The Machine - A Thought Experiment That Changes Your Life
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- Опубліковано 16 лют 2021
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(This story is inspired by Robert Nozick's "experience machine" thought experiment, which can be found in his book, "Anarchy, State, and Utopia.") In this story, we follow one of the future's most influential thinkers as he encounters a new technology that changes everything and forces him to rethink his entire life and work.
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Hi sir do i have the right to use ur animations with my voice in arabic language on a new channel ?
Question! Can we get a list of music used in the background? I love the piano piece near the end
ua-cam.com/video/D9xmtHBop4Q/v-deo.html 😇
Where do you get this footage to edit?do you make it yourself?I want to start a youtube channel with this build,not about philosophy,but this build of talking about something with music in the background and edited footage.Really like your channel by the way.
Do you make the animations yourself?
I'll gladly strike up a conversation with a stranger in a bar and confuse the hell out of them pretending to be a simulation checkpoint.
Except bars are off due to covid ,🤔
@@diogenesPL not in all places, my local ones are up and running in full capacity
@@sanctifyer1885 Right, I'm on my way.
great idea for a horror movie right here
@@rowantennant4906 Black mirror has a lot of episodes contemplating this type of horror.
"Lawrence, we have been trying to reach you about your cars extended warranty".
😂
Seriously
Best thing I've seen all day.
Do you believe while watching this video I received this call? And with your comment it got just weirder...
PFFFT
“Has it ever struck you that life is all memory, except for the one present moment that goes by you so quick you hardly catch it going?”― Tennessee Williams...
Either that, or life is all the present moment. All the rest is illusion. Fantasies of what might be, imperfect memories of what once was… don’t try to catch this present moment. Simply be present in it, be fully in it.
The present is elusive; the past changeable; the future uncertain. Why do we insist this is real?
@@ronagoodwell2709 Perhaps because the present is not quite as elusive to those who do not insist in living in the changeable past or the uncertain future? Or perhaps because there is zero evidence for anything else…. provide convincing evidence that this is not real, and I’ll be glad to listen. But right now, “this is real” provides the best available explanation of the phenomena I am experiencing.
And yes, I’m very aware of the intrinsic circular logic in what I just stated lol
The thing is I could be in one of these simulations right now and I'm just imagining this conversation, which is just aihdgeowvxehiagehsu to me
Reminds me of a salvia trip my friend had. He said all of reality is just moments like film on a roll. Little snippets being flashed before you by little guys in white suits running fast by. He freaked out for 5 mins cause he thought he was being trampled by the dudes. Almost poetic honestly.
I''ve already long ago decided that it doesn't matter. There's no way to tell if you are in base reality, there's no way to tell if everyone you know is an AI. There's no way to tell if the people you see on screens are real, physical beings without seeing them in meatspace. There's even no way to tell if space is real without going there yourself. As far as each individual is concerned there is only the subjective experience of the now, and that's what matters. Even if you find out that you are definitely in a simulation and you exit it, there's no way to tell if the new reality is base reality and not just another level of simulation. Thoughts like these are what happens when you take skepticism to its extreme logical end. At some point you just have to trust that what you experience/do matters in some sense. You have to not worry about what is "real", just accept that the subjective experience of the now is what you have and do your best to improve that subjective experience. Subjective experience of the now _is_ reality as far as any entity who is not God is concerned. Those are my thoughts at least, but what do I know I'm just a self conscious knot in your subjective reality =)
yeah me too because I have no way of knowing if you are a real person and even though I know I am one, I have no way of proving this to you
This is precisely the same conclusion that René Descartes comes to when he says, I think therefore I am.
i had a similar thought after thoughts like this started to ruin my life
Nah this is definitely not what I asked for
These thought loops gave me a lot of anxiety before, but I have realized even how hard it is, what a waste must it be if I let it control this that I have. I won’t find any answer after all and this reality I have is the best I have to work with. Can’t keep myself down in these thought loops cuz of this
If anyone is listening I didn’t mean to pick the stupid character I’d like a redo
Dude... Same, wtf. We messed up big time :v
But you can level up your character!
Life is an RPG and I fucked up my build.
Try leveling up bruh. I think that works. They call the ability to rewrite the base character code 'neuroplasticity' in the sim.
Just wait until the next exit point
Reminds me of Alan Watts' Dream of life idea. Imagine if each time you dream at night you could live a full life in that dream. You could control it and have every pleasure you want. Then wake up and think that was nice but eventually want a surprise or two in the next dream. You get sick of being spoiled and getting everything you want, and actually want more hardship or some suffering. Until eventually you dream of the life your living now.
🙏🙏🙏
Alan Watts is my greatest mentor
☺ 💧 🌧
There’s no such thing as death life is only a dream and we are just the imaginations of ourselves
wrong, some people have way too much hardship and suffering in their lives until they die.
I was expecting a "we are already in a simulation" plot twist before the video started but I got so captivated that I totally forgot what I was thinking.
When that guy said "do you want to exit this one?" I was literally left speechless, it was expected in a sense but still mind-blowing. This is one of your best works yet in my opinion.
^^^ EXACTLY.
I totally agree w the logic to stay after finding out its a simulation. There must've been a good reason your other self went into a NewLife simulation. Hey may not know it, but he knows he is similiar to that real one. Well thats what I think.
The most sudden twist is that in the base reality he's himself, just less cool. Not some war against machines that you feel like deserter if you don't join, not some living vegetable, not fundamentally different to make it a discover itself.
It makes the story precisely about reality vs illusion
Not exactly. He's a dying old man irl. It would be simply about reality vs illusion if him and the simulated him had the exact (or almost exact) life. I agreed with lawrance that experiencing true reality is better than a simulated one, but I would also choose to live in a simulation if i was 100+ years old and about to die. Might as well have a cool life, even if simulated, than die.
The thing is, in the matrix (what your presumably referencing) the false world ISN'T indistinguishable from the real one. Charecters in the matrix feel that there is something fundimentally *wrong* with the false world long before they know it's a simulation, where as in the video, there are no such feelings of wrongness.
@@PreferredMethods" .....and then they lived happily ever after. THE END"
@@PreferredMethods "THIS life is a fight against darkness"
So you'd like to stay in this simulation then? Great!
“A completely predictable future is already the past”
- Alan Watts
If you know the meaning of determinism then it is already set, the variables are just yet inestimably numerous.
