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Is God a cyborg from the future? Is our universe a simulated dream of his?

a person just like you

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Is God a Mathematician?

Everything in our universe happens according to strict rule of law: the laws of physics. These laws can be understood en described through the language of mathematics. But math is not merely essential in describing and understanding the laws of physics which govern our universe. Math can be observed throughout our universe: we discover math's signature in the swirl of a nautilus shell, the whirlpool of a galaxy, and the spiral in the center of a sunflower. Math was essential to everything from the first wireless radio transmissions to the prediction and discovery of the some physicists boson and the successful landing of rovers on our neighboring planet Mars.

So then, let’s assume that we are characters in a simulated universe, as some genius philosopher argued almost two decades ago. Could it then be possible that math is the programming language through which this simulated universe can be understood? Could it thus be that God is a post human programmer/mathematician, and we are “avatars” created or “programmed” in his image? Are we mere copies of a meta version of “The Sims”, which is run on an extremely powerful quantum-computer in the future? Is “The Sims” nothing but a mini-game, programmed and created using C++, within this “Earth” game, programmed and created by God using math?

Kraftwerk - Numbers

Further online wondering about “mathematics”:

Videos:

PBS - Pi & The Fibonacci Sequence

BigThink -  Michio Kaku: Is God a Mathematician?

PBS Idea Channel -  Is God A Mathematician? - Fractal Geometry of Nature

PerfectweaponINC -  Sacred Geometry Taught in a Donald Duck Cartoon

Northern Diaries -  Is God A Mathematician? - Fractal Geometry of Nature

drcraigvideos -  God and Mathematics

AsapScience -  Can Math Prove God's Existence?

Rationality Rules -  ASAP Science’s Can Math Prove god’s Existence? Debunked (Argument From Improbability Refuted)

The Institute of Arts and Ideas - Pythagoras' Dream: Is reality mathematical?

Articles:

PBS - Describing nature with math

Independent - Existence of God: The rational arguments from mathematics to human consciousness

Live Science - Phi: The Golden Ratio

The Guardian - The golden rule

Science & Nonduality - God is a mathematician

Financial Review -  Why this top mathematician finds God in the origins of symmetry

Big Think -  Can Mathematics Shake Your Belief in God?

NPR -  The Wisdom Of Trees (Leonardo Da Vinci Knew It)

Dartmouth College -  Polygons, Tilings & Sacred Geometry

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Independent thought in an era of (mis)information

We live in an age of information. Every day we consume parts of information that are passed on to us through all kinds of media: television, newspapers, tweets, blogposts, books, etc. In an age of propaganda and extremely biased or blatant fake news, it’s more important than ever to realise that these media outlets are used by certain interest groups (governmental, political, economic, ...) to persuade us to adapt to their view of reality.

In society today, it seems, the allegory of the cave is extremely relevant. We are the chained prisoners, our screens (smartphones, television, computermonitor, ...) are the rock wall onto which shadows (a very limited, biased or false view of reality) are projected by journalists, propagandists, marketeers and film makers.

This is why we really ought to be critical towards all information that reaches us through all these media outlets. We need to think for ourselves and inform ourselves. Or to quote some genius psychologist:

Throughout human history, as our species has faced the frightening, terrorizing fact that we do not know who we are, or where we are going in this ocean of chaos, it has been the authorities -- the political, the religious, the educational authorities --- who attempted to comfort us by giving us order, rules, regulations, informing -- forming in our minds -- their view of reality. To think for yourself you must question authority and learn how to put yourself in a state of vulnerable open-mindedness, chaotic, confused vulnerability to inform yourself.

▶ Daft Punk - Television rules the nation 

Further online wondering about “media, propaganda and fake news”:

Videos:

CrashCourse - Who can you trust?

Wisecrack - Can We Trust the Media?

Al Jazeera - Media Theorised

Slavko Martinov - Propaganda

Academy of Ideas - Why Public Schools and the Mainstream Media dumb us down

Articles:

British Library - Propaganda as a weapon? Influencing international opinion

Marketplace - How social media brought political propaganda into the 21st century

Edward Herman & Noam Chomsky - A Propaganda Model

The Guardian - Can you trust the mainstream media?

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The end is nigh

#wherearewegoing - Doomsday is coming. As you may have heard before, our planet is full-on stacked with weapons of mass destruction. As governments continue to build up their (nuclear) weapons arsenal, we as a human race are now capable of destroying our home planet many times over. But destroying it only once would be enough to put an end to our very existence, to put end to the memories of our past, our present and our future.

In a city somewhere a group of genius scientists devised an imaginary clock that keeps track of the time we have left. Considering there have already been numerous accidents with these nuclear weapons in the past, we may just have to believe only a miracle can save us from our impending doom. But just remember, on this clock we can turn back time and save our souls. So maybe we don’t need a miracle. It’s up to us. It’s up to you. Act now, before it’s too late.

