All language subtitles for Through.the.Wormhole.with.Morgan.Freeman.S06E04.WEBRip.x264-FGT

OUR UNIVERSE
CERTAINLY SEEMS REAL.

BUT WHAT IF IT'S NOT?

WE MAY BE NOTHING MORE
THAN VIDEO-GAME CHARACTERS

DESIGNED
FOR SOMEONE ELSE'S AMUSEMENT.

BUT HOW COULD A COMPUTER JUGGLE
EVERY ASPECT OF THE COSMOS?

MAYBE WHAT LOOKS RANDOM

HAS ALREADY BEEN
PROGRAMMED TO HAPPEN.

CAN WE DISCOVER
SOME HIDDEN GLITCH

IN THE LAWS OF THE UNIVERSE
AND UNCOVER ITS HIDDEN CODE?

DO WE LIVE IN THE MATRIX?

SPACE, TIME, LIFE ITSELF.

THE SECRETS OF THE COSMOS
LIE THROUGH THE WORMHOLE.

-- Captions by VITAC --
www.vitac.com

CAPTIONS PAID FOR BY
DISCOVERY COMMUNICATIONS

PICK UP A ROSE.

TAKE IN ITS SCENT.

FEAST YOUR EYES
ON THE CRIMSON OF ITS PETALS.

FEEL THE PRICK OF ITS THORN
ON YOUR FINGER.

THESE SENSATIONS ARE
WHAT GROUND US IN REALITY.

BUT WHAT IF THEY'RE JUST
FABRICATED?

WHAT IF WE ARE MERELY PLAYERS
IN SOMEONE ELSE'S VIDEO GAME,

THE BIG BANG JUST THE MOMENT

SOMEONE FLIPPED THE SWITCH
AND TURNED ON OUR UNIVERSE?

IN THE MOVIE "THE MATRIX,"

THERE WAS ONE WAY TO SEE
THE TRUTH BEHIND A FAKE REALITY.

TAKE THE RED PILL.

ARE YOU READY FOR IT?

JESSE SCHELL KNOWS A LOT
ABOUT VIDEO GAMES.

HE TEACHES STUDENTS
AT CARNEGIE MELLON UNIVERSITY

HOW TO DESIGN THEM.

HE APPRECIATES THE ENORMOUS
EFFORT IT WOULD TAKE TO CREATE

ALL THE DETAILS
OF OUR WORLD INSIDE A COMPUTER.

THE MOST
SOPHISTICATED VIDEO GAMES

ARE STILL PLAYED
ON TWO-DIMENSIONAL SCREENS,

LIKE THE ONE
YOU'RE WATCHING NOW.

Schell: CREATING THE ILLUSION OF
THREE DIMENSIONS ON FLAT SCREENS

IS MUCH SIMPLER
THAN ACTUALLY CREATING

REAL THREE-DIMENSIONAL SPACE
THAT WE CAN MOVE AROUND IN.

SO PROGRAMMING 3-D SPACE
AS WE KNOW IT

WOULD BE MANY,
MANY ORDERS OF MAGNITUDE

MORE DIFFICULT THAN ANYTHING
WE KNOW HOW TO DO RIGHT NOW.

Freeman:
JESSE AND OTHER VIDEO-GAME
DESIGNERS ARE PRETTY GOOD

AT SIMULATING THE WAY
OBJECTS MOVE THROUGH SPACE.

THEY USE NEWTON'S LAWS
OF GRAVITY AND MOTION,

JUST AS THE DESIGNERS
OF OUR WORLD WOULD.

THE BALLS HAVE WEIGHT.

AIR IS MOVING AROUND THEM.

ELECTRICAL CHARGES

ARE INCREASING AND DECREASING
ON THE SURFACE OF EACH BALL.

AND EVEN IF I'M
A LITTLE BIT OFF,

THE LAWS OF PHYSICS
ARE STILL INTACT.

BUT IF THE RULES
THEMSELVES ARE OFF,

THEN WE'LL KNOW RIGHT AWAY
THAT SOMETHING'S WRONG,

THAT IT'S NOT AN ACCURATE
SIMULATION OF OUR WORLD.

Freeman:
MAKING A BELIEVABLE REALITY

WOULD TAKE FAR MORE
THAN PERFECT PROGRAMMING

OF THE WAY
OBJECTS LOOK AND MOVE.

YOU'D HAVE TO PROGRAM
ALL THE OTHER SENSES, TOO --

SOUND, SMELL,
TASTE, AND TOUCH,

AND ALL THE SUBTLE VARIATIONS.

AND IF EVEN ONE SMALL THING
WAS OFF, LIKE, SAY THIS COFFEE

HAVING THE SAME TASTE
AND TEMPERATURE AS THIS CEREAL,

YOU'D KNOW RIGHT AWAY THAT
SOMETHING WAS TERRIBLY WRONG.

Freeman:
HOW WOULD YOU COMPUTERIZE TASTE

OR PROGRAM THE FEEL
OF SOFT GRASS UNDERFOOT?

EVEN THE AIR WE BREATHE

IS FILLED WITH GASSES,
WATER MOLECULES,

DUST PARTICLES AND POLLEN.

AT CARNEGIE MELLON'S
ENTERTAINMENT TECHNOLOGY CENTER,

JESSE IS TRYING TO MAKE
SIMULATIONS

AS IMMERSIVE AS POSSIBLE.

IN WHAT HE CALLS THE CAVE,

A MOVING PLATFORM
ADDS TO THE VISUAL EXPERIENCE.

BUT SOMETIMES THE SIMULATION
IS TOO MUCH FOR THE COMPUTER,

AND WE GET GLITCHES,
JUST LIKE IN A VIDEO GAME.

IT'S POSSIBLE THAT IF WE
WERE MAKING A SIMULATION

OF THE REAL WORLD THAT
THE SAME THING COULD HAPPEN.

Freeman: WHEN A COMPUTER CAN'T
KEEP UP WITH THE VISUALS

IT NEEDS TO RENDER,

YOU OFTEN SEE A DEFECT
CALLED SCREEN TEARING.

WE'VE NEVER SEEN
THAT IN OUR WORLD,

BUT NOT ALL GLITCHES WOULD BE
VISIBLE TO PEOPLE ON THE INSIDE.

Schell:
IF THE SIMULATION FREEZES,

THEN THE PEOPLE
WHO ARE IN IT MIGHT NOT KNOW

BECAUSE IT COULD FREEZE
FOR A THOUSAND YEARS.

AND ANYONE
WHO WAS PART OF THE SIMULATION

WOULD ALSO BE FROZEN IN A STATE
OF SUSPENDED ANIMATION SO THAT,

WHEN IT STARTED UP AGAIN,

IT WOULD BE ABSOLUTELY SEAMLESS
TO THEM,

AND THEY WOULD NEVER KNOW.

Freeman:
IF SOMEONE ELSE HAS CREATED US

INSIDE THEIR COMPUTERS,

THEN THEY MUST ALSO
HAVE BUILT PROGRAMS

FOR ALL OF OUR MENTAL ABILITIES,
OUR IMAGINATIONS,

OUR EMOTIONS AND THE THOUGHTS
RUNNING THROUGH OUR HEADS

EVERY TIME
WE ENGAGE IN CONVERSATION.

