruptly.
1870
01:37:04,402 --> 01:37:06,017
Sometimes with intense emotions.
1871
01:37:06,404 --> 01:37:07,940
And this is just
stitched into us.
1872
01:37:08,614 --> 01:37:12,277
So it's a fundamental hunch
that we all have
1873
01:37:12,910 --> 01:37:15,151
that the world
is hot what it seems.
1874
01:37:15,371 --> 01:37:16,931
There's another world
behind this world,
1875
01:37:17,081 --> 01:37:18,571
or at the very least,
1876
01:37:19,042 --> 01:37:21,784
this world is capable
of falling apart.
1877
01:37:22,003 --> 01:37:24,123
- Truman: What's happening?
- Security guard: Nothing.
1878
01:37:24,255 --> 01:37:25,524
Rodney:/ don't know,
does thinking about
1879
01:37:25,548 --> 01:37:27,038
the simulation,
does that excite you?
1880
01:37:27,133 --> 01:37:30,842
Or does it sometimes
fill you with unease?
1881
01:37:35,683 --> 01:37:36,683
Well, I guess...
1882
01:37:38,686 --> 01:37:42,474
I've had
this simulation argument
1883
01:37:42,690 --> 01:37:45,727
for so long now
that it's hard to sort of
1884
01:37:46,361 --> 01:37:47,726
consider the counter faction.
1885
01:37:48,071 --> 01:37:49,791
'Cause it's kind of become
so much a part of
1886
01:37:50,406 --> 01:37:52,522
the way I view the world,
1887
01:37:52,658 --> 01:37:53,658
the simulation argument.
1888
01:37:56,454 --> 01:37:57,454
I do think that...
1889
01:37:59,999 --> 01:38:03,287
It makes it quite...
1890
01:38:06,839 --> 01:38:07,839
Compelling that
1891
01:38:08,174 --> 01:38:11,837
this very general notion,
that there are more things...
1892
01:38:14,597 --> 01:38:15,803
In heaven and on earth
1893
01:38:16,557 --> 01:38:18,673
than are dreamt of
in our philosophy.
1894
01:38:18,893 --> 01:38:22,886
This sense that we are
plausibly very, very limited
1895
01:38:23,856 --> 01:38:26,097
in our understanding
of what the heck is going on.
1896
01:38:27,985 --> 01:38:31,022
We have made progress in that
maybe we have figured out,
1897
01:38:31,948 --> 01:38:34,314
you know, six of the 10 things
you need to have figured out
1898
01:38:34,492 --> 01:38:35,636
to really know what's going on.
1899
01:38:35,660 --> 01:38:38,777
But the thing is that each
of the remaining four things
1900
01:38:39,455 --> 01:38:41,411
might so radically
change the conclusions
1901
01:38:42,667 --> 01:38:44,123
that,
until we get them all right,
1902
01:38:44,293 --> 01:38:45,829
maybe we are as lost
1903
01:38:46,003 --> 01:38:48,619
as you would be if you only knew
one or zero.
1904
01:38:58,391 --> 01:39:00,077
Jesse: Was lying in bed,
I was thinking about it.
1905
01:39:00,101 --> 01:39:01,341
So hypothetically,
1906
01:39:01,477 --> 01:39:04,093
what if tomorrow
I dress in all white
1907
01:39:04,272 --> 01:39:06,137
I slick my hair back,
and I'm like, "hey,"
1908
01:39:06,357 --> 01:39:07,847
I tell the local media,
1909
01:39:08,651 --> 01:39:11,108
"here's the message that we
should be good to each other,
1910
01:39:11,320 --> 01:39:12,901
I'm starting a new thing."
1911
01:39:13,656 --> 01:39:15,487
Building up almost
like a religion,
1912
01:39:15,658 --> 01:39:17,023
or just more of a philosophy of,
1913
01:39:17,201 --> 01:39:18,361
"hey, we are in a simulation,
1914
01:39:18,494 --> 01:39:22,203
so let's, let's try and gain
the attention of those people."
1915
01:39:23,249 --> 01:39:25,035
Now, those entities
are running the thing.