▶ Faithless - Mass Destruction

Further online wondering about the “doomsday clock and the nuclear threat”:

Videos:

Vice News -  This Is What a Nuclear War Would Actually Look Like (HBO)

Business Insider -  Every nuclear bomb explosion in history

It’s Bloody Science! -  Nuclear War Between U.S. and Russia (2019 Simulation)

Vox -  The US nuclear arsenal is a gigantic accident waiting to happen

LastWeekTonight -  Nuclear Weapons: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO)

The Infographics Show -  Can You Survive A Nuclear Winter?

Articles:

Bulletin of Atomic Scientists - Closer than ever: It is 100 seconds to midnight

BBC -  Nuclear weapons: Which countries have them and how many are there?

Vox - This is exactly how a nuclear war would kill you

Nature -  How a small nuclear war would transform the entire planet

The New York Times -  Welcome to the New Age of Nuclear Instability

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For stardust thou art, and to stardust shalt thou return. 

#whoarewe - Imagine the existential crisis that befell some genius priest when he was the first to discover that the creation of the universe started with the Big Bang, not with God dividing light and darkness as written in Genesis. A book he considered the holy word of God.

Today this priest might find some comfort considering the Bible isn’t completely wrong after all. Indeed, the book of Genesis is mistaken when it forgets to mention the Big Bang being prior to the division between light and darkness. Nevertheless, Genesis sure is spot on claiming that “we are dust and to dust we shall return.”

As the video above explains, most of the materials that we're made of comes out of dying and exploding stars. Some of these materials are as old as the universe, others landed on earth maybe only a hundred years ago. All of these materials mix together to form our human bodies. So, in a sense, we truly are made of stars. And Genesis isn’t all wrong after all.

▶ Kansas - Dust in the Wind

▶ Moby - We Are All Made of Stars

Further online wondering about “stardust”:

Videos:

TEDx Talks - We Are Dead Stars | Michelle Thaller | TEDxBaltimore

TEDx Talks - We are all made of stardust | George Coyne | TEDxYYC

TEDx Talks - We're All Stardust -- And Why That Should Make You Feel Awesome | Dr. Natalie Hinkel | TEDxNashville

Revtoned -  Neil deGrasse Tyson - The Most Astounding Fact

EtherealExposition -  We are stardust harvesting starlight (Krauss, Tyson, Sagan)

Articles:

National Geographic -  How 40,000 Tons of Cosmic Dust Falling to Earth Affects You and Me

Natural History Museum -  Are we really made of stardust?

Science News For Students -  We are stardust

Cosmos Magazine -  We are stardust. And Big Bang dust.

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What is it that gets you out of bed in the morning?

According to the tradition of some island everyone has one or several “Ikigai”: a passion that gets you out of bed in the morning, something worth living for. It’s your duty to find out your ikigai.  As you as a person change over time, so does your ikigai. Thus, your quest for your ikigai is a never-ending quest.

How does that sound for finding purpose in life?

Further online wondering about “ikigai”:

Videos:

TEDx Talks - How to Ikigai | Tim Tamashiro | TEDxYYC

TEDx Talks - Don’t wait, find your Ikigai | Gangadharan Menon | TEDxSIESCASC

TEDx Talks - The most practical way of finding your IKIGAI. | Terence Lewis | TEDxNirmaUniversity

Articles:

The Guardian - Want to live longer? Find your ikigai

Forbes - How To Find Your Ikigai And Transform Your Outlook On Life And Business

Huffington Post - Why We Should All Embrace The Japanese Philosophy Of Ikigai

CNBC - This Japanese secret to a longer and happier life is gaining attention from millions around the world

The Sydney Morning Herald - The Japanese philosophy of Ikigai could hold the key to fulfillment

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Nothing is softer or more flexible than water yet nothing can resist it - some genius poet

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How to deal with fate: Wu Wei

#whyarewe - A somewhat similar approach to the western idea of "Amor Fati" is found in the eastern daoist aproach of "Wu Wei". "Wu Wei" roughly translates to English as "doing nothing" or "effortless action". A practitioner of "Wu Wei" avoids resisting against the workings of the universe. Instead, much like the practitioner of "Amor Fati", the daoist practioner accepts that what is necessary and goes along with the nature of things, without resisting it. Like the stoic, the daoist avoids fighting forces larger than himself.

The stoic approach of "Amor Fati" is a more radical approach though. It's more radical in the sense that it wants us to embrace, or even love all that will happen or has happened to us, both the good and the bad. The "Wu Wei" approach doesn't necessarily want us to embrace our fate. Instead, it wants us to live in harmony with all that will happen to us, and adjust ourselves accordingly. It wants us to be flexible and spontaneous, like water, accepting change and acting accordingly only when deemed necessary.