AS HUMANS,
WE GET SO MUCH INFORMATION

FROM TALKING THAT AN ACCURATE
CONVERSATION PROGRAM IS CRUCIAL.

WHAT DID YOU WANT TO BE
WHEN YOU GREW UP?

A FIREMAN.

A FIREMAN?
THAT'S NOBLE.

SO EITHER, "A,"
YOU'VE GOT A DEATH WISH,

OR, "B," YOU LIKE
TO STARE AT FIRE.

AND IT ONLY TAKES US A SPLIT
SECOND TO NOTICE A PROBLEM

WITH THE CONVERSATION.

SO YOU CAN IMAGINE THE CHALLENGE

OF SIMULATING 7 BILLION PEOPLE
ALL TALKING TOGETHER AT ONCE.

Freeman:
JESSE THINKS OUR CREATORS
COULD BE USING A FEW SHORTCUTS

TO HANDLE THIS HEAVY LOAD,

CONCEPTS ALREADY USED
BY TODAY'S GAME PROGRAMMERS.

YOU COULD MAKE JUST A FEW PEOPLE
BE ACTIVE PLAYERS

AND THEN SURROUND THEM
WITH BILLIONS

OF MUCH SIMPLER CHARACTERS.

OR ANOTHER THING YOU COULD DO
IS ONLY PUT DETAILED SIMULATION

WHERE I'M LOOKING
AT A GIVEN TIME.

IF I'M LOOKING JUST
TO ONE PLACE,

JUST PUT ALL THE FOCUS
OVER THERE

AND MAKE EVERYTHING ELSE
AROUND ME JUST KIND OF A BLUR.

Freeman: MAYBE YOU ARE THE ONLY
ACTIVE PLAYER IN THIS GAME

YOU CALL YOUR LIFE.

EVERYONE ELSE EXISTS ONLY
WHEN YOU ARE PAYING ATTENTION.

YOUR PROGRAM WOULD BE THE
ONLY ONE RUNNING ALL THE TIME,

EVEN WHEN YOU SLEEP.

Schell: DREAMS ARE ALREADY
A KIND OF SIMULATED REALITY.

SO TO PROGRAM DREAMS, YOU'D HAVE
TO CREATE A VIRTUAL REALITY

WITHIN A VIRTUAL REALITY.

Freeman:
IF OUR WORLD IS AN INCREDIBLY
COMPLEX COMPUTATIONAL CREATION,

WHAT DOES THAT SAY
ABOUT ITS CREATORS?

WHAT MUST THEIR REALITY BE LIKE

IF SPAWNING AN ENTIRE UNIVERSE
IS JUST A GAME?

AS DIFFICULT AS IT IS FOR US
TO IMAGINE CREATING A UNIVERSE

AS COMPLEX AS OUR OWN,

IT MIGHT NOT ACTUALLY
BE THAT HARD FOR SOMEONE

LIVING IN A UNIVERSE
MORE ADVANCED THAN OURS.

I THINK I'LL NEED
TO SLEEP ON THAT IDEA.

IF WE ARE LIVING IN A SIMULATION
RIGHT NOW,

WHO CREATED IT?

GOD?

MORE ADVANCED ALIEN LIFEFORMS

THAT DREAMT US UP
TO BE THEIR AVATARS?

OR COULD OUR CREATORS
BE FUTURE VERSIONS OF OURSELVES?

NICK BOSTROM,

A PROFESSOR OF PHILOSOPHY
AT THE UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD,

BELIEVES WE ARE ALMOST CERTAINLY
LIVING INSIDE THE COMPUTERS

OF OUR DESCENDANTS.

THE BUILDINGS HERE IN OXFORD
ARE REALLY OLD.

I MEAN, THIS WALL
MIGHT BE 400 OR 500 YEARS OLD.

AND THINK OF ALL THE TECHNOLOGY

WE HAVE DEVELOPED
IN THESE SHORT CENTURIES.

SO IF WE ZOOM FORWARD
A FEW CENTURIES,

THEN PRESUMABLY
WE WILL THEN HAVE TECHNOLOGY

THAT WOULD BE EQUALLY MAGICAL
TO US,

AS TELEVISION

WOULD BE TO OUR ANCESTORS
WHO BUILT THESE WALLS.

Freeman: NICK BELIEVES
OVER THE NEXT FEW CENTURIES,

WE'LL BE COMBINING TECHNOLOGY
WITH OUR OWN BIOLOGY.

WE WILL EVOLVE INTO POSTHUMANS,

HYBRIDS OF MAN AND MACHINE WITH
PHENOMENAL COMPUTATIONAL POWERS.

JUST 20 YEARS AGO,

A REALISTIC SIMULATION
OF A CITY WAS IMPOSSIBLE.

NOW WE CAN MAKE THOSE FAKE
SCENES PRETTY CONVINCING.

THE COMBINED PROCESSING POWER
OF POSTHUMANS

WOULD HAVE NO TROUBLE
RENDERING AN ENTIRE WORLD

AND ALL THE PEOPLE IN IT.

WE CAN ESTIMATE THE AMOUNT
OF COMPUTING POWER

IT WOULD TAKE
TO SIMULATE ONE HUMAN BRAIN.

AND IT'S POSSIBLE TO CALCULATE
HOW MUCH COMPUTING POWER

A TECHNOLOGICALLY MATURE
CIVILIZATION

WOULD HAVE AT ITS DISPOSAL.

A MATURE CIVILIZATION WOULD HAVE

VASTLY MORE COMPUTATIONAL POWER
AVAILABLE THAN IT WOULD TAKE

TO RUN A FULL SIMULATION
WITH ALL 7 BILLION PEOPLE IN IT.

Freeman: CREATING A VIRTUAL
VERSION OF OUR WORLD

WOULD BE AS EASY FOR POSTHUMANS
AS SNAPPING A FINGER.

BUT WHY DOES NICK THINK
OUR DESCENDANTS

HAVE ALREADY DONE IT?

THIS PRICELESS, REAL HUMAN SKULL

WAS USED
IN THE VERY FIRST PERFORMANCE

OF SHAKESPEARE'S "HAMLET."

HERE HUNG THOSE LIPS

I HAVE KISSED
I KNOW NOT HOW OFT.

ACTUALLY, IT'S ONLY
A CHEAP REPRODUCTION,

ONE OF MANY THOUSANDS
USED IN THE COUNTLESS TIMES

THE PLAY HAS BEEN PERFORMED.

WHAT IF EACH OF US
IS LIKE THAT SKULL?

THERE'S ONE ORIGINAL,
BIOLOGICAL VERSION

AND THOUSANDS
OF FABRICATED COPIES.

WHAT ARE THE CHANCES THAT I
AM THE ORIGINAL VERSION OF ME

OR THAT YOU ARE
THE ORIGINAL VERSION OF YOU?

UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD
PHILOSOPHER NICK BOSTROM

IS TRYING TO GET HIMSELF
INTO THE MINDSET

OF OUR SUPERINTELLIGENT
POSTHUMAN DESCENDANTS.

HE THINKS
THEIR VAST COMPUTING POWER

WILL ALLOW THEM
TO CREATE VIRTUAL REALITIES

AND WATCH THEM AS EASILY
AS WE WATCH TV.