1916
01:39:25,751 --> 01:39:28,037
So going forth here,
we could do things like,
1917
01:39:28,671 --> 01:39:31,208
you know, gigantic light,
like...
1918
01:39:32,717 --> 01:39:34,457
Simultaneous light displays,
1919
01:39:36,471 --> 01:39:39,759
giant monuments,
just a giant tablet that says,
1920
01:39:39,932 --> 01:39:43,140
"hey, we know..."
Or something profound.
1921
01:39:44,103 --> 01:39:47,220
And then in unison
just flashing lights out.
1922
01:39:47,356 --> 01:39:50,063
So, one person walks
by this black sphere
1923
01:39:50,234 --> 01:39:53,522
in their great artificer hallway
1924
01:39:53,779 --> 01:39:55,549
and all of a sudden there's
a red light blinking
1925
01:39:55,573 --> 01:39:57,693
that was never there before.
They'd be like, "oh, hey.
1926
01:39:59,035 --> 01:40:02,027
Experiment whatever
is talking to us."
1927
01:40:02,788 --> 01:40:05,279
I mean, who knows,
if we just keep going with it
1928
01:40:05,374 --> 01:40:06,784
and going with it
and going with it.
1929
01:40:06,959 --> 01:40:12,499
Do things like organize earth
in a more watchful pattern
1930
01:40:12,673 --> 01:40:14,313
to get ourselves
spread over the universe.
1931
01:40:14,425 --> 01:40:16,837
'Cause the larger screen
we have to display our message,
1932
01:40:17,053 --> 01:40:18,634
the more attention we'll get.
1933
01:40:23,559 --> 01:40:24,559
Lori: You're dreaming.
1934
01:40:25,770 --> 01:40:28,182
Doug, was it about Mars?
1935
01:40:33,444 --> 01:40:35,150
Elon musk:
Becoming a multi-planet species
1936
01:40:35,530 --> 01:40:37,987
beats the hell out of being
a single-planet species.
1937
01:40:39,075 --> 01:40:40,275
Jesse: Then we get to, like...
1938
01:40:40,910 --> 01:40:43,572
Star wars levels
of spread across the galaxy.
1939
01:40:43,913 --> 01:40:45,574
Perhaps our science
will progress enough
1940
01:40:45,748 --> 01:40:46,748
where we can actually
1941
01:40:47,124 --> 01:40:49,206
tap on the membrane between...
1942
01:40:50,044 --> 01:40:52,911
The universe
and what's beyond it
1943
01:40:53,130 --> 01:40:54,415
and perhaps get a message out,
1944
01:40:54,632 --> 01:40:57,374
an active message
to an active listener.
1945
01:40:57,885 --> 01:40:59,500
Man:
I don't like to fuss or moan,
1946
01:40:59,679 --> 01:41:01,465
but if it weren't for you,
1947
01:41:02,014 --> 01:41:03,345
I'd be all, all alone.
1948
01:41:04,600 --> 01:41:06,453
It would be hilarious
if we were something stupid,
1949
01:41:06,477 --> 01:41:08,317
like, you know how computers
are in everything.
1950
01:41:10,189 --> 01:41:13,681
I mean, there's a computer...
This is a vape tank.
1951
01:41:13,985 --> 01:41:16,522
There's a computer in here.
There's a microchip in here.
1952
01:41:17,029 --> 01:41:18,360
But if we're something like...
1953
01:41:19,740 --> 01:41:21,140
One of the numerous
computer devices
1954
01:41:21,200 --> 01:41:24,033
that's been thrown
into a basket somewhere
1955
01:41:24,328 --> 01:41:25,528
'cause you have too much crap.
1956
01:41:26,122 --> 01:41:28,202
That would suck, 'cause then
we would never be found.
1957
01:41:28,749 --> 01:41:31,991
Maybe this whole project
that you're doing, right,
1958
01:41:32,545 --> 01:41:36,333
is the simulation sort of
flirting with you, if you will.
1959
01:41:36,507 --> 01:41:38,748
Like it's going,
"hey, I'm gonna go ahead
1960
01:41:38,884 --> 01:41:40,090
and let you see a little bit
1961
01:41:41,220 --> 01:41:42,881
what I've got going on
under here.