"im living in the future so the present is my past, my presence is a present kiss my ass"
- kanye west
Not if you can’t predict the predictable future. That’s the whole point, without the knowledge of being in the simulation, the simulation IS real
@@tchalk kanye the goat
@@VCardGaming simulation is real anyway bro if you know about it or not, if you don't have the knowledge of being in the simulation there's a VERY good chance we are in a simulation and with the knowledge of it well then we definitely know we are in one,and after that point there will be no turning back because even if we opt to exit that simulation we would never know if we exit ed into another one or not
"This Newlife simulation is brought to you by Raid: Shadow Legends...."
I got it...clever wording. I think I got it. Nope, don't got it. Hmmm...danthebusybee wants in.
@Mr Beast yo gimme some free shit yo
@Mr Beast I support Jacob Beslac , give him free shit, yo! !👈🤩👉
@@BigBez props! 👈🤩👉
I’m dead
I pick option C: leave me in the simulation, but with the knowledge that I am in a simulation. Let me play around with it.
Luckily you can do that in your life now. This experience is real to us whether it is a simulation or not. We might already be in the simulation ..
@@FremontLeland She obv meant to let him be the kontroller of “reality”. For instance flying, space travel, & other super powers.
If you 100% knew this wasn't real you would instantly become a monster. Why care about others? They are not real, their pain is not real, the environment is not real, etc.
@@michaelzimmermann3388 Nonsense. Not everyone is motivated by the fear of reprisal and consequence. Some of us have integrity and standards for our actions, regardless of the setting. **proceeds to create violent chaos in GTA**
What? It's just a game!
Good answer.
This was extremely engaging and very mind opening. I cannot believe this is free content. This is awesome, keep it up man, thank you (sorry for my bad english)
your english is pretty good
Dawg ur english is literally flawless
It should be free since God gave the knowledge for free.
Edit: Also they get paid for the ads, it's not free
I cringe so hard when someone types something in perfect english then apologizes for their "bad english" knowing damn well its flawless
@@marelli777 because i'm Italian and i'm not 100% sure about my grammar, but as it seems i don't need to apologize anymore
In the movie "Inception" where he goes home and sees his kids. Before going to them he uses his totem to figure out if this was reality or a dream. He goes to his children without knowing what happens to the totem. It doesn't matter. He's home. He's back to his children. That was his goal from the beginning. Whichever path that is reality and another a dream, he chooses a third path. No desire to change his position. He doesn't care anymore.
And the totem begins to topple before the movie cuts...
Hmmmm interesting. I actually thought of this during the story. When they Cobb and Mal spend years in a dream state. It kind of seems, humans will always want to run away from reality when it hits too hard. I mean, just think of why we take drugs, spend hours on end playing video games or speeding in our cars. Sure a good dopamine or adrenaline boost is in order after each but that's just your mind rewarding you for the escape. I may be wrong😏 but I'm right until somebody proves me wrong, and if am we both learn ...talk about a win win situation.
Ready Player One also paints a similar picture. Majority of the human race is living in a video game.
I never understood the ending. Soo much effort to not check if it’s real or not? Surely it was all just a dream 💭
I think he just didn't know. The ending wasn't intentional.
that totem was his wife's, his totem was his ring.
Goosebumps when the man said, "Then would you like to exit this one"
Same.... Hearing that I nearly shit myself
Kinda expected of you're familiar with Philip K. Dick's works, yet I have to admit the moment was very well built, hence it was impactful eventhough of my expectation.
I guessed the plot twist well before it happened. I guess I just watched too many old Twilight zone episodes.
@@michelepiocurci7924 what work of his is a good intro, or has this sort of philosophical feel?
@@marcus8710 I'd say "Do Androids Dream Of Electrical Sheeps", but don't quote me on that.
I can definitely suggest the TV Series "Philip K. Dick's Electric Dreams" tho.
the pacing of this story is truly incredible. just enough new information given at the exact right time. i thought i saw it coming, but i couldn't have. this is fantastic work.
This is the most immersive thought experiment/story I’ve ever fucking seen. Thank you so much for making this.
"Yes, but only if my student loan debt disappears." He swivels toward him and says, "I'm sorry, that's impossible."
He chuckles, “you sure did program good humor into this one, man.”
That's why he got there in the first place got to repay those loans... Also if you're fail to repay those in the reasonable amount of simulation time, your neuron image will be bought out by the big tech or bank and you will be forced to repay them ever increasing depth AKA point of no return... AKA singularity
made me spit my coke out
Just then, his cell phone rang. He picked it up and said, "Hello?"
The other end of the call, "This is your last chance to extend the warranty on your vehicle".
if i ever find success in life, this video is gonna haunt me
Your telling me. My name is Laurence, this explains my passion and also has the exact same timeline as my life.
@@lm4349 Laurence, would you like to exit now ? You’ve stumbled across the video you planted for yourself to watch. I am your exit checkpoint.
@@romeossoul he hasn’t responded the dude left
@@BillSullivanosu LMAOOOOO
Believe it will be when, and not if, and you'll eventually receive the haunting you asked for.
Man, these are so great. Not sure why this man is not a screenwriter. Most of these stories, especially this one, would make great films. This one is definitely in my top 5 favorites!
^^^^^
Watch vanilla sky
What's the others in your top 5?
Hollywood doesn’t seam to want thought provoking original science fiction most of the time despite its occasional success. Just more fucking franchises
@@mattd2129 Yes, I believe you are right. Franchise films and remakes because they have to rely on an original idea that was had 50 years earlier. It's a shame that good story-telling is gone forever. We are on the precipice of extinction. Do you know how I know this? Well, just look at the incoming generation. These kids complain about everything and they are offended at everything. How can these future kids be expected to write about things they are offended by? Easy, they can't. This is the mark of the beginning of the end. Hopefully, I will be gone by then.
imagine achieving your biggest accomplishment and being hit with this reality.. terrifying
This was incredible. Thank you for the thought experiment
YOU YOURE HERE THATS AMAZING
@@arxalier2956 but am I really here?