IMAGINE THAT I'M ONE
OF THESE POSTHUMANS.

I MAY DECIDE
TO RUN ELABORATE SIMULATIONS

FOR SCIENTIFIC PURPOSES
OR MAYBE FOR ENTERTAINMENT.

THINK OF THESE AS THE MOST
INCREDIBLE STAGE ADAPTATIONS

EVER CREATED.

DISCORDANCE.

A FAMILY CLEFT
IN TWAIN, MY WIFE,

THY SKULL WITHOUT A BRAIN.
BOY!

AY, FATHER.
THOU CALLST ME?

WHAT SAYEST THOU
UPON THE MATTER?

Freeman:
WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE SIMULATED
THE STORY OF A DANISH PRINCE

NAMED HAMLET SOME 400 YEARS AGO.

400 YEARS IN THE FUTURE,

WHEN OUR DESCENDANTS
HAVE THE DRAMATIC URGE,

THEY MAY MAKE SIMULATIONS OF US.

WITH ALL OF THESE CAPABILITIES
THAT POSTHUMANS WOULD POSSESS,

I COULD CONTINUALLY
REFINE THE SIMULATIONS

UNTIL THEY MATCHED THE REALITY
OF MY ANCESTORS.

ALL RIGHT.
STOP.

Freeman: SO, HOW LIKELY IS IT

THAT WE ARE MERELY PATTERNS
OF DATA

ON A POSTHUMAN HARD DRIVE?

NICK AND A COLLEAGUE
HAVE MADE THE CALCULATIONS,

AND THE RESULTS ARE UNSETTLING.

IF MY POSTHUMAN CIVILIZATION
HAS THE ABILITY TO CREATE

ONE INCREDIBLY ACCURATE
SIMULATION OF MY ANCESTORS,

THEN WE'LL SOON HAVE
THE TECHNOLOGY

TO CREATE THOUSANDS,
EVEN MILLIONS,

OF VARIATIONS OF THE SIMULATION

TO EXAMINE ALL POSSIBLE
VARIATIONS OF OUR PAST.

Freeman:
ARE WE BIOLOGICAL BEINGS

LIVING HERE AND NOW
IN THE 21st CENTURY,

OR IS THIS ACTUALLY
THE 25th CENTURY,

AND ARE WE ONE OF MANY SIMULATED
COPIES OF POSTHUMAN ANCESTORS?

NICK SAYS THE ODDS AGAINST OUR
BEING BIOLOGICAL HUMANS

ARE OVERWHELMING.

Bostrom: IT'S LIKE THE ODDS
THAT I'M WATCHING THIS PLAY

THE FIRST TIME
IT'S EVER BEEN PERFORMED.

IT'S MUCH MORE LIKELY
THAT I'M WATCHING ONE

OF THE MANY THOUSANDS OF TIMES

IT'S BEEN PERFORMED
OVER HUNDREDS OF YEARS.

CUT!

NICELY DONE.

Freeman: IF NICK IS RIGHT,

WE'LL NEED TO GET USED
TO THE IDEA

THAT OUR LIVES ARE
JUST COMPUTER-FABRICATED DRAMAS.

LET'S HOPE OUR CREATORS
ARE ENJOYING THE SHOW.

COULD SOMETHING AS COMPLICATED
AS A HUMAN BEING

EVER BE COMPUTER SIMULATED?

THE CHARACTERS
WE PLAY WITH IN VIDEO GAMES

HAVE COME A LONG WAY
OVER THE YEARS

FROM BODIES MADE OF CRUDE,
PIXILATED BLOCKS

TO INCREASINGLY
LIFELIKE VERSIONS OF OURSELVES.

BUT EVEN THE MOST
REALISTIC AVATARS

ONLY LOOK REAL ON THE OUTSIDE.

COULD WE EVER BUILD A BODY
FROM THE INSIDE OUT,

CELL BY CELL?

AND COULD THAT SIMULATED PERSON

BE AN EXACT COPY
OF A FLESH-AND-BLOOD HUMAN?

STEVEN LARSON

WANTS TO BUILD THE WORLD'S
FIRST FULLY DIGITAL ANIMAL,

A PERFECT REPLICA
OF ITS BIOLOGICAL COUNTERPART.

HE'S STARTING SMALL.

ALL AROUND THE WORLD,

YOU CAN FIND
A ONE MILLIMETER-LONG WORM

MUCH SMALLER
THAN A TYPICAL EARTHWORM.

THIS BARELY VISIBLE WORM
IS KNOWN AS C. ELEGANS.

NOW, IT MAY SEEM INSIGNIFICANT,

BUT THIS LITTLE GUY
HAS THE DISTINCTION

OF BEING ONE OF THE MOST
THOROUGHLY STUDIED ANIMALS

IN ALL OF BIOLOGY
AND NEUROSCIENCE.

Freeman:
STEVEN AND HIS COLLEAGUES

ARE COMPILING DECADES
OF RESEARCH ABOUT THIS TINY WORM

IN ORDER TO CREATE

THE WORLD'S MOST REALISTIC
COMPUTER-GENERATED CREATURE.

IT ONLY HAS ABOUT 1,000 CELLS,
959 TO BE EXACT,

AND ONLY 302 NEURONS,
ABOUT 95 BODY WALL MUSCLE CELLS.

Freeman: THAT SOUNDS EASY ENOUGH
TO BUILD, BUT IT'S NOT.

EACH CELL NEEDS TO RUN
ITS OWN SPECIFIC COMPUTER CODE.

AND ALL THE PIECES OF CODE
MUST FUNCTION TOGETHER,

JUST AS THE CONNECTED CELLS DO.

WHEN FINISHED,
IT WON'T JUST LOOK REAL.

IT WILL ACT REAL.

IT WILL SEEK VIRTUAL FOOD,
PRODUCE VIRTUAL WASTE,

AND CREATE VIRTUAL OFFSPRING.

AND MAKING IT
WILL NOT BE CHILD'S PLAY.

THIS LITTLE,
REMOTE-CONTROLLED CAR

ONLY HAS ABOUT ONE-TENTH
AS MANY PARTS AS C. ELEGANS.

NOW, HERE,

WE HAVE A FULL-SIZE CAR
MADE OF THOUSANDS OF PARTS

INCLUDING COMPUTERS AND WIRING.

IT DOES ALL SORTS
OF COMPLEX THINGS,

LIKE NAVIGATION,
AIR CONDITIONING.

IT HAS LIGHTS.

Freeman: A WORM'S COMPONENTS

ARE INTERCONNECTED,
JUST LIKE THOSE OF A CAR.

Larson: IN A WORM, IN ADDITION
TO BUILDING MUSCLE CELLS

AND NERVE CELLS,

WE'RE ALSO CREATING MODELS OF
HOW MUSCLE CELLS WORK TOGETHER

AND HOW THE NERVOUS SYSTEM
SHOULD WORK.

THEN, WE CAN CONNECT THE MUSCLE
CELLS TO THE NERVOUS SYSTEM.

NOW, WHEN WE DO THAT,
THIS MAY BE THE RESULT.

NOTHING.

BECAUSE OF ALL THE COMPLEX
INTERACTIONS.

