Bank Of America claims there’s a 50 per cent chance we live in The Matrix
Bank of America Merrill Lynch analysts in a recent report have suggested that there is a 20-50% chance our world is a Matrix-style virtual reality created by a mysterious future civilisation. This means that the world we experience as “real” is actually just a simulation.
The report, which was distributed to clients, also suggests that even if our world was an illusion, we would never know about it.
The researchers backed up the claims by citing comments from leading philosophers, scientists and other thinkers.
The Bank of America’s report, which was looking at the inferences of virtual reality, described:
“Many scientists, philosophers, and business leaders believe that there is a 20-50% probability that humans are already living in a computer-simulated virtual world,” it wrote last week, according to Business Insider.
“In April 2016, researchers gathered at the American Museum of Natural History to debate this notion. The argument is that we are already approaching photorealistic 3D simulations that millions of people can simultaneously participate in.
“It is conceivable that with advancements in artificial intelligence, virtual reality, and computing power, members of future civilisations could have decided to run a simulation of their ancestors.
“Unless we are now living in a simulation, our descendants will almost certainly never run an ancestor-simulation,” the report stated.
The analysts took inspiration from inventor and SpaceX founder Elon Musk, who is one of those certain that our world is run by artificial intelligence developed by a future civilization.
Philosophers dating back to the 16th century, notably René Descartes had torn us from this kind of thinking in the 16th century when he stated, “I think therefore I am” and had suggested we cannot depend on our sense experiences to perceive the world.
Fast forward to 21st century, recently in April, Astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson suggested there is a “high chance” the universe as we know it is merely a simulation. Echoing Tyson’s views are Professor Nick Bostrom from Oxford University who made a very strong argument in his paper “Are You Living In A Computer Simulation?” that we in fact are.
In the film ‘The Matrix’ released in 1999, humans live in a simulated reality created by machines to control the human population.
Exegesis v. Eisegesis
A quote from Dr. James White
Eisegesis. The reading into a text, in this case, an ancient text of the Bible, of a meaning that is not supported by the grammar, syntax, lexical meanings, and over-all context, of the original. It is the opposite of exegesis, where you read out of the text its original meaning by careful attention to the same things, grammar, syntax, the lexical meanings of the words used by the author (as they were used in his day and in his area), and the over-all context of the document. As common as it is, it should be something the Christian minister finds abhorrent, for when you stop and think about it, eisegesis muffles the voice of God. If the text of Scripture is in fact God-breathed (2 Tim. 3:16) and if God speaks in the entirety of the Bible (Matt. 22:31) then eisegesis would involve silencing that divine voice and replacing it with the thoughts, intents, and most often, traditions, of the one doing the interpretation. In fact, in my experience, eisegetical mishandling of the inspired text is the single most common source of heresy, division, disunity, and a lack of clarity in the proclamation of the gospel.
LOL, I never read such bullshit like that before, learn epistemology first 🙂
Is that it? Churnalsm at it’s best. I take it this is your hobby, you don’t actually get paid for this?
I waited in vain for the part where it is actually confirmed that we live in a simulation.