@@timmilgram what
am I dreaming
Yeah no I most definitely asked this to be a part of my NewLife
I concur
UA-cam is good enough, I don't have to live in the real world. It is Saturday night my kids are arguing in the other room my wife is grouchy. I am laying on the couch with my headphones turned up ignoring all of it, in fact, this video snapped me out of it for a minute, it is time to dive back into the abyss and watch my life melt away. Thanks UA-cam
Almost like he was trying too hard to fit in but was a few decades too early lmao
man that made me cackle 😂
Are you from India?
Congrats for being hearted
I wanted that
@@trialerror7665 yup
@@chiragchhabria3272 where
This is also mentioned in the first Matrix movie.
The original simulation was rejected by the human minds that were plugged into the matrix, because it was too perfect, and people can't handle perfection.
So the second simulation was designed to be a copy of the imperfect world as we know it.
This is the EXACT plot of the Mexican movie “Open Your Eyes” which was remade into another movie with Tom Cruise called “Vanilla Sky” which is really wonderful, and I def recommend it.
And similar to the concept of the 13th floor
The original version might have been Spanish. Wasn't Penelope Cruz in it?
"Open your eyes " is not Mexican ,is Spanish.
With the guy in the bar... Tech Support.
Recent movie "Bliss" is very similar as well
It's interesting how Lawrence doesn't want to be in a simulation (when he's in a simulation but doesn't know it). In saying reality is better a priori, he's biased because he has an exceptional life in the simulation. However, when he's told his base reality life is more normal, he has to reevaluate. Also, when he was in baseline reality, he chose to go in the simulation.
Yeah I am facing that fact as we speak. I've scoured these comments. Am I ... The only Laurence to stumble upon this video
I think his desire to have a real life was so strong that he manifested that checkpoint in the simulation. even if you are in simulation our brain rewires every time we experience something ( and its subjective ). Maybe he has changed his mind.
Not everyone wants the red pill.
@@alfredsutton7233
Privileged people don't need it.
Yes, but when he chose to go in he was MUCH older than his late 40's. He was also not functioning too well and had already lived a "real life" until his latter years. So while this is still a great thought experiment, to really make the playing field even, he should also be in his late 40's in the "new life". He can still be only average, lower middle class, etc. but if he was in his late 40's (in reality) that would still give him time to push forward and create the life he desires...but with so called "real" results.
I think making him into an old man changes the whole perspective of this experiment...just imo.
this should be a black mirror episode. it's just amazing
San Junipero
What I was thinking also.
It's better than even the best of Black Mirror in my opinion. Love this channel.
@@madianyslezcano214 it's very different and could be an independent episode
@@Yevdokiya hell yeah
I just wanna say: You're the only comfort I've found. I feel empty a lot of the time, it comes out of nowhere and drains all want and hope from me. However, often when I feel that way I'll think of watching one of your videos that I repeatedly enjoy to an indescribably strong degree and it just helps, idk how or why but one of these thought delicacies so perfectly presented make me repeatedly feel a fundamental change within myself. Thank you.
I feel the same way. This satisfies a deep intellectual curiosity I never knew I had. I'd give anything to meet the person that wrote this.
Fantastic and thought provoking video. My life experience and journey has gone from disfunctional childhood, to failed education, crime, prison, problematic relationships and tough working class jobs and unemployment.
To being a professional fighter and failing to make it at the highest level, being broke and no sense of direction in my early 30's, and as a last resort on the verge of joining the military.
To taking a last minute BKB fight in Asia, being offered a dream job as Coach. Earning a high salary, traveling Asia and meeting my wife and getting married.
I often feel like I'm living in a simulation, and the good and the bad are a part of it.
Again, great though experiment.
I like the idea of sprinkling "check-out points" in simulations like this. Good stuff. I had never heard that idea before.
Maybe the reason why you've never heard of a checkpoint idea is because you always opt to continue in the simulation so all those checkpoints placed by the creator, in your life time thus far, have occurred but been erased and your memories altered to the point where upon hearing the idea of a checkpoint seems foreign. 🤔🤷🏽♂️
Are you Lyn from Goodreads? 😜
@@BlackRose4MyDeath Given how miserable in life I am, my base reality must be abominable for me to keep skipping my own checkpoints. 😐
The "check point" character is like "Mr. Charles" ruse in the movie Inception. Total Recall is a similar mind#ck.
Perhaps our ‘physical death’ on earth is the exit point. Only we chose to not know when, in order to make us feel like we have Free Will.
Plot twist: Lawrence decided to leave but the man just sent him to another simulation to make him feel free
Yep, there are a bunch of logical flaws and purposeful shock-reducing omissions, which is why I usually can't stand fiction... First, if the guy went into the experiment asking to have a hot wife, he should have known he will be deeply attached to her or (here's a purposeful omission) his fake kids with her, of whom he must be very proud (another omission). IOW, by choosing to fakely improve his life, he essentially prechose never to leave that fake life. The more logical choice he would have made is to make his virtual life slightly worse than it really was in most regards, and avoid any serious emotional dilemmas (wife/kids). He would then leave the fake life, and only at that point possibly make an informed decision to go back to a better virtual life (with or without emotional dilemmas). Another omission/flaw is the fact that while he was living the fake life, his scientific progress actually had to stop. Anything he achieved in the fake world is based on false (imagined) data/experiments hence garbage from a scientific value point of view. That means when he went into the experiment choosing that fake life it was no better than constantly being on cocaine... In general, scientists (and true high spirits) love reality so much that they want to minimize escaping away from it. Most of them don't care about fame or achievement - they truly enjoy the discovery process. And every failure is a discovery of what doesn't work. Never wasted time in the eyes of real scientists....I would think.
@@Fatman305 well said
@@Fatman305 I think the point of him going in was to prove the man wrong that's why he chose such a life that would attach him to this world, and also the whole investigation was about the machine from the inside, Wich is technically a reality that has not yet being studied one within ours created by us the whole point was to improve it
@@some_one You can get very deep into this but whichever way I look at it, it only shows to me how believable/logical fiction is just too hard to make. There's no reason whatsoever why there would be only one exit point. There's no reason why the first exit point wouldn't be like after the first taste of an addictive drug, i.e just as he met the woman of his dreams and now needs to decide to wake up or keep on dreaming that she's real. Basically if you believe every word in the story as something that could actually happen in that exact way, then again the motive of the scientist should remain the same: will I do better for mankind waking up to reality, or continuing living in the simulation. Of course it would also require him to be mentally strong to choose a much less pleasurable life which we're told he might not be that strong, as it appears his ego might be his ultimate guide if he prechose a fake life so different than his real life (of no romance and no recognition). A real scientist, IMO, would consider himself the happiest man on earth in every second of every day and never regret his life choices (which he pondered on and knew all risks) or complain about his life condition. Stephen Hawking said “I’m happier now than before I developed the condition. I am lucky to be working in theoretical physics, one of the few areas in which disability is not a serious handicap.”