[ ENGINE TURNS OVER ]

Freeman:
BUT IF STEVEN AND HIS COLLEAGUES

PRECISELY SIMULATE EVERY CELL
OF C. ELEGANS

AND GET ALL THOSE INDIVIDUAL
PROGRAMS WORKING TOGETHER,

HIS COMPUTERIZED WORM
WILL DO SOMETHING NO CAR CAN.

IT WILL LIVE AND ACT COMPLETELY
UNDER ITS OWN CONTROL.

IT'S A MUCH BIGGER CHALLENGE

THAN JUST PROGRAMMING
FLASHY VIDEO-GAME CHARACTERS

THAT LOOK LIKE REAL-LIFE
APPROXIMATIONS OF CREATURES.

IF WE WANTED TO, WE COULD
ALREADY PROGRAM A C. ELEGANS

AND MAKE IT LOOK LIKE IT CAN DO
ALL SORTS OF AMAZING THINGS.

Freeman: SO FAR,
STEVEN AND HIS COLLEAGUES

HAVE WRITTEN PROGRAMS
FOR SOME OF THE WORM'S MUSCLE

AND NERVE CELLS.

BUT THEY'RE STILL
WORKING ON CODE TO SIMULATE

THE COMPLEX ELECTRICAL
AND CHEMICAL INTERACTIONS

BETWEEN THEM.

Larson: SO WE STILL HAVE A LOT
OF WORK TO GET EVERYTHING BUILT,

WIRED AND CONNECTED TOGETHER
SO THAT OUR VIRTUAL WORM

WILL BEHAVE JUST AS A REAL,
BIOLOGICAL WORM.

Freeman:
THEN THE STAGE WILL BE SET TO
WORK ON MORE COMPLEX CREATURES.

A HUMAN IS MADE UP
OF TRILLIONS OF CELLS,

SO CREATING
ONE BIOLOGICALLY ACCURATE,

COMPUTER-GENERATED PERSON

WOULD BE LIKE WIRING TOGETHER
ALL THE PARTS

IN MORE THAN 100 MILLION CARS.

Larson: IT MAY TAKE MANY DECADES
OR EVEN CENTURIES,

BUT I BELIEVE THAT, ONE DAY,

WE SHOULD BE ABLE
TO BUILD VIRTUAL VERSIONS

OF OURSELVES
THAT ARE LIKE US IN EVERY WAY.

SO WE'LL HAVE TO GET USED
TO THE IDEA

THAT VIRTUAL OR ARTIFICIAL
ENTITIES MAY SOMEDAY THINK

AND ACT FOR THEMSELVES.

HEY, WAIT!

Freeman: IF WE'RE ALREADY LIVING
IN A VIRTUAL REALITY,

THEN WE MUST BE THOSE LIFELIKE
ARTIFICIAL CREATURES.

BUT HOW CAN WE PROVE IT?

THIS PHYSICIST BELIEVES
HE'S FOUND A GLITCH

IN THE WORKINGS OF OUR UNIVERSE

THAT COULD SHOW US
THE MATRIX IS A REALITY.

ARTIFICIAL ENVIRONMENTS
ARE BUILT ON A 3-D GRID.

IF SOMEONE BUILT OUR UNIVERSE
IN A COMPUTER,

WE SHOULD BE ABLE TO FIND THIS
GRID UNDERPINNING EVERYTHING.

WE'VE NEVER SEEN ANY SIGN OF IT,

BUT ONE SCIENTIST
THINKS HE KNOWS HOW TO LOOK

UNDER THE SURFACE OF THE COSMOS

TO DETERMINE IF THERE IS
AN ARTIFICIAL WIRE FRAME

HOLDING REALITY TOGETHER.

SILAS BEANE,

A NUCLEAR PHYSICIST
AT THE UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON,

THINKS ABOUT THE GRID
LIKE A FOOTBALL FIELD.

Beane: A FOOTBALL FIELD
IS KNOWN AS A GRIDIRON

BECAUSE OF ALL
THE YARDAGE MARKERS.

NOW, IF YOU IMAGINE EXTENDING
THOSE YARDAGE MARKERS

FROM SIDELINE TO SIDELINE
AND FROM END ZONE TO END ZONE,

THEN FURTHER EXTEND
THOSE GRID LINES

INTO THE THIRD DIMENSION
ABOVE THE FIELD,

THEN YOU HAVE A GRID
OR LATTICE STRUCTURE,

WHICH IS VERY SIMILAR
TO THE FOUNDATIONS

OF THE ENVIRONMENT
OF A VIDEO GAME.

Freeman: WE INSTINCTIVELY
THINK OF THE SPACE AROUND US

AS CONTINUOUS AND INDIVISIBLE.

SPACE DOESN'T APPEAR
TO COME IN CUBES.

BUT IN A DIGITAL REALITY,
IT WOULD.

OUR GRID WOULD HAVE TO BE
SMALLER THAN THE SMALLEST THING

WE KNOW,
A SUBATOMIC PARTICLE.

Beane: THERE WOULD STILL BE
MINUTE DISTANCES

BETWEEN THE POINTS ON THE GRID

THAT ARE CONNECTED
TO EACH OTHER.

IF WE'RE LIVING IN A SIMULATION,

THEN THIS IS WHAT SPACETIME
COULD LOOK LIKE.

SPACE WILL ALWAYS BE IN DISCRETE
PIECES RATHER THAN CONTINUOUS.

Freeman:
SUCH A FINE-GRAINED, 3-D GRID

WOULD BE IMPOSSIBLE
TO NOTICE IN OUR DAILY LIVES.

IT WOULD EVEN ELUDE ALMOST
ALL SCIENTIFIC EXPERIMENTS.

BUT SILAS AND HIS COLLEAGUES

HAVE DEVISED A PLAN
TO DETECT IT IF IT EXISTS.

HE THINKS THE MOST
EXPLOSIVE EVENTS IN THE UNIVERSE

MIGHT GIVE IT AWAY.

SUPERNOVAS GENERATE STREAMS

OF SUPER-HIGH ENERGY
COSMIC RAY PARTICLES,

BUT PHYSICISTS HAVE NOTICED
SOMETHING STRANGE ABOUT THEM.

THE HIGHEST-ENERGY COSMIC RAYS
THEY EXPECT TO SEE ARE MISSING.

SILAS THINKS THE GRID
MIGHT BE THE CULPRIT.

Beane: IF REALITY IS REAL,

AND THERE'S NO ARTIFICIAL
STRUCTURE TO OUR UNIVERSE,

THEN THERE IS NO UPPER LIMIT
ON THE ENERGY

THAT A COSMIC RAY PARTICLE CAN
HAVE WHEN IT IS FIRST CREATED.

BUT THERE DOES SEEM TO BE
A LIMIT,

WHAT WE CALL THE COSMIC RAY
CUT-OFF.

Freeman:
IF COSMIC RAYS ARE RESTRICTED
TO MOVING ONLY ALONG GRID LINES,

IT COULD ACT AS A BREAK
ON THEIR ENERGY.

TO TEST THIS THEORY,

SILAS AND HIS COLLEAGUES WANT
TO COMPARE THE ENERGY LEVELS

OF COSMIC RAYS TRAVELING
IN DIFFERENT DIRECTIONS.

[ PLAYS NOTE ON TUBA ]

IMAGINE IF EACH
OF THESE BAND MEMBERS

IS A COSMIC RAY PARTICLE.