1962
01:41:43,097 --> 01:41:46,840
And I'm okay with it
as long as you respect me."
1963
01:41:49,645 --> 01:41:53,308
What if the simulation
is like anesthesia?
1964
01:41:54,150 --> 01:41:55,686
Imagine, if you will,
1965
01:41:56,319 --> 01:41:58,560
that you're going
through surgery...
1966
01:41:59,947 --> 01:42:01,187
And all of a sudden somebody
1967
01:42:01,365 --> 01:42:02,551
introduces something
in your bloodstream
1968
01:42:02,575 --> 01:42:04,315
that totally makes
1969
01:42:04,535 --> 01:42:06,776
the anesthetic go away.
1970
01:42:06,954 --> 01:42:08,098
Paul: Your chest cavity's open,
1971
01:42:08,122 --> 01:42:09,433
there's somebody
with their hand in it
1972
01:42:09,457 --> 01:42:11,072
and they're trying
to massage your heart.
1973
01:42:11,208 --> 01:42:13,494
And all of a sudden
you're back, lucid,
1974
01:42:13,836 --> 01:42:15,876
all the pain in the world,
and everything like that.
1975
01:42:16,047 --> 01:42:17,378
You're gonna mess up
that surgery
1976
01:42:17,506 --> 01:42:18,650
by freaking out
and flipping around
1977
01:42:18,674 --> 01:42:19,538
and all that.
1978
01:42:19,675 --> 01:42:21,631
Maybe that's what
the simulation is.
1979
01:42:21,802 --> 01:42:24,168
And by putting
this project out there,
1980
01:42:24,680 --> 01:42:26,545
we're messing up big time
1981
01:42:26,974 --> 01:42:28,510
and you're gonna cause
a lot of damage.
1982
01:42:32,938 --> 01:42:34,178
Paul: The other option, though,
1983
01:42:34,273 --> 01:42:38,687
maybe this is the...
The key, if you will.
1984
01:42:39,528 --> 01:42:43,441
Maybe this is a situation
where the simulation is bad,
1985
01:42:44,116 --> 01:42:47,654
we shouldn't be in it,
and this is a failsafe.
1986
01:42:52,041 --> 01:42:53,872
Paul: So the person watching
this goes,
1987
01:42:54,126 --> 01:42:56,367
"oh, maybe that's
what's happening with me."
1988
01:42:58,381 --> 01:43:00,212
And maybe, who knows, you know,
1989
01:43:00,299 --> 01:43:03,917
they're in
suspended animation somewhere.
1990
01:43:05,221 --> 01:43:06,501
They're the ones
who are supposed
1991
01:43:06,597 --> 01:43:07,677
to pilot the ship.
1992
01:43:07,932 --> 01:43:10,469
They're knocked out.
They're not responsive.
1993
01:43:10,893 --> 01:43:15,057
And so they create this movie
for them to watch
1994
01:43:15,272 --> 01:43:17,388
so that they start
questioning reality,
1995
01:43:20,027 --> 01:43:21,642
and therefore get out of it.
1996
01:44:00,609 --> 01:44:03,726
Paul: I have,
through dreaming and waking up,
1997
01:44:04,113 --> 01:44:06,104
lived thousands
of different lifetimes.
1998
01:44:06,782 --> 01:44:10,024
And so I'm not afraid
of what happens
1999
01:44:10,202 --> 01:44:11,612
when the simulation ends.
2000
01:44:12,079 --> 01:44:17,073
I am certain that when I die,
2001
01:44:17,209 --> 01:44:18,745
I will simply wake up
somewhere else.
2002
01:44:18,961 --> 01:44:21,077
How do I know?
Because I remember doing it
2003
01:44:21,213 --> 01:44:22,373
over and over and over again.
2004
01:44:31,348 --> 01:44:32,929
Alarm: Good morning.
2005
01:44:33,184 --> 01:44:34,424
This is your wake-up call.
2006
01:44:35,060 --> 01:44:37,176
Thank you for staying
at the new Darwin inn.
2007
01:44:37,605 --> 01:44:39,766
The time is 10:30 A.M.
149881
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