@@Fatman305 Everything you said has an explanation as far as I can tell. He didn't choose not to live in real life, he chose to truly try his best at creating a better life, for scientific purposes and because there is no downside to doing so. Either you succeed, in which case you are happier, or you fail, in which case you are right where you left off.
Making his virtual life slightly worse in every regard is a highly illogical choice unless he just wants to wake up, which he doesn't, he wants to do unbiased science.
He was capable of doing real science in the simulation. In part that's because data and patterns from the real world which aren't fully understood or described with simple models can be a part of a simulation, so new discoveries can still be made. In part it's because differences in the fake world can be understood as something new in that world (just look at his research, it focused on how hardship was necessary and real life is always worth living, partially because the in this simulation nothing ever goes really wrong for him). Even if you don't believe those, the story gave a very solid explanation for this, which was that simply by staying in the simulation he contributes to science by giving people in the real world good data on how a human being reacts to such a simulation.
There may not be a good reason why there's only one exit point, but there's good reason for telling him it'd be his only exit point. If you said just wait until next time, there's almost no incentive to leave. If you say you need to leave now or you will be trapped here forever, that causes the actual reasons you might leave to be important, and you feel like you have to make that decision then.
Also, there is no mental strength in choosing a less pleasurable life, or more accurately a less desirable life as the video put it. He, and anyone with this decision, will always choose the more desirable life. The dilemma is which one is more desirable. Maybe from your perspective, real life is more desirable, and that's fine, but I doubt that is the case for most people. The choice isn't a meaningful life versus a meaningless but pleasurable life, it's between two meaningful lives, one of which is terrible and one which is desirable.
And consider that going to reality could never be satisfying after having this experience because you would know that you could be tricked. You would know that you could be in a simulation meant to make you feel some level of satisfaction with your life, and not just as some thought experiment. In that case, it's a choice between being in what could be reality and not knowing it is real, and not being in reality but fully believing it was real anyway. If believing that the world is real is necessary for your satisfaction, staying in the simulation is the only logical choice.
"Would you like to leave?"
"Yes"
...
...
...
"Hey you, you're finally awake"
"Would you like to leave?"
"Yes"
.
.
.
**BLAM**
I experienced something like this exact situation in my life not too long ago. Slightly different, but close enough to freak me out after seeing this. It’s a long story, but it’s true. To summarise, I had taken too much acid at a night club, and I fell into a sort of limbo between spaces. I was fully conscious and my thoughts were coherent and rational. I felt more or less normal, I wasn’t afraid, and concepts seemed clearer. I walked over to the bar, but everything started to loop. I was seperate from it and immediately noticed the change. I felt a sudden sense of ease, like all of my burdens were gone. I looked at the barman. He would turn to me and ask what I was drinking, then a few moments later, go back to polishing a glass, over and over again on loop. I watched for a moment but then I realised it was a ‘checkpoint’, and exactly like in the video, I was asked if I wanted to keep playing. But the question came out of nowhere, from within, I just new it all of a sudden. I spent some time thinking it over, but started to panic, which is when things got really bad. It’s a bigger story, but I remember an entity I met whilst trying to leave the club, casually telling me to kms like (‘eh it’s the easiest way’) like no big deal. I realised I wanted to speak to my mother and family again, and there was still things worth living for despite the pain in my life, so I pleaded that the game was still worth playing. After 4 hours of debilitating fear and confusion, I started to come down. I’ve never been the same since that night, and I’m still interpreting what happened. But my appreciation for the small things has grown immeasurably. I don’t feel at home here anymore, but I’m okay with it most of the time. When I speak to people I enjoy their company more. I relish time speaking with family. Music gives me goosebumps, and food tastes better. Wether anything is real or not, I’m going to try keep playing until the end. Life is beautiful when you know where to look.
Ahhh yes acid. My final time taking it was a full night spent laying in my bed convinced I was dying and would not live thru the night. Not sure what caused this shitty trip as I was alone the entire time and was not sure how I was dying but was positive it would end that way. I used to love taking acid until that night. Never did it again.
This is now one of my favorites from you!
Omg u revive nostalgia from 2015-17 vlog vides!! Omg
Yep let me out
Let me out
Lmfao no way my man loved your flip videos back in the day
Not expecting to see the person who is the reason I still do flips, and butterfly effected to me having this pfp
Rather than a video, I would catalogue this piece as an experience.
If experience is the basis, then there isn't much difference between the machine and shooting up some heroin.
@@ricardosantos6721 except heroin use is unsustainable and periodic
Watch the Matrix movies, then apply that to real life. That's what meditation can do for you
@@kierenllama3568 i don't know. I never feel anything when i meditate
"You never know that you _are_ happy, only that you _were_ happy. It's only on looking back, at the way things used to be, that you realize, 'Oh! That's what happiness felt like!'"
Agghh! This one really got me; it’s so good! Thank you very much to you and to all who had any part of putting this piece together. I will be sharing this now!! 😅
The last time I was this early, I was still in base reality....
Thats the perfect comment
Now I'm simply Based, and still stuck in reality.
Where the console mode at??? I need me some cheat codes
How do you know this is base reality?
The last time I was this early I was trying too hard to fit in
But is our "base reality" in 'meat space'?
So if I were in a simulation, this simulation, now, present, “outside” me has picked some shitty things for me to go through. What a prick
There are days I think I'm an NPC for someone else's simulation, lol. But you know, after shitty things happen to me, oftentimes something good comes from it, or it made me grow, or put me on a better path in the long run. Whatever simulation you're in, hope you get what you came here for. If not, ask for a refund.
You are both the program and the programmer.