WE CAN LEARN A LOT
BY OBSERVING THEIR MOTION.

[ DRUM BEATING ]

[ BAND PLAYING
"STAR-SPANGLED BANNER" ]

IN A UNIVERSE WITHOUT
AN UNDERLYING GRID STRUCTURE,

PARTICLES MOVE IN THE SAME WAY
IN ALL DIRECTIONS.

NOW LET'S SEE WHAT HAPPENS

IF WE ASSUME THAT THERE IS
AN UNDERLYING GRID STRUCTURE.

Freeman: MOVING STRAIGHT
ALONG A GRID AXIS IS SIMPLE,

LIKE THE PATH OF BAND MEMBERS
IN THE BLUE UNIFORMS.

MOVING DIAGONALLY,
LIKE THOSE IN WHITE UNIFORMS,

REQUIRES A SERIES
OF ZIG-ZAG STEPS.

THAT MEANS THEY WOULD HAVE
TO EXPEND MORE ENERGY

GETTING FROM POINT "A"
TO POINT "B"

COMPARED WITH COSMIC RAYS
MOVING ALONG AN AXIS.

Beane: ANOTHER WAY OF SAYING
THAT IS THE PARTICLES

MOVING IN DIFFERENT DIRECTIONS
ON THE GRID

WOULD HAVE ENERGIES
THAT DEPEND ON THE ANGLE.

Freeman:
SILAS BELIEVES IF WE MEASURE

COSMIC RAYS
ZIPPING THROUGH SPACE

AND FIND THAT THOSE TRAVELING
AT ONE ANGLE

HAVE CONSISTENTLY
DIFFERENT ENERGIES

FROM THOSE TRAVELING
AT ANOTHER ANGLE,

THEN WE'LL KNOW THERE'S A GRID
STRUCTURE TO OUR UNIVERSE.

Beane:
IT'S A GLITCH IN THE SYSTEM,
AN INDICATION THAT OUR UNIVERSE

MAY BE OPERATING IN A SIMULATED,
ARTIFICIAL MANNER.

I THINK IT WOULD CAUSE EVERYONE
TO THINK ABOUT THE UNIVERSE

DIFFERENTLY AND TO REALLY SEARCH
FOR AN EXPLANATION FOR WHY

THERE IS THIS GRID STRUCTURE,
WHETHER IT BE A NATURAL ONE

OR WHETHER IT BE DUE TO THE FACT
THAT WE ARE BEING SIMULATED.

Freeman: IF WE'RE LIVING
IN A VIRTUAL REALITY

INSIDE A COMPUTER,
SOME KIND OF MASS CODE

MUST RUN ALL THE PROGRAMS
THAT MAKE UP OUR UNIVERSE.

YOU WOULD THINK THAT CODE WOULD
HAVE TO BE IMPOSSIBLY COMPLEX.

BUT THIS COMPUTER SCIENTIST
CLAIMS HE CAN RUN THE UNIVERSE

FROM THE LINES OF CODE
ON A SINGLE NOTE CARD.

IMAGINE THAT SOME ENTITY,
FAR MORE ADVANCED THAN US,

COULD INVENT COMPUTER PROGRAMS
FOR EVERY ASPECT

OF OUR UNIVERSE --
THE BEHAVIOR OF ATOMS,

THE LAWS OF GRAVITY,
THE HUMAN GENOME.

TO MANAGE ALL
OF THOSE INDIVIDUAL PROGRAMS,

THE CREATOR
WOULD NEED SOME MASTER PROGRAM,

LIKE A COSMIC OPERATING SYSTEM.

THE SOFTWARE WOULD BE IMPOSSIBLY
LONG AND COMPLEX, RIGHT?

MAYBE NOT.

ONE GERMAN COMPUTER SCIENTIST

CLAIMS THAT THESE FEW LINES
OF CODE

ARE ALL SOMEONE
WOULD NEED TO RUN OUR UNIVERSE.

JUERGEN SCHMIDHUBER

IS THE DIRECTOR OF THE SWISS
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE LAB

IN LUGANO, SWITZERLAND.

HE BELIEVES OUR UNIVERSE
COULD WELL BE COMPUTER-GENERATED

AND THINKS HE KNOWS
HOW TO WRITE ITS CODE.

Schmidhuber:
I BELIEVE IT'S QUITE POSSIBLE

THAT OUR UNIVERSE IS COMPUTABLE,

MEANING EVERYTHING IS PART
OF A COMPUTER SIMULATION.

NOW, YOU MAY SAY,

"HOW COULD YOU POSSIBLY
PROGRAM THE WHOLE UNIVERSE

WITHIN FEWER THAN 10 LINES
OF CODE?"

WELL, THERE ARE MANY THINGS

ABOUT OUR WORLD
THAT SEEM VERY COMPLEX

BUT REALLY AREN'T.

Freeman: JUERGEN BELIEVES

IT ALL BOILS DOWN
TO A SINGLE CORE PRINCIPLE --

DATA COMPRESSION.

FOR EXAMPLE, THIS IS
AN INCREDIBLY LONG NUMBER,

LONG ENOUGH TO WRAP
AROUND THE WORLD

AND COME BACK AGAIN
OVER AND OVER FOREVER.

THERE'S A VERY SIMPLE CONCEPT
BEHIND IT,

WHICH IS THE RATIO

BETWEEN THE CIRCUMFERENCE
OF A CIRCLE

AND ITS DIAMETER, CALLED PI.

THERE IS A VERY SHORT CODE,
A SHORT PROGRAM,

THAT COMPUTES THIS ENTIRE,
LONG SEQUENCE.

Freeman: COMPRESSING
A GIANT NUMBER LIKE PI

INTO A FEW CHARACTERS
OF CODE IS SIMPLE.

SIMILAR DATA COMPRESSION COULD
BE TAKING PLACE ALL AROUND US.

CLOUDS IN THE SKY MIGHT BE
RENDERED BY SIMPLE EQUATIONS

THAT GENERATE COMPLEX SHAPES
AND MOVEMENTS.

THE SAME GOES
FOR OUR ENTIRE LANDSCAPE.

COMPUTER-GENERATED
FRACTAL LANDSCAPE PROGRAMS

TAKE SMALL TRIANGLES, STACK THEM
ON TOP OF EACH OTHER

WHILE ALSO ROTATING AND CRUSHING
EACH OTHER ON VARIOUS SIDES,

TO MAKE VERY REALISTIC VERSIONS
OF NATURE.

AND IN A VIRTUAL REALITY,

THIS MOUNTAIN
OR SIMILAR MOUNTAINS

CAN BE CREATED
WITH JUST A FEW LINES OF CODE.

Freeman:
A SIMPLE REPEATING PROGRAM

MAY WORK FINE
FOR BUILDING A VIRTUAL MOUNTAIN,

BUT WHAT ABOUT LIVING CREATURES?

HOW ABOUT THE COMPLEXITY
OF HUMAN BEHAVIOR?

CAN ALL OF OUR MOVEMENTS
AND DECISIONS

BE COMPRESSED
INTO SIMPLE BITS OF CODE?

ACCORDING TO JUERGEN,

WHAT WE CALL LEARNING
IS REALLY DATA COMPRESSION.

