Comparing real and virtual reality one can find that they are basically identical concepts. It means that behind physical laws are software algorithms these has to be identified. It is new science paradigm.
The idea that our material world exists only as an idea, projection on the screen of mind consciousness is so anxious and rich that any attempt to bring even half of references to previous intellectual efforts will delay own thoughts till complete motionless. Let's just name idealistic philosophers like Anaxagoras and Plato, Stanislaw Lem with his Phantomology in Summa Technologiae, siblings Wachowskis with Matrix, Daniel F. Galouye with Counterfeit World (The Thirteenth Floor movie); Nick Bostrom with "Are You Living in a Computer Simulation?"; Elon Mask as most prominent adept of the idea that our world is virtual reality. There are numerous publications on internet about the topic that almost impossible not to repeat some thoughts without proper attribution. I definitely was impressed with one article in Russian internet but cannot find it again to give link. I am sorry and apologize to all authors I will not mention but read before. I am not plagiarist I just want to go to the matter as soon as possible. Please feel welcomed to contact me with links to your or known to you publications and will put links them in separate page with references about this topic would find relevant and worth to put along masters named above.
The conclusion first. The new paradigm of science will be as following. The reality is software. Scientific law must be presented in form of software model (peace of code) that exactly adequate describes experiment. The process of scientific cognition is to find absolute truth by invert engineering of the software that rules our reality. It will be final frontier in science. The absolute knowledge is possible to reach.
Reality is computer. The difference between reality and virtual reality is not existed.
Our physical reality on the level of interactions of elementary particles has nothing common with our everyday experience. The same is true for virtual reality. Both virtual reality and physical reality project on sensors of our body visual, audio, taste, odor and tactile messages. Background of physical reality we consider as real has nothing common with our perception of observed world. We cannot see atoms. Even less we can see electrons, protons and neutrons. We only told by physicists about quarks and other particles like muons, neutrinos and hypothetically existing strings. These particles are basic moving parts of our word. When we staring on the screen of computer and seeing video of beautiful girl actually we only fantasying that before us the girl. Even in real world beautiful girl in front of us is collection of chemical compounds these themselves are made from atoms these are made from elementary particles these are acted by strange counter-intuitive laws of quantum physics. As for image on the computer we see dot lights at monitor these are changing under rules of software that makes charges of electricity change status of transistors in silicone chip. It could be also germanium based processor and you will see the same image on the monitor. These is no way to guess what material base and architecture of the computer that generates the image on display. It could be silicon, quantum, bio or God know what but image will be the same if logic of computer and software will be the same. The physics laws and software is the base of the any physical or virtual reality. And they are essentially the same. Thus physical reality and virtual reality are indistinct. This means that they are the same.
Inverse engineering science. If of physical world is software how it is architected? What in physics, biology science, in history can give us the clues? In physics there are concept of observer. First-person type computer games are based on the concept of observer. Physics laws can be constructed in such way that any limited number of observers will see them in the same manner without spending recourses to model in precise accuracy word outside their vintage points. It means that each observer is the center of inertial system of coordinates around him and all these systems are invariant to each others as special theory of relativity is postulating.
Observer effects in general and the Heisenberg's uncertainty principle in quantum mechanics particularly give other hint. There are many interpretations of random behavior of nature. If world is software the observer effect solves two problems for software architect. First is to ensure that point of view of observer is consistently invariant for all existing observers and secondly that is even more important introducing legitimate level of randomness into perception of reality. The randomness on the fundamental level of physical laws permits to construct reality on several levels of detalization without to care about exact consistency of experiments on higher level of abstraction. Practically it means that measurement of thermodynamic values like temperature or pressure can be made only with some level of accuracy limited by inherited from quantum mechanic randomness. It also means that software represented our reality can use formulas with incorporated random functions to present macro events like wind or ocean wave. There will be no necessity to use laws of quantum mechanics for each of myriads of particles to picture environment to observer. Except special cases of breakthrough scientific experiments the software represented reality can work on the level of formulas not particles. It gives the resolution to one of the most emotionally disputed problem in philosophy of science about objective existence of so named special sciences these cannot be exact derived from physics of elementary particles. Yes, special sciences, are essential part of software that presents our reality.
Architecture of virtual reality software must produce the same results as science does. To reconstruct software described our virtual reality we must create software that adequate describing our reality. The problem that everybody who architected any software application knows that software is like art. Two coders always will come with different solutions for the same problem. But reality has one exact software implementation. Science gives us list of specifications these must be obeyed in such software. It must have multilevel object oriented:
The construction of the our virtual reality was done in numerous interactive tries to shape physical laws in such way that can support intelligence life. In physics specific values of constant in formulas are looks like strange arbitrary chosen numbers in the contrary to the fundamental formulas these are mostly are simple and aesthetically beautiful. It happens because formulas was chosen first by architect of out reality and then coefficients was derived from myriads of experiments as such those can sustain complex enough game field to get such objects as animals and humans.
