Session #16 - Are we living in a Simulation? Reality is challenged again

“We live in a world where there is more and more information, and less and less meaning.”
― Jean Baudrillard

“Far from being the smartest possible biological species, we are probably better thought of as the stupidest possible biological species capable of starting a technological civilization - a niche we filled because we got there first, not because we are in any sense optimally adapted to it.”
― Nick Bostrom

“The development of superintelligent AI is the greatest safety challenge humanity has ever faced. Its capabilities could allow us to truly understand the universe—or to create a universe, perhaps a simulation, that might be indistinguishable from reality.”
— Roman Yampolskiy

Session Outline
If you are new to philosophy or the different simulation hypotheses, don’t worry. This discussion is for everyone, no previous knowledge required.

Let’s start with this thought:
Imagine living your entire life knowing—or suspecting—that everything you experience is part of a vast digital simulation. Your memories, senses, and even your choices may be artifacts of a program created by beings far more advanced than us.

Would it be possible to hack your way out? How could we find a crack in the code and glimpse a reality beyond the simulation? This mystery challenges everything we know about consciousness, freedom, and truth. The idea is not at all new. It's been revisited by many philosophers as early as 2.400 years ago.

Most interestingly we would like to mention 3 modern approaches. The one of Jean Baudrillard – Simulacra and Simulation (1981), Nick Bostrom – Are You Living in a Computer Simulation? (2003) and Roman Yampolskiy – Artificial Superintelligence: A Futuristic Approach (2015).

These 3 persons explore the likelihood that we live or can end up living in a simulation, the implications and the intriguing possibility of escaping it.

Join us to share your thoughts on reality, illusion, and the future of intelligence.
Our debate will orbit questions of existence, technology, consciousness, and the limits of human understanding.

Introduction (15 minutes)
We start with a short introduction of the guests.

Group Discussion (1 hour and 45 minutes)
Here are some questions to spark the debate:
• Little historic background of this idea and why it is so persistent. From Plato to Descartes.
• Before AI, Jean Baudrillard already worried deeply about this. Why would he if the technical means didn't yet exist?
• What would it mean to discover we live in a simulation? What would it change in your behavior?
• Do you think there is any way we could find proof of the simulation?
• If life is a simulation, should that make us feel insignificant, or liberated? Can we create meaning in it?
• How does the simulation hypothesis intersect with traditional philosophical questions about existence and truth?
• Would knowing we are simulated rob life of meaning, or add a new layer to it?
• If we could ‘hack’ or escape the simulation, what new possibilities or dangers might emerge?
• Does the idea of a simulated reality support or challenge concepts of free will and consciousness? Can simulated beings be truly conscious and autonomous?
• What ethical questions arise if we are part of a simulation? Should we attempt to escape it?
• Are there parallels between ancient philosophers skepticism (e.g., Plato’s cave) and modern simulation theories? Why is this topic so persistent in history?

How to contribute: The Philosophy Club continues its collaboration with Kovasz and epicurea.hu. You are free to drink whatever you want, but if interested, we arranged for significant discounts on alcohol-free wine glasses, available for pre-order before the event:
• White wine (Disfrutand00) 1000 HUF: https://epicurea.hu/en/pre-buy-alcohol-free-glasses/verdejo-by-disfrutand00-alcohol-free-white-wine-glass
• Red wine (Tiptop) 1500 HUF: https://epicurea.hu/en/pre-buy-alcohol-free-glasses/tiptop-s-merlot-from-bordeaux-alcohol-free-red-wine-glass
• Red wine (Zeronimo Zweigelt) 2000 HUF: https://epicurea.hu/en/pre-buy-alcohol-free-glasses/zweigelt-by-zeronimo-alcohol-free-red-wine-glass

Thank you!