ANYONE WHO'S TRIED
TO FIND A NEW ADDRESS

IN AN UNFAMILIAR CITY KNOWS
HOW COMPLICATED THAT CAN BE.

BUT ONCE THE ROUTE HAS BEEN
LEARNED, THE NEXT TRIP IS EASY.

Schmidhuber:
HUMANS ARE PROBLEM-SOLVERS.

AND ANY EFFICIENT PROBLEM-SOLVER

IS GOING TO TRY TO FIND
A SOLUTION TO THE GIVEN PROBLEM

THAT IS BOTH SIMPLE AND FAST.

Freeman:
IF JUERGEN DECIDES TO GO
TO THE TOP OF A NEARBY MOUNTAIN,

HE'LL USE A SERIES
OF SIMPLE PROGRAMS TO GET THERE.

EACH PROGRAM THAT GOES INTO
ACCOMPLISHING THE LARGER TASK

IS KNOWN AS A SUBPROGRAM.

THE FIRST IDEA THAT COMES
TO MIND IS TO REUSE A SUBPROGRAM

THAT I LEARNED A LONG TIME AGO,

WHICH INVOLVES SENDING
ELECTRICAL SIGNALS

TO MY LEG MUSCLES

AND MAKE THEM MOVE
IN A CERTAIN WAY.

THAT'S CALLED WALKING.

Freeman: THE COORDINATED ACTION
OF BILLIONS OF NERVE

AND MUSCLE CELLS
IS NOW A SIMPLE SUBPROGRAM.

THE SAME GOES FOR A MORE COMPLEX
INTERACTION

BETWEEN MAN AND MACHINE.

Schmidhuber: IT INVOLVES
A LITTLE PIECE OF MACHINERY

WITH TWO WHEELS AND, AGAIN,
ANOTHER SUBPROGRAM

THAT INVOKES MY LEG MUSCLES
IN A CERTAIN WAY.

AND THAT'S CALLED BIKING.

Freeman: BUT ARE THERE SOME
ASPECTS OF OUR UNIVERSE

THAT CAN'T BE COMPRESSED
INTO SIMPLE PROGRAMS?

SURELY, WE CAN'T COMPRESS
EVERYTHING IN OUR LIVES.

WHAT IF HE LOSES HIS TICKET?

WHAT IF THE TRAM BREAKS DOWN?

CAN TRULY RANDOM EVENTS
BE PROGRAMMED?

JUERGEN BELIEVES

THAT WHAT WE SEE AS RANDOM
OR ACCIDENTAL EVENTS

ONLY HAVE THE APPEARANCE
OF RANDOMNESS.

THEY ARE WHAT HE CALLS
PSEUDORANDOM.

SO IF THIS UNIVERSE CAN BE
COMPUTED BY A SHORT PROGRAM,

THAN BY DEFINITION
IT CANNOT BE RANDOM.

IT MUST BE PSEUDORANDOM,
JUST LIKE PI,

BECAUSE TRULY RANDOM DATA
IS NOT COMPRESSIBLE.

Freeman: IF JUERGEN IS RIGHT,
THEN THERE IS NO LUCK,

NO CHANCE, NO FREE WILL.

EVERYTHING WE'VE EVER DONE
AND WILL DO

HAS ALREADY BEEN PROGRAMMED.

SO MAYBE ALL ASPECTS
OF OUR UNIVERSE

CAN BE BROKEN DOWN
INTO SIMPLE SUBPROGRAMS.

BUT HOW COULD A SHORT MASTER
PROGRAM CONTROL ALL OF THEM?

JUERGEN BELIEVES IT ONLY
TAKES ONE FINAL ACT

OF DATA COMPRESSION.

Schmidhuber: WE JUST WRITE
A VERY SHORT PROGRAM

WHICH LISTS
ALL OUR POSSIBLE PROGRAMS,

STARTING WITH THE SHORTEST.

AND THE ENTIRE LIST OF PROGRAMS
IS VERY EASY TO GENERATE.

AND THEN,
THIS MASSIVE PROGRAM ALLOCATES

RUN TIME TO EACH OF THESE

SUCH THAT ALL OF THEM GET
A SHARE OF THE TOTAL RUN TIME.

Freeman: IT'S HARD
NOT TO FEEL INSIGNIFICANT

IF WE'RE ALL JUST BITS
OF COMPUTER CODE,

BUT JUERGEN BELIEVES IT ACTUALLY

MAKES EACH OF US MORE IMPORTANT
THAN EVER.

Schmidhuber: IF YOU CHANGE A BIT
OF THIS PROGRAM,

MAYBE ALL OF THIS
WOULD COMPLETELY DISAPPEAR.

AND THE WHOLE UNIVERSE
WILL BE VERY DIFFERENT.

IN THAT SENSE,
YOU CAN VIEW YOURSELF

AS AN ESSENTIAL INGREDIENT
OF THE ENTIRE UNIVERSE.

IT WILL BE VERY DIFFICULT
TO EDIT YOU OUT OF IT

BECAUSE THE ONLY WAY
OF GETTING RID OF YOU

IS TO MAKE THE WHOLE THING
MORE COMPLEX.

Freeman:
IF EVERYTHING IN OUR UNIVERSE
IS MADE FROM COMPUTER CODE,

THEN THE FUNDAMENTAL BUILDING
BLOCKS OF OUR EXISTENCE

ARE INFORMATION
INSTEAD OF MATTER.

IF SO, CAN WE FIND THOSE BITS
AND BYTES OF REALITY?

ONE PHYSICIST CLAIMS
TO HAVE DONE JUST THAT.

WHAT FORMS THE FOUNDATION
OF OUR REALITY?

IF YOU COULD LOOK
DEEP INSIDE EVERY ATOM

AND EVERY RAY OF SUNSHINE,

YOU'D FIND
FUNDAMENTAL PARTICLES,

THE BUILDING BLOCKS
OF MATTER AND ENERGY.

BUT WHAT ARE THEY MADE OF?

COULD THE BUILDING BLOCKS
OF REALITY

BE SIMPLY BITS OF INFORMATION?

THEORETICAL PHYSICIST JIM GATES
AT THE UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND

INVESTIGATES THE PHYSICS
AND MATHEMATICS

OF THE FUNDAMENTAL PARTICLES
IN OUR UNIVERSE.

Gates:
WELL, YOU SEE, WE PHYSICISTS,

YOU COULD CALL US A COMPANY
CALLED EQUATIONS "R" US

BECAUSE WHAT WE REALLY DO

IS WRITE EQUATIONS
THAT DESCRIBE NATURE,

AND THEN USE THOSE TO MAKE
PREDICTIONS ABOUT THINGS

THAT NO ONE HAS EVER FOUND

OR SEEN
OR EVEN DREAMED OF BEFORE.

Freeman: JIM INVESTIGATES
HOW THE FUNDAMENTAL PARTICLES

OF THE UNIVERSE INTERACT
WITH EACH OTHER.

BECAUSE HE IS A PROPONENT
OF THE CONTROVERSIAL CONCEPT

CALLED STRING THEORY,

JIM OFTEN FINDS HIMSELF
SELLING HIS IDEAS TO SKEPTICS.

STRING THEORY INCLUDES
AT LEAST 10 DIMENSIONS OF SPACE

AND MANY PARTICLES THAT HAVE
NOT YET BEEN DISCOVERED.

