Is it valid to consider all living things as programmes?
I suppose I first encountered this idea in the film The Matrix. I was fascinated by the Merovingian being described as an ancient programme, having been around since the beginning as was the Architect and some other older characters. I also noticed birds and stuff in the film and wondered if these features of everyday life were programmed as well.
Can life - like spiders, trees, fish and humans - be classed as programmes in the way a computer has programmes?
My only trouble with the idea is the inherent suggestion that 'someone' must be doing the programming. Maybe this is just semantics. My answer would be that nature is the programmer.
Perhaps a less-loaded concept is to consider all living things as information. This also works for non-living things as well and as such everything in the universe is information.
I first came across the idea of information as a descriptor of all stuff in the theory that all information would be lost in a Black Hole.
I find this concept really fascinating and quite frightening too. All information would be lost. It sounds so incredibly final and irreversible.
So what do you think about these things readers?
Not sure information would be lost in a black hole. Outside of it we can measure it's mass, angular momentum and charge. Inside, nobody knows what goes on inside really. There has to be more to life than just biology. When something dies you can almost see 'something' leave.
ReplyDeleteI'm not entirely sure what scientists mean by information Kevin. Having rad this I'm none the wiser? You? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_hole_information_paradox
DeleteI don't really understand it to be honest. I think in this context they mean what condition a particle is in as it would be described by the maths of such things. The problem seems to be (as it often is), that when you apply the physics of relativity to the situation and the physics of quantum mechanics to the same situation, they predict different outcomes and they should agree. It means we haven't got it right yet!
DeleteSo, do you think the word information is referring to the information stored in particles Kev?
DeleteI think information here means information about what the particle is like (for example how it's spinning). I suppose you could use that to store information (spin up=1, spin down=0, for example).
DeleteWatch Digimon as those are Ditial Monsters created as programs/viruses that evolved
ReplyDeleteAlso -> TRON
Not seen Digimon Ran but TRON is a fave of mine. Disney were ahead of the time with the film I thought. The sequel was great too. I wonder if anyone is actually trying to digitise physical matter?
DeletePersonally Woodsy, I think my programmer screwed up! :-) Must've been a beginner
ReplyDeleteWonky programming is always more fun I reckon Ed! Defective is memorable!
Delete