Good read Terry, IMO, these are exactly the kind of observations a contemporary more technically acceptable religion will incorporate into the core of it's philosophy. Strange as this might sound, a lot of these observations appear to be compatible with Buddhist and Zen related philosophies - i.e. where reality is taught to be an illusion. I suspect many of these contemporary concepts will eventually begin to feel more relevant to the younger generation. It will make more sense to them - as compared to paying lip-service to another story about morals, whose foundations are based on tribal law, where technology is no more advanced than an oil lamp. Old religions will eventually be discarded. We will upgrade to newer more contemporary versions.
Harry follows up with: > so why isn't the experiment and quantum mechanics just > another part of [the] simulation? I'm reminded of Star Trek TNG. There was a series of episodes involving the Holodeck where Data, wanting to play Sherlock Holmes assembled the personification of Sherlock's nemesis, professor Moriarty, in order to make the game more challenging. However, what Data didn't anticipate was the fact that he made Moriarty so complex (and real) that his foe eventually became self-aware of the fact that he was in a holodeck simulation. Needless to say, Moriarty, was pissed off when he discovered this. Moriarty retaliated by finding a way to hook into the guts of the Star Ship as a way to threaten the lives of everyone as a means to get himself out of his virtual photon predicament. This "adventure" resulted in several follow-up episodes where the principal Star Trek characters eventually figured out a way for Moriarty to "escape" his holodeck confines. However, what they actually ended up doing was transfer the personification of the professor to a larger holodeck simulation computer, one possessing oodles of additional memory so that Moriarty could begin living a richer more-fuller life. Perhaps an appropriate koan a contemporary master might give his students to ponder would be: Is God an atheist? Perhaps that's a question Professor Moriarty might care to ask Data. Lots of interesting philosophical conundrums here worth contemplating! PS: When we look at ourselves in the mirror, perhaps we closer to perceiving the essence of reality than we might think! Regards Steven Vincent Johnson www.OrionWorks.com www.zazzle.com/orionworks