IT'S ALL BASED
ON SOME VERY COMPLICATED MATH.

I FOUND SOME
VERY PUZZLING SIGNS THAT,

BURIED IN THE EQUATIONS
THAT I WAS STUDYING,

THERE WAS ANOTHER SET
OF EQUATIONS.

WE DISCUSSED THIS
WITH SOME MATHEMATICIANS,

AND TO OUR GREAT DISAPPOINTMENT,
THE REACTION OF MATHEMATICIANS

WERE, "WHAT IN THE WORLD
ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?"

Freeman: TO MAKE THE EQUATIONS
EASIER TO UNDERSTAND,

JIM TURNED THEM INTO GEOMETRY.

HE REPRESENTED THE INTERACTIONS
BETWEEN SUBATOMIC PARTICLES

AS SPECIFIC,
THREE-DIMENSIONAL SHAPES.

HE CALLED THE STRUCTURES
ADINKRAS.

THE NAME IS DERIVED

FROM A WEST AFRICAN SYMBOL USED
TO REPRESENT ABSTRACT CONCEPTS.

I COULD HAVE MY EQUATIONS

THAT I UNDERSTAND IN THE WAY
THAT I DO,

BUT I CAN PUT IT IN FRONT
OF A MATHEMATICIAN AND ASK,

"WHAT IS IT THAT YOU SEE HERE?"

THEY WILL BEGIN
TO TELL ME A DIFFERENT STORY,

AND THAT'S THE POWER
OF COLLABORATION.

AND THAT'S
WHAT STARTED HAPPENING WITH US.

Freeman: JIM COLLABORATED WITH
PHYSICISTS AND MATHEMATICIANS

TO EXAMINE HOW THE PARTS
OF AN ADINKRA STRUCTURE

RELATE TO EACH OTHER.

BURIED WITHIN THE CONVOLUTED
CALCULATIONS,

JIM FOUND SOMETHING
THAT LOOKED FAMILIAR.

IT LOOKED LIKE COMPUTER CODE.

IT TURNS OUT THAT EXPRESSING
THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THEM

IS EASIEST IF YOU USE ONES
AND ZEROES.

THESE ARE CALLED BITS
IN COMPUTER SCIENCE.

I KNOW OF NO OTHER EXAMPLE
IN THE KINDS OF EQUATIONS

THAT DESCRIBE
FUNDAMENTAL SCIENCE

WHERE BITS HAVE OCCURRED.

AND EVEN MORE REMARKABLY,

WE HAVE FOUND THAT THE BITS
IN OUR EQUATIONS

ARRANGED THEMSELVES
INTO ERROR-CORRECTING CODES,

SOMETHING THAT MAKES
YOUR BROWSER WORK EVERY DAY.

Freeman:
WHEN YOU SURF THE WEB

OR USE ANY FORM
OF DIGITAL COMMUNICATION,

CRUCIAL ONES OR ZEROES

ARE INEVITABLY LOST
IN THE TRANSMISSION.

ERROR-CORRECTING CODES
FILL IN THE DROPPED BITS.

THEY PROTECT DATA
FROM CORRUPTION

AND PREVENT COMPUTER PROGRAMS
FROM CRASHING.

JIM BELIEVES
THE ERROR-CORRECTING CODES

HE DISCOVERED WORK
IN THE SAME WAY,

TO MAINTAIN THE STABILITY
OF SUBATOMIC INTERACTIONS.

WITHOUT THIS ERROR CORRECTION,

THE WAY FUNDAMENTAL PARTICLES
INTERACT COULD BE CORRUPTED,

LIKE A COMPUTER CRASH
ON A UNIVERSAL SCALE.

Gates:
THEN YOU CAN ASK, "WELL, GEE.

DOES THAT MEAN
THAT SOMEHOW OUR UNIVERSE

IS LIKE A BIG COMPUTER
SIMULATION?"

Freeman: THE IDEA THAT NATURE

MIGHT USE ERROR-CORRECTION CODES
AT FIRST SEEMED WRONG TO JIM,

BUT HE SOON
FOUND ANOTHER EXAMPLE.

Gates: IT TURNS OUT THERE'S ONE
PIECE OF NATURAL SCIENCE

IN WHICH THIS DISCUSSION
HAS BEEN GOING ON FOR DECADES.

IT'S GENETICS.

Freeman: IN THE HUMAN BODY,

ERROR-CORRECTING CODES ALLOW US
TO STAY HEALTHY AND STRONG.

THE CODES ACT TO STABILIZE
THE GENOME.

Freeman:
GENETIC ERROR-CORRECTING CODES

ENSURE THAT CELLS
COPY THEMSELVES ACCURATELY

THROUGHOUT
AN ORGANISM'S LIFETIME.

THINK OF THE DNA REPLICATING
ITSELF WHILE A CELL DIVIDES

AS BEING LIKE A FIGHTER
TRYING TO STAY STRONG AND STABLE

DURING A ROUND IN THE RING.

Gates: WE CAN IMAGINE THAT,

IF OUR FIGHTER DOESN'T HAVE
ERROR-CORRECTING CODES,

THE FIRST THING THAT HAPPENS IS
ONE OF HIS ARMS STOPS WORKING.

NEXT, HIS LEGS STOP WORKING.

THEN HIS EYES FAIL.

WITHOUT ERROR-CORRECTING CODES,

HE IS QUICKLY DETERIORATING,
STRUGGLING TO SURVIVE.

THERE IS NO STABILITY,

AND HE COULD COLLAPSE
AT ANY MOMENT.

NOW, A FIGHTER EQUIPPED
WITH ERROR-CORRECTING CODES

WILL EVENTUALLY ALSO
DETERIORATE.

HOWEVER, THE ERROR-CORRECTING
CODES ACT TO SUSTAIN VIGOR

FOR A MUCH LONGER TIME.

Freeman: WHEN BAD COPIES
OF GENES GET MADE,

THE RESULTS CAN BE CELL DEATH
OR MALFUNCTIONS LIKE CANCER.

GENETIC ERROR CORRECTION
REDUCES THE COPY-FAILURE RATE

TO LESS THAN ONE IN A BILLION.

AND THIS IS AN ANALOGY
FOR THE ROLE

THAT ERROR-CORRECTING CODES
COULD PLAY IN THE STRUCTURE

OF SOMETHING LIKE OUR UNIVERSE.

Freeman: OUR UNIVERSE HAS BEEN
RUNNING SMOOTHLY

FOR ALMOST 14 BILLION YEARS.

MAYBE IT HAS LASTED
THAT LONG

THANKS
TO ERROR-CORRECTING CODES,

CODES THAT MAKE SURE
THE FUNDAMENTAL PARTICLES

IN OUR COSMOS DON'T GO HAYWIRE.

BUT NOTHING LASTS FOREVER.

EVENTUALLY, OUR UNIVERSE
WILL BEGIN TO AGE.

ERRORS WILL CREEP IN,
AND IT WILL DIE.

OR WHAT IF THE CODES
JIM DISCOVERED

REALLY ARE COMPUTER-GENERATED?

WHOEVER PROGRAMMED THE COSMOS

COULD DECIDE TO PULL THE PLUG
AT ANY MOMENT.