▶ The Verve - Bittersweet Symphony

Further online wondering about “Wu Wei”:

Videos:

School of Life - Wu Wei

Big Think - The Science of Spontaneity: Mastering Wu-Wei 

Tea Time Taoism - Wu Wei: Ancient Secrets to Effortless Living

TEDx Talks - Wuwei and Flow | Adrien Stoloff | TEDxBrownU

Articles:

The Culture Trip - Action in Inaction: The Taoist Philosophy of Wu Wei

Quartz - An ancient Chinese principle can help you get comfortable with doing less—and make you happier, too

Harvard Business Review - Lead Without Trying So Hard

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How to deal with fate: Amor Fati

#whyarewe - Amor Fati is the idea that one has to embrace that what is necessary. A practitioner of "Amor Fati" thus embraces his fate or destiny.

As we now have good reason to believe, we don't have free will. You can argue, relying upon some genius physicist’s theory of general relativity, that God does not play dice with the universe and that the future is set in stone. Or, you can argue against this physicist’s theory relying upon some other genius physicist’s uncertainty principle stating that God does play dice with the universe, and that everything that happens in it is just a matter of chance or randomness.

Either way: you probably have no choice but to accept or even embrace the outcome, no matter what. Because, if you don't, you are competing against forces larger than yourself, which will ultimately lead to anxiety and thus more suffering.

▶ Bob Dylan - A Simple Twist of Fate

Further online wondering about “Amor Fati”:

Videos:

School of Life - Amor Fati

Einzelgänger - Amor Fati | Stoic Exercises For Inner Peace

Therealizedman - NIETZSCHE ON: Amor Fati & The Philosophy Of Stoicism | Stoic Mindset Explained

Articles:

Observer - The Unfathomable Power of Amor Fati

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The answer to life, the universe, and everything = 42

#whyarewe - This famous quote is from the book “The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy”. In the book an advanced civilization builds a supercomputer to answer the question of the meaning of life. The supercomputer didn’t quite understand the question, so after thousands of years calculating, the answer it came up with was the complete random answer of “42″.

Fun fact: when you ask some really nosey online search engine this very question, it will give you the same answer

▶ Monty Python - The Meaning of Life

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Why should you read “Waiting For Godot”?

#whyarewe - Life is absurd: reality probably is an illusion, everything we perceive might well be nothing but consciousness and there’s no free will whatsoever. How then do we give meaning to our lives? Do we give meaning ourselves? Or is that also a matter of fate or chance?

The absurd play “Waiting for Godot” by some genius writer who won a price revolves around humanity’s desire for meaning in the universe and the universe itself, which we now have good reason to believe, is completely meaningless. And in that sense, the play is very suitable in answering our said question: how do we find meaning in this absurd life?

On some online videochannel you can find another great analysis of the play. Be sure to check this video out as well!

▶ The Moldy Peaches - Jorge Regula

Further online wondering about “Waiting for Godot”:

Videos:

Philosophy Tube - “Waiting for Godot” Explained with Philosophy

Course Hero - Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett | Summary & Analysis

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Is Reality an illusion? Are we some kind of Computergame Characters?

#wherearewe - The Simulation Argument is kind of like a modern day “Allegory of the Cave”-story. This video explains “The Simulation Hypothesis” from some genius philosopher quite nicely. This philosopher argues that it is plausible that we are living in some kind of computer simulation. The idea was popularized by some genius car salesperson.

Now, before you burst into laughter, please realize that not only this philosopher, but also some physicists are starting to suspect physical reality is an illusion.

▶ Kraftwerk - Computerworld

Further online wondering about “The Simulation Hypothesis” and “Reality”:

Videos:

Wisecrack - Are We Living in a Simulation? – 8-Bit Philosophy

Vox - Why Elon Musk says we’re living in a simulation

The Simpsons - The Simpsons Game

Freedom in Thought - Nietzsche — We Are Living in an Illusion

Nerdwriter - Is the Universe a Hologram?

The Institute of Arts and Ideas - Is Reality an Illusion? | Jan Westerhoff

TED - Your brain hallucinates your conscious reality | Anil Seth

TEDx Talks - The Illusion of Reality | Martin Castor Peterson | TEDxPSUBerks

The Institute of Arts and Ideas - Is Reality an Illusion? | Gerard ’t Hooft, Chiara Marletto, Christopher Timpson

Articles:

Vox - Are we living in a computer simulation? I don’t know. Probably.

The New York Times - Are We Living in a Computer Simulation? Let’s Not Find Out

Big Think - Here’s how to prove that you are a simulation and nothing is real

Scientific American - Are We Living in a Computer Simulation?

NBC News - Are we living in a simulated universe? Here’s what scientists say.