Your life is a simulation as long as you walk around in your mind reflecting over things. Only use your mind as a tool and start feeling every little thing and you will step out of the simulation
I mean if the simulation is about optimal value of life, then that might include negative stuff that will help you grow and affect you in obscure positive ways, therefore eventually making the experience as good as it can possibly be
@@ooze5752 The idea that you can't appreciate the good without experiencing the bad is a false concept. Ok yeah, difficulty may help in the way that you are forced to struggle and learn things, but if you can't struggle to create for yourself and others if you come from good circumstances you lack self control and willpower. Besides, people that come from difficult backgrounds are most of the time less human, because all from the beginning they have been removed from the good in life and only know hardship and fighting, which turns you into a very one dimensional person. Later on when they got out and made a good spot for themselves, they either have to start from zero to learn what life is really about or their mind has been totally molded by their struggle and the will never be able to relax and enjoy the moment and the little things that are what really it is all about
This certainly took me a few minutes to get into, but then I was hooked.
Beautifully done sir.
I love stories like this. I'm obsessed with simulated realities.
What if when you die you wake up with a weird alien bong in your alien hands and the other aliens around you lean in and say... “so how was it?”
Old meme
I have had this exact thought for about twenty years.
mate i love you that is the best bahaha please be true 😉
youve just made my day 🙂
What about the drugs we do while we are high on life? That's some bong to be able to trip while tripping.
“Ryugo 77: A Life Well-Lived”😉
This channel is the clearest, most concise relayer of complex thought I’ve ever seen. Shit is beautiful.
I wish everyone was willing to,
an able to listen/open there minds. Unfortunately most people are so detached due to the stress of unavoidable distraction's. & The current situation we've been subjected to.
IMO
That was a real treat, brother. First time viewer here and I really enjoyed it. Bravo 👏🏾🤜🏾🤛🏾
... one of my favorites since I first watched it 2 years ago. Many friends dismiss the value of philosophy and thought experiments, or don't even consider them at all. Such interesting questions 🙂
Plot twist: he chose to leave the simulation, but base reality was also a simulation
My life as Laurence. Hard to tell the difference as I am currently on LSD
Better plot twist: he chose to leave the simulation, but spent the entire of his 'real' life searching for another checkpoint believing he was still in a simulation.
@@alphamorion4314 isn't that kinda the mindset the wife in inception had?
@@Anita_sensei Damn, you're right, I had forgotten.
And here I thought I was being original
@@alphamorion4314 maybe the movie incepted you
"You take the red pill, you stay in Wonderland, and I show you how deep the rabbit hole goes" ―Morpheus, to Neo
*blue pill
The creators of The Matrix were lucid dreamers. Dreams like waking life. Conversely, highly practised meditators experience real life like a dream, like there's no distinction between the two, of course that also gives rise to the feeling that real life is a simulation, or atleast a transient "empty-full" experinence.
@@kierenllama3568 I'd imagine if you meditated all day, you'd be a fair bit dazed somehow during the day as if it were a dream alright.
@@MrRobot01010 highly practiced meditator = somebody whos good at doing absolutely nothing all the time 😂
You butchered this quote, please edit it.
Man i just love your vids and how you tell your stories. You paint a really good picture verbally. Anyways you're vids always help me see things in life in a different perspective and positive way. They get me into real deep thought and I love that shit!
I can't get enough of your stories, they're fucking amazing.
Your ideas, your style of conveying the story with this sort of technical vocabulary, the intrigue you create early on, the thought provoking themes and heavy philosophical considerations. It just works like nothing I've come across before, so immersive, it carries me in it while I let my mind contemplate the questions and implications and consider this whole other reality you've created. And your voice suits it so damn well, I personally can't imagine a better fit. Wish I was eloquent enough to properly express what I'm trying to but hey.
I sincerely thank you for sharing your creations and talent.
"You know, I know this steak doesn't exist. I know that when I put it in my mouth, the Matrix is telling my brain that it is juicy and delicious. After nine years, you know what I realize? Ignorance is bliss." Cypher
It seems like everytime you release a video, it changes my life.
It does, knowledge is power
Me to 💯
Same
Maybe that means, that your life is not changing at all...
@@ToriKo_ d e e p
Excellent production. It makes you think and the mental gymnastics create a fascinating confluence of technology, philosophy and intellectualism. Thank you.
Loved the thought experiment and the visuals. Need to think on this one to figure out if I would stay or go. Thank you!
Buckle up and Prepare for the existential crisis bois
😆😆
After this video, I'll be sitting facing the corner to think about life for 6 hours again.
@@DZ477 You too? I do that for like 2 hours but man...
I was telling myself to stop watching videos and start studying. But now I am like 'How does it even matter? ' 😂
Nah tbh i think it solved my existential crisis. If this is a simulation then thats scary but like the bot said "is an experience worth less if its not real even if you cannot tell the difference". This may not be real but i cant tell and even then its still reall fun and awesome. The beauty of existence.
That simulation checkpoint is absolutely brilliant. I can't think of a better way to have done that.
This is great.
One floor though, is that if he then chose to come out, he would in his real life be an actual highly proclaimed psychologist, as the bot said he was a key contributor to the NewLife program, and he actually would have first hand experience living within it.
So the main reason that he may want to remain in the machine isn't that he is unsuccessful in the real life (any longer) but that he's in his mid-hundreds.
This REALLY blew my mind. ALL of your videos are excellent, but this one is by far the absolute best and most thought provoking, as well as a bit shocking.
I have been coping with the terrors of autoimmune disorder for more than 25 years, including Crohn's Disease, Ulcerative Colitis, Sjogren's Syndrome, and severe Osteoporosis and I can tell you that at times I so much wished that I had a way by which I could escape my life and live one that is easier and certainly less painful. But later I realized that the severe pain and suffering that these diseases caused me to suffer also caused me to be more compassionate and understanding of the suffering of others. It caused me to give of myself and to do volunteer work at children's hospitals and other medical facilities. Because of this, I realized that even severe disease and hardship are extremely valuable and to simply opt out and avoid those aspects of life is to opt out of the opportunities we all have at some point to simply do n9thibg to be there for others, which is compassionate presence. THAT is the most important aspect of not opting out of real life and of not doing what ends up just being easy.
"Is there really any reason to believe an experience is less valuable if it isn't real, if one cannot know the difference?"
This was the question that I came up with when I heard about simulation theory. I truly appreciate the way you worded this question. I loved it, and also the overall video in general.
Yes there is, real actions aren't egocentric, unlike a simulation around a persons idea of what is desirable.
I am confused by this statement... Can anyone please elaborate it in simple English?
