The Case Against Reality: Why Evolution Hid the Truth from Our Eyes
Details
This month we will be reading:
The Case Against Reality: Why Evolution Hid the Truth from Our Eyes
by Donald D. Hoffman
About book
How can it be possible that the world we see is not objective reality?
The Case Against Reality dares us to question everything we thought we knew about the world we see.
“You may want truth, but you don’t need truth. Perceiving truth would drive our species extinct. You need simple icons that show you how to act to stay alive. Perception is not a window on objective reality. It is an interface that hides objective reality behind a veil of helpful icons.”
Humans are just conscious agents wearing a VR headset shaped by evolution. The virtual reality that they’re creating is not reality itself.
Perception is not about truth, it’s about having kids. Genes that fashion perceptions that help us raise kids are genes that may win the fitness game and elbow their way into the next generation.
TED talk: https://www.ted.com/talks/donald_hoffman_do_we_see_reality_as_it_is
Interview with Donald Hoffman | The Case Against Reality by
The Institute of Art and Ideas:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4HFFr0-ybg0
Long interview with Donald Hoffman: Reality is an Illusion - How Evolution Hid the Truth | Lex Fridman Podcast #293:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=reYdQYZ9Rj4
The Case Against Reality: Why Evolution Hid the Truth from Our Eyes