In our Monday sessions with Tracy and Anna we talked about
reality and how we perceive it. Anna used the Matrix as an example for reality
not being what is actually is. This reminded me of many of the theories about
reality I have discussed (the all famous coma theory, the dream theory, “maybe
your dying and your life is flashing before your eyes right now” theory etc.)
with my friends, but what that lecture reminded me was when me and my friend
finished watching the Matrix she stated that what if, the Matrix is actually just
another fallback. Another level of the dream, a backup if you will, intended for
those who break through the first level. To keep them contained, not looking any
further.
Keeping on the track of reality theories I wanted to bring
up one of my favorite ones, a theory that has spiked my interest in subject
maters like these a long time ago:
Schrödinger's cat: a cat, a flask of poison, and a
radioactive source are placed in a sealed box. If an internal monitor detects
radioactivity (i.e. a single atom decaying), the flask is shattered, releasing
the poison that kills the cat. The Copenhagen interpretation of quantum
mechanics implies that after a while, the cat is simultaneously alive and dead.
Yet, when one looks in the box, one sees the cat either alive or dead, not both
alive and dead. This poses the question of when exactly quantum superposition
ends and reality collapses into one possibility or the other.