@@user-pu7nf3ef9x If you don't know that an experience is not real, then is this experience less valuable than a real one? If you think it's real, is the experience of the simulation like a real experience?
what if there is not real experience and everything is simulated
@@svccscvv6214 All actions are egocentric, as there are no actions or desires that originate from outside the lens of the self.
"The history of philosophy is actually full of people who argue for rather wild and incredible views, and their reputations are based on the skill of arguing for them." - Robert Nozick
Well today perhaps there is a lot of truth to this,but when considering all the great minds of the past then it becomes really an incredibly ignorant and stupid comment probably coming from a not so smart man.
The worst is that the recognition and understanding of philosophy is quite rare. So any of these ''unique'' people can feel special by going for something absolutely vain. Only what's left by this point is to add even more fuel to the madness and still not fall into ignorance.
It's truly all up to interpretations
@@rokanza2293 you're not arguing for your point very well, so I don't believe you.
@@rokanza2293 : "incredibly ignorant and stupid comment probably from a not so smart man " ego driven comment , you could have made your point without feeling the need to call people stupid but that was beyond your control it seems .great mind of the past would want you to bring your own creative ideas using your imaginations not theirs . peace
I love how the story took me on a journey!
That was a trip. Great philosophical debate as well. Really makes a person wonder if we’re living in the matrix.
Westworld and HER distilled this idea pretty well also. It applies to the self, as well as the perceived reality around us:
Q: Are you real?
A: If you cant tell, does it matter?
I was so focused on the conversation, then when the dude said "Then would you like to leave this one?" I immediatly freaked out lmao wtf. Awesome video btw, my life probably changed at least a little.
You didn't see that coming?
@@TheRox0923 nah, I didn't, perhaps I'm kinda dumb :/
@@caionogueira2452 then we're BOTH dumb, plus it's more enjoyable if u get swept off ur feet by the twist
@@TheRox0923 perhaps it was predictable but personally when I’m fully immersed in a story I kinda shut my brain off so I didn’t see it coming either. Like the other guy said, maybe I’m dumb as well…..
I saw it coming. Once it is revealed that the story contains simulations, it is pretty much given that he is in one. There were elements before that suggested unreality. But without the existence of simulation established, the suspension of disbelief can hold.
I saw the twist coming as soon as you focused weirdly on his super hot wife, then never brought her up again. 100% sounds like the kind of "companion" a lonely old philosopher would program into his matrix for himself.
woh there sherlock holmes, you're too fast for me!
Lol, I thought the same thing.
Consider that's just what you need to be a 'twist' because it justifies your existence to yourself in ever the slightest way Mr. Thotle Kitty
Just kidding
Yeah I was gonna type this comment glad I found it. That was a little jarring but I still fell for the reveal lol 😅
It's a violation of the Chekhov's Gun Rule.
Wow. Okay. This is quite something to process, and what a twist. I must say though,, I absolutely love this channel!! I'm making sure I don't miss a single UA-cam!! . And I highly recommend it to all my friends. :))
The graphics, the lexis, the ideas, absolutely amazing and astonishing:)
Beautiful work. Seriously, kudos, creators.
This place is a dream. Only a sleeper considers it real. Then death comes like dawn, and you wake up laughing at what you thought was your grief.
- Rumi
There's no end to the number of ways we comfort ourselves with the non-falsifiable.
and what makes you think that when we die we are not supposed to be in another simulation?
Who rumi?
@@mobilegameplaywalkthroughs990 i feel like people with your mindset are also comforted by a false sense of "knowing" that comes from that which is man-made (aka science). which is more egotistical-- a sense of belonging in the world and an ultimate explanation to our collective suffering, or condemnation of those who express that, as allowed by societal expectations of "true" intellect?? reality is and has always been subjective; think about the millions of other life forms on this planet. they don't even engage in such discussions because they don't speak the way we do, and that does not make them any less intelligent in their own right. humans take a lot of pride in things only humans can understand.
@@underthesea713 I comfort myself with the non-falsifiable too. I have no idea how to avoid it as long as I choose to continue to exist. The ONLY thing I know FOR SURE is that something I will call "I" exists. I have no certainty about anything else, including basic questions like WHAT I am or what is the FULL nature and extent of my existence or WHERE I am, or if anyone or anything I perceive around me is actually "real" in the same sense that I know I am. I merely comfort myself by assigning believable answers to those and countless other questions so I can further comfort myself by making progress on some path I've apparently rather arbitrarily decided is more meaningful than the other options.
“unsolvable depression”
sounds like i could use that machine
You already are.
You are in your final exit checkpoint
After this one you will be stuff in the simulation forever.
Now tell me... (in reply form of course)
Would you like to stay, or leave?
@Quinc same
@@icantthinkofaname8139 I'd leave
@@icantthinkofaname8139 leave bro, get me outta here
Is there really an unsolvable depression?
Damn! I found the story so cleaver and interesting that stopped doing what I was doing to put full attention to the story. Kuddos to the content creator! I can even see it as a short movie. Outstanding job!
I watched this some months ago came across it again realize that I’ve seen it and skipped and I just did it again but the story is very vivid to me like anything I interact with rather reading movies etc. I memorize more than 98% of it but the story alone has always stuck with me! Perhaps I shall Indulge myself and enjoy this video one more time
Laurence is in his mid 100s, which means he was born in the early 2000s. He could be a child of our age
ONE OF US !ONE OF US !
I am Laurence and was born in 1990. This timeline would represent my actual one to include my passion to assist others and the depths by which I will go to do so.
If you are the bot, I changed my mind.
X men!?
"The worth of a man is determined not simply by the truth he has but by his desire to learn it."
Who said this quote?
@@InfamousMedia BVruh
Extreme demon geometry dash profile pic lol
I want to start off by saying I really appreciate the effort that went into this video and the rest of this channel's works. I love how thought provoking and insightful these videos can be.
What I would mainly consider when trying to choose how much I would want to exist in a real reality (like in Lawrence's situation at the end) is how much I value real people and the unique/intricate world that already miraculously exists outside of myself. Ultimately, putting yourself in whatever type of fabricated reality is out of the selfishness of wanting a perfect world for yourself, but in the real reality you aren't doing anything for anyone else. You are basically killing yourself, while all the real people are left with the difficulties of real life, and increasingly less fellow homo sapien's to help.
