Probability and consequences of living inside a computer simulation
Popular Physics
2021-03-23 v1 Cryptography and Security
Computers and Society
Quantum Physics
Abstract
It is shown that under reasonable assumptions a Drake-style equation can be obtained for the probability that our universe is the result of a deliberate simulation. Evaluating loose bounds for certain terms in the equation shows that the probability is unlikely to be as high as previously reported in the literature, especially in a scenario where the simulations are recursive. Furthermore, we investigate the possibility of eavesdropping from the outside of such a simulation and introduce a general attack that can circumvent attempts at quantum cryptography inside the simulation, even if the quantum properties of the simulation are genuine.
Cite
@article{arxiv.2008.09275,
title = {Probability and consequences of living inside a computer simulation},
author = {Alexandre Bibeau-Delisle and Gilles Brassard},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2008.09275},
year = {2021}
}
Comments
17 pages, 2 figures, 1 table