Futurism - Physicists Are Starting to Suspect Physical Reality Is an Illusion

Columbia - Is Reality an Illusion? At the World Science Festival, Experts Reveal the Power, and Peculiarities, of the Brain’s Ability to Sense the World

Huffpost - Your Reality Is an Illusion

Psychology Today - The World Is Not an Illusion

Philosophy Now - Is The World An Illusion?

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Now is to time, as here is to space

some person who’s really good at doing science

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Is Free Will an Illusion?

#wherearewe - Some person who’s really good at studying brains gives a simple explanation of the theory of eternalism, in which free will is non-existent. In his view free will is the subjective sense, the feeling we get when the unconscious brain makes the decision giving us the impression that it was the conscious mind that just made that decision.

▶ Gnarls Barkley - Crazy

Further online wondering about “determinism” and “free will”:

Videos:

The School of Life - Do We Have Free Will or Are We Predetermined?

CrashCourse - Determinism vs Free Will

CrashCourse - Compatibilism

PragerU - Do We Have Free Will?

Northern Diaries Digital Media - Is Free Will An Illusion?

Big Think - Does Free Will Exist?

Alan Watts - Are you free or just a puppet?

The Libet Experiment: Is Free Will Just an Illusion?

Articles:

iai.tv - The Will of the Force: The Last Jedi and the Problem of Free Will

Psychology Today -  The Problem of Free Will…And a Possible Solution

The Atlantic - There's No Such Thing as Free Will and Determinism

Philosophy Now - Free Will and Determinism

Helix - The Physics of Free Will

Big Think - Quantum Mechanics Supports Free Will

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#wherearewe - There’s this genius physicist who once came up with a theory of general relativity suggesting that there is no real difference between the future and the past. Everything is happening all at once. We are just these feeble human beings consciously experiencing the current passage of time. Now is to time, as here is to space. As if God is reading a book “Planet Earth” and he’s now reading page 2020 in the 21st chapter. Crazy, huh?

Truth be told, this physicist’s views are challenged by some other genius physicist’s uncertainty principle, as we can learn from some other person who’s really good at doing science in this video. In the video this scientist claims that "God plays dice with the universe” and that the uncertainty principle kind of proves the existence of free will. But in this view it’s still God rolling the dice of the universe, isn’t he? And we, as pawns on the board game, are still unable to change the outcome. It’s probably a matter of fact that God himself is not able to change to outcome of this game of chance. Playing dice is a matter of chance, a matter of randomness, right? So the future might not be fixed as this first physicist mentioned here claims, but might be random. And randomness by itself doesn’t imply the existence of free will? Right?

▶ Pink Floyd - Time

▶ Tom Waits - Time

Further online wondering about “time”:

Videos:

Big Think - our Brain Tells You Time Is Real — But Is It Lying to You? | Dean Buonomano

Big Think - From Science Fiction to Physics: Does Time Actually Exist? | James Gleick

Philosophy Tube - Is Time Real?

Life Noggin - Is Time Real?

TED-Ed - Does time exist? - Andrew Zimmerman Jones

PBS Digital Studios - Are Space and Time An Illusion? | Space Time

The Institute of Arts and Ideas - Do Space and Time Really Exist? | Full Debate | Huw Price, Julian Barbour, Michela Massimi

iai.tv - The Dance of Time

Articles:

Big Think - New controversial theory: Past, present, future exist simultaneously

iai.tv - Time Is What We Are – Uncertain

The Guardian - 'There is no such thing as past or future': physicist Carlo Rovelli on changing how we think about time

Discover - Is the Future Already Written?

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Are you yourself? Or is your self an illusion?

#whoarewe - Some person who’s really good at philosophy and science explaining the idea of no-self. In Buddhism there’s this doctrine called “anatta”, which states that there is in humans no permanent, underlying substance that can be called the soul. It’s also one of the themes covered in Ghost in the Shell. This view also resonates with the view of us being nothing else but spirits in a spiritual world. Believing you own an unique soul is vanity.

▶ De La Soul - Me Myself and I

Further online wondering about “Anatta”:

Videos:

Global Well-Being - Emptiness & The Absence An Independently Existing Self ~ H.H. The Dalai Lama

Philosophy Overdose - The Illusion of Self - Hume & Buddhism

The Weekend University - The Self Illusion - Why There's No 'You' Inside Your Head - Prof Bruce Hood

NourFoundation - To Be or Not To Be: The Self as Illusion

Articles:

Psychology Today - What is the Self Illusion?

Wired - The Self Illusion: An Interview With Bruce Hood

Philosophy Now - Is The Buddhist ‘No-Self’ Doctrine Compatible With Pursuing Nirvana?

iai.tv - Why There Is No Self: A Buddhist Perspective for the West

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Are we spirits in a spiritual world?

some person, don’t remember who, might have been me, does it matter?