I think this thought experiment helps put into perspective how it is logically important as a human to be somewhat altruistic. By opting out of life for some better fabricated reality that contains everything you might desire neglects everyone else's existence. Now people in the real world are left with one less soul that is capable of making the real world a better place. Opting out of life is going to make people more and more tempted to make the same decision to join you in your selfish lonely escape to a reality living with ai. At that simulation checkpoint I would realize I have everything I could possibly want except for the chance to be a decent person for real people. If I continued to stay in the simulation knowing it wasn't real I think I would be abandoning my humanity and the desire to be valuable to anyone other than myself.
wow that was mind blowing. loved it. good job!
I'm convinced that the density of my existential rage is potentially infinite.
I'll give you another thought experiment; imagine that when you die you relive the same life over and over again and you can't do nothing about it, ever, and you forget everything each time after you die, only to be confused angered and convinced by your bullshit you treat yourself with that comes from traumas and other shit. it's called eternal recurrence. Still want to act convinced to make your perpetrators satisfied? let it go. watch midnight gospel too, it's a fun and deep show, kinda like adventure time + rick and morty but psychedelic af. there's a specific episode relating to existential rage and what im saying but more merciful than my description of eternal recurrence :V. the episode's called annihilation of joy.
I'm convinced of the same.
@@beszamelowykapucyn3814 Time is a flat circle.
@@beszamelowykapucyn3814 Wasn't eternal recurrence suggested by Nietzche as a measure of whether our lives are fulfilling? 🤔
@@beszamelowykapucyn3814 very good suggestion, ty
💯 “I always did something I was a little not ready to do. I think that’s how you grow. When there’s that moment of ‘Wow, I’m not really sure I can do this,’ and you push through those moments, that’s when you have a breakthrough.”
Quoting whom?
This chanel is amazing and it never fails to get me questioning everything, it amazes me how amazing this persons mind is to be able to think up such concepts, one of humanities greatest minds
Whenever I manage to overthink reality and get caught in a web of madness, you somehow have my answer. Thank you for consistently making me feel sane.
My interpretation of the ending was that since Lawrence kept his eyes shut, he decided to stay.
I was expecting him to open his eyes
He didn't, the video was cut just before he opened his eyes!
I would
If you're reading this you have potential to create great things. Yes. You.
Thanks.
Thanks a lot.
Same for you too!
No, we have not... 😔
Yes, and I wasted mine.
Beautiful, devastating and thought provoking.
These are the exact thoughts that burden me every single day. I have never seen a piece of media describe my thoughts so succinctly. I always seem to lean towards the red pill but I can never come to a solid conclusion as to why that seems to be the better option.
*I've never felt this sensation before.*
I feel like there's a high risk that the person might just become trapped behind the technology controlling it, and stuck being a witness instead of checking out.
You’re supposed to check out🤯
Even if Lawrence chooses to leave he can't know for sure if that was reality or this one was reality ..
How would one even define "real"
@@garethpienaar3119 no one can define it. Even if you are living in the ultimate reality, you will never know.
@@garethpienaar3119 reality is what you perceive, "real" is what the man thinks is real, an uncouncious virtual reality is real.
So then there is literally nothing that isn't real, everything that we can perceive is real?
Everything you perceive is real for you. Reality is subjective, and if there is a "real" reality, it is untouchable by any man.
Brilliant video, can't praise it enough! Execution and plot both amazing
I somewhat expected the twist, but it still gave me chills. Excellent story very excellently told
me too. it gave me thriller/ horror vibes
The main problem with this thought experiment is that it's solipsistic and self-centered. Laurence doesn't give much thought, if any, to who might suffer from his, or anyone else's absence from the base level world. That's the difference between the real world and the simulation. In the real world, there are others who are connected to you, who will suffer if you are gone. In that sense, Laurence's situation at the end of the video is somewhat similar to that of an opioid addict (though without the crushing pressure of physical addiction): If you leave the real world, those connected to you suffer, and if they depend on you, they suffer more.
Even if Laurence honestly thinks his work in the virtual world is more beneficial to more people than what he could contribute in the real world, his choice is still incrementally making the solipsistic simulation more attractive to more people, and making the real world incrementally less rich. He is thus subtly putting more pressure on everyone else to choose the simulation. A real world where more people choose the simulation becomes less humanly rich, making more people want the simulation.
So when you consider this thought experiment, also consider how your absence from the real world will affect those connected to you. How will your decision affect everyone else and the place you are leaving?
That does seem like a reasonable and self-consistent perspective on the decision whether to enter a New-Life simulation.
At the time of his check-point, Lawrence is faced with a somewhat different question. He has loved ones, ones who love him and would miss him, _within_ his New-Life. _Ex hypothesi_ we know that they have real experiences about it, at least if Lawrence-before preferred that they would. Given his decision to enter in the first place, it seems plausible ranging to likely that his loved ones in his New-Life are more attached to him than anyone outside is.
So we can equally apply the same argument in reverse. Lawrence can't _leave_ his simulation without abandoning the people _in_ it.
That’s why he put limitations on who could participate, I think. People who’s lives were bad, like being sick, bed ridden, severe depression, addicts, etc if those people chose to go in the machine, their loved ones should understand and that’s assuming they have any friends or family left.
I can't help feeling you've missed the subtly of the story...
This isn't about a 3rd party (us) externally judging Laurence's decision to enter the simulation. He has already made that decision. This is about Laurence himself accepting his life long ambitions are falsehoods, his inner story of self-worth, and his greatest accomplishments (in his mind) are nothing more than a lie to himself, and so which reality does he chose to accept, what does he chose to continue with? That is a profoundly uncomfortable, deeply personal question.
My thoughts on your last statement are that they were careless in how their own decisions effected me sooo🤷
@@NeilStansbury with what you are saying, doesn't that mean that all reality is subject to a persons own objective reality and not the reality perceived by the many other people that they may have or have not yet met. also wouldn't that mean that everyone's reality is made from their own conciseness, and what they perceive as their personal reality which in turn creates a server like reality based on the information that people may know or may learn which adds or changes the reality to better fit the overall excepted personal reality would then be the reality that many different realities could interact with creating an illusion of what we believe is real to be fake even if it were true based on the perceived realities of the many.
tldr
reality is only made by the person perceiving it unless there are multiple people who can change it based on their own perceived reality x+y(n)= reality
x = 1 person
y = subjective reality
n = infinite number of subjective realities created by other people
You don’t know how terrifying this timing is for me.