MAYBE IT'S TIME
TO CREATE OUR OWN UNIVERSE.

IS OUR UNIVERSE
A NATURAL ONE OR ARTIFICIAL?

EITHER WAY,
IT CAN'T LAST FOREVER.

SO, IS THERE ANYTHING
WE CAN DO TO SAVE OURSELVES?

PERHAPS WE NEED TO DESIGN
OUR OWN NEW UNIVERSE

AND MOVE THERE.

PHILOSOPHER CLEMENT VIDAL OF
THE FREE UNIVERSITY IN BRUSSELS

BELIEVES WE NEED TO TAKE CONTROL
OF OUR COSMIC DESTINY.

Vidal: IT'S ALMOST CERTAIN
THAT OUR UNIVERSE WILL END.

SO, SHOULD WE ACCEPT THIS
AS A BLUNT FACT?

I DON'T BELIEVE SO.

I THINK WE SHOULD DO SOMETHING
ABOUT IT.

AND IF WE TAKE INSPIRATION
FROM BIOLOGY,

WHICH IS TO REPRODUCE,

SO MAYBE WE
SHOULD REPRODUCE THE UNIVERSE.

Freeman:
WE ALL WANT A BETTER LIFE,

A BETTER HOME FOR OUR KIDS.

AND CLEMENT BELIEVES
WE MAY ONE DAY

BE ABLE TO GIVE OUR DESCENDANTS
A BETTER UNIVERSE AS WELL.

IT'S A BIG PROJECT,
TO SAY THE LEAST.

ACCORDING TO CLEMENT,
WE'LL HAVE TO PRACTICE FIRST

BY BUILDING VIRTUAL,
COMPUTER-SIMULATED UNIVERSES.

Vidal:
IN ANY ENGINEERING PROJECT,

YOU START BY MAKING A SIMULATION
OF WHAT YOU WANT TO BUILD.

SO I IMAGINE THAT,

IN THE FAR FUTURE,
AN ADVANCED CIVILIZATION

WOULD WANT TO EXPLORE THE SPACE
OF POSSIBLE UNIVERSES

AND THEN SELECT THE UNIVERSE
THEY WANT TO BUILD.

ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT THINGS
WE NEED TO LEARN

IS HOW OUR UNIVERSE
CAME TO BE FINE-TUNED FOR LIFE,

AND SIMULATIONS
CAN HELP US TO LEARN THAT.

Freeman:
WHEN THE SIMULATIONS ARE DONE

AND WE'RE READY TO BUILD
A NEW HOME FOR OUR DESCENDANTS,

WE'LL NEED ONE MORE THING --
A COLOSSAL SOURCE OF ENERGY.

Vidal:
THE MAKING OF A NEW UNIVERSE

WILL MOST LIKELY
RESEMBLE ANOTHER BIG BANG.

SO THE ENERGIES
WOULD BE VERY HIGH,

AND TO MAKE THIS NEW UNIVERSE,

WE'D BE DISCONNECTED
FROM OUR OWN,

WHICH MEANS THAT IT WILL HAVE
A NEW SPACE TIME STRUCTURE.

Freeman: MAKING THE BIG BANG
MAY SOUND IMPOSSIBLE,

BUT CLEMENT BELIEVES A SPECIAL
TYPE OF BINARY STAR SYSTEM

COULD PROVIDE THE NEEDED ENERGY.

SUPERMASSIVE STARS,
SUCH AS WHITE DWARVES

AND NEUTRON STARS, HAVE ENORMOUS
GRAVITATIONAL PULL.

IF ANOTHER STAR IS CLOSE ENOUGH,

THE MORE MASSIVE STAR
SUCKS IN THE ENERGY

FROM THE COMPANION STAR.

CLEMENT BELIEVES
WE COULD HARNESS

THIS ENORMOUS CONCENTRATION
OF ENERGY.

THINK OF IT AS AN INCREDIBLY
SCALED-UP VERSION

OF A RENEWABLE ENERGY PLANT.

THESE WOOD PELLETS
ARE CONVERTED INTO ELECTRICITY

AT THIS BIOMASS PLANT.

IN A SIMILAR WAY,
THE ENERGY OF A COMPANION STAR

IS CONVERTED
INTO A DENSER FORM OF ENERGY,

INTO WHITE DWARVES
AND NEUTRON STARS.

Freeman:
IMAGINE THIS POWER PLANT
IS THE SIZE OF A NEUTRON STAR,

AND THESE PELLETS
ARE BEING HARVESTED

FROM ANOTHER NEARBY STAR.

THEY ARE SO DENSE

THAT A SINGLE PELLET WOULD WEIGH
MORE THAN MOUNT EVEREST.

CLEMENT THINKS IF WE CAN USE

THAT ENORMOUS CONCENTRATION
OF MATTER AND ENERGY,

WE'LL HAVE THE POWER TO CHANGE
THE FABRIC OF THE UNIVERSE.

WELL, TO CREATE A NEW UNIVERSE,
PRESUMABLY,

YOU WOULD HAVE TO MANIPULATE
THE STRUCTURE OF SPACETIME.

AND THIS SPACETIME BECOMES,
IN SOME THEORIES,

MALLEABLE
AT VERY HIGH DENSITIES.

Freeman:
COULD WE SOMEDAY HARNESS
THE ENERGY OF SUPER DENSE STARS

TO MANIPULATE SPACETIME
AND CREATE OUR OWN BIG BANG?

CLEMENT'S THEORY OF UNIVERSE
CREATION IS FAR FROM MAINSTREAM,

BUT HE HOPES THAT SOMEDAY
HIS CONCEPT WILL BE TESTED.

I'M CONFIDENT THAT A TEST CAN BE
DEVISED BECAUSE WE HAVE PLENTY

OF DATA ABOUT THOSE INTERACTING
BINARY STAR SYSTEMS.

SO WE JUST NEED TO --
TO THINK CREATIVELY

AND SCIENTIFICALLY ABOUT
HOW TO TEST THE HYPOTHESIS.

Freeman: THE FIRST TESTS

WILL NO DOUBT BE DONE
THROUGH COMPUTER SIMULATIONS.

PERHAPS SOME OTHER CIVILIZATION,

MORE ADVANCED THAN OURS,

IS ALREADY CONDUCTING
THESE TESTS WITH US.

ARE WE LIVING IN A UNIVERSE
CREATED BY SOMEONE

OR SOMETHING ELSE?

IF SO, IS IT A BETA VERSION

THAT AN ADVANCED ENTITY
IS STILL TINKERING WITH,

OR IS IT A VERSION
THEY'VE PROGRAMMED TO LAST?

MAYBE SOMEDAY,

WE'LL FIND PROOF
THAT WE'RE ALL PLAYERS

IN THE GREATEST VIDEO GAME
EVER MADE.

WOULD THAT KNOWLEDGE MAKE
US FEEL MANIPULATED LIKE PAWNS?

OR WOULD IT FREE US
TO TAKE RISKS

AND LIVE LIFE TO THE FULLEST
BECAUSE NONE OF THIS IS REAL?

EITHER WAY, WHETHER IT'S NATURAL
OR ARTIFICIAL,

LIFE IS A GLORIOUS GAME,

AND WE SHOULD PLAY TO WIN.