Such complex construction cannot be done without any flaws these produce unintended by architect effects these could either end of our game or reveal true nature of it that will be shock that can end of game as well.
Effect of quantum entanglement is the exhibit one such flaw in construction of the software of reality on the most deep level. Invert engineering of this effect gives us the manner how basic objects are defined and interacting. Except number of properties of the each elementary particle it is also defined by array of indexes other particles these are its direct neighbors to take into account in defining next state on next time step. For each time step software calculate for each particle the next values of characteristics on the base of states and positions of near neighbor particles. To save number of operations set of these neighbors are not recalculated from distance but only when special situation is occurred. It sometimes brings effect of apparent interaction of particles on very long distances far above that light speed can provide.
Geometry of space looks like exact Euclidean based on the measurement of sum of angles of a triangle but according to general theory of relativity it must be curved by gravitation. One or other seems must to be true not both. But it could be both true if on the level of elementary particles just flat metric of the space is active and for macro objects like stars the additional rule of gravitational force is applied for space metric. It means that no gravitation should be observed on the level of elementary particles interaction. It also means that reality software is constructed on different levels of detalization and active laws.
Nuclear weapon was not original intent of reality architect. Nuclear energy is the effect of direct bypassing levels of reality from elementary particles into animals word. Architect intended to keep stars objects and life word completely separate. Would atomic nucleolus was not able to chain reaction there be no nuclear weapons. But architect was too impatient accepting good enough construction of reality. Atom bomb came as surprise to him and took extraordinary interference into human history to avoid total annihilation of Earth for now.
The meaning of our virtual reality is creating game field for inhabitants of upper reality these are what we call souls. Souls are stand alone conscious that connected with some alive objects in our virtual world making this human or even an animal to be the player, observer, person with soul. Souls in upper world has no body in our everyday understanding of this world. They exists as stable software so long that they are bored till death. Connecting with object in our or other virtual world they are entertaining themselves. Not each human has soul. Most of humans are just variations from set of typical characters creating routine interaction with observers. There is no known to me methods to distinct person from mannequin. We can only guess that historical figures like Napoleon were observers who by unknown to us criteria deserved best seat in theater of history. Maybe it was because of numerous reincarnations as compensation for previous achievements in outer worlds.
The question about existence of real reality is completely impossible to answer in principle. Let's presume that we by caprice of Architect of our virtual reality you will be able to meet him and ask any question he will promise to give true answer. You will ask him - who create his world? Who is his Architect? Let image that he knows and tell us. Is it end line for of such kind of questions? No, of course! Next question would be - who is Architect of his Architect? And we will never stop asking any Architect, even of highest rank we know, who did make him. We can see only limited area around us, no matter how big it is, whole reality is incomprehensibly bigger. The ratio between known and unknown is and always will be the same - one to infinity.
Ancient scripts like Old Testament give broken-phone description of the initial period of our virtual reality. The contradiction between scientific description of timeline from Big Bang via formation of galaxies to spontaneous appearance of life and Darwin evolution by natural selection to modern intelligent humans during billions of years is not in contradiction with religious account of our word to be six thousand years since creation. The appearance of the first observer, Adam, is the starting point of out reality. Time before just doesn't matter. Time steps of our virtual reality before introducing intelligent human with soul can be much, much larger compare to used currently. Furthermore it must be numerous attempts and dead-end realities before the Earth was good place for game named civilization. As in most role games the player can save intermediate situation and in case that story developing bad to return to happy time and try again. The same Architect is able to roll history back and try again. This way all mortal challenges to humanity was happily looks like by chance overcame.
Different historical epochs differ by popularity for souls to make incarnation. Some periods in history are so notoriously boring that got name as dark ages. Rare soul come to the game field then. Our time is very competitive. The main challenge to arrive soon is the shock of revelation who we are. Second hand hosts for secondary souls. Our world is the only one of the numerous competitive productions of game to entertain inhabitants of higher level of reality. Most of such game-worlds was self-destructed already. The task is so difficult. Can you be happy knowing that you are only mascot costume for immaterial software? And it is in the best case of chosen ones. Most of us are primitive robots or only image in crowd storming and dying in enemies tranches.
The only way to our world to survive is accepting the truth and creating the best theme-park in meta-reality to keep us open as long as possible.
Mar. 13, 2018; 14:16 EST