Same
Since you are commenting this, might I ask why?
@@cognitivestate9512 Idk it distributes me in a way
@@lethabozitha7692 Yesterday it felt like I was going crazy and we are in a simulation and I was figuring stuff out before it happened. Like I had though about the premise of this video before I saw it.
dont worry theres nothing to unusual in that. the twist follows quite naturally from the setup, many people in the comments said they got there before he said "so would you like to exit this one?"
Truly Mind-blowing work..! .
This 18 min video is better than so many full fledged sci fi movies ..
you know what i love about these well crafted tales? its the optimism that humanity will still be a thing in the 22nd century. a fine wonder to pursue. well done as always.
I would love to have deep conversations and a glass of wine with the people behind Persuit of Wonder.
A glass of wine? And "deep" conversations? Sara you naughty girl! 😉
Or some really cool vintage soda. I do not drink alcohol but when people say I'm lame I whip out caramel root beer and they chill.
@@loganperry8059 Caramel root beer? Down for that.
@@sarabretting3033 Its the best
THIS CHANNLE is fueling more questions than answers and i am restless lol
UA-cam is good enough, I don't have to live in the real world. It is Saturday night my kids are arguing in the other room my wife is grouchy. I am laying on the couch with my headphones turned up ignoring all of it, in fact, this video snapped me out of it for a minute, it is time to dive back into the abyss and watch my life melt away. Thanks UA-cam
U just blew my mind like the gun I m always thinking about was probably gonna.....until I read ur comment. I think we think alike u and i. Not in a creepy way. We would make never to meet in real life pen pals. Virtual support and encouragement if it were only that easy and achievable. I could scream for a full day n nobody would even ask. Keep it down they would say if they heard...its cool though. Hope. cause now that I have encountered u in no I m not the only one. Thanks. Just in time, too, think ill stick around n give that abyss thing u mentioned a try. Never been a good diver though. How's a belly flop or canon ball. Thanks random guy somewhere on the planet that will probably never read this. Words don't describe how valuable ur comment. Im alone I miss people theyre still here but there gone.. Im sad but thanks. Maybe shit never really works out it just bobs up n down like a cork in water. O n 86 them kids n bang bang bang if she is still grouchy u didn't do it right!! Practice practice practice.
@@joanysohayda7233 how ya holding up, bud?
@@beerok82 just got back from camping at the beach. Razor clams yuck. But it was funny sitting in the car watching everyone dog for them. And u??
@@joanysohayda7233 camping at the beach?!! Man, I haven't done that in ages... From the parts I remember, it was always a blast!! I'm not much of a sea clam fan myself. Other than being on UA-cam at 3am instead of sleeping like I should be, I'm great! Was there a special occasion for the beach camping? Btw, it's nice to hear you're enjoying yourself a lil!
@@beerok82 303 am n im on utube to. Just wanted to see the beach n get my family to come out. I miss them so this was a perfect idea to get mom to make the 2 hour drive. Then she tripped the first night n broke her arm. I hope she feels better. She says she still had fun n the best part she dont have to cook or clean or wash dishes for a while.. How r u? Whats going on 3 am ur part of the planet, wherever that may be??
Something I’ve personally thought about a lot. I understand both sides and it’s such a fascinating concept. Thanks for the story, it was really fun to get engrossed with
This great story has gotten me to subscribe. Bravo, sir!
“As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he”
Proverbs 23:7
I never knew Descartes was a plagiarist!
@@PBAmygdala2021 yeah - well almost all of modern western philosophy is copied from Islamic philosophy who took inspiration from Hellenistic philosophy but because of their religion had to explain things differently however western scholars just copied many of Islamic philosophical works without any credit .
The Thinker thinks, the Prover proves
@@sydanas7564 and islam stole ideas from other religiona
@@houseofgrey1690 I don't think so - In science Islamic scholars were very open about giving credits , and in religion Islam claims to start with Abraham - Adam, Moses and Jesus are in its fold so their original ideas are Islamic ideas.
I knew it I was literally saying "how don't you know you're in a simulation?".
literally same
Me too
same lol
same here
Even if you were in a simulation so what? Let's say you exited the simulation and came to reality... who's to say the new reality you're in isn't also a simulation or illusion?
Imagine this in itself is a checkpoint. I'd like to go back to base reality.
Plot twist is that we're inside a simulation, inside another simulation, inside another, and so on to infinity. Base camp is a black hole.
Lmao fuck that I’d want to go to whatever simulation let’s me become Chara undertale =)
@@jackandblaze5956 Base reality is real and we dont exist there, it might be spiritual, interdimensional or anything else we can not perceive. Everything is written in a code from particles to DNA, we might or not ever discover the most basic form of information that builds this reality but regardless intagible to us.
Is that something to be scared of? no, whatever the real thing is we will NEVER know, it might god, it might be aliens, it might be randomness, it might anything we have not tought yet still it doesnt change anything here, just enjoy your life the most you can.
@@lmeza1983 Yeup. And in the meantime, almost every player here r n is freaking out about the "pandemic" routine running through the system. None of it matters.
This was incredibly engaging. I like the way you left us without knowing his reply too. It reminded me of Total Recall at first but very different tangent
Jesus. How do you come up with these things? They are genious.
I really hope you're writing a new book, I loved your first one and would like to see you make another.
Where’d you get his boots
Book
@@KingKae7 from amazon, you can find the link in the video description. Btw, you can edit your comments :D
Vanilla sky
Sometimes I ask myself "how can someone think about these topics?". Your content is outstandingly interesting, fascinating and thoughtful. Really love your channel and your videos will be the topic of many of my conversations
Wonderful video! As other people have commended, even after a lifetime of reading science fiction, I have never heard nor considered your "checkpoint" concept. Congrats, it is extremely rare and awesome to come up with a truly original idea. (I didn't plan to make a philosophical generalization, but the same can be true in many academic and artistic pursuits, I especially science.) My guess is most writers try to maximize the emotional impact, so when a revelation (like finding out the person is already in a simulation) hits, it is also shown to be a trap and too late to escape.
However, I found this story more poignant because such logical details like a safety checkpoint increase the realism, thus the plausibility of the situation