Philosophy

Reality +: A Philosophical Journey through Virtual Worlds

Reality +: A Philosophical Journey through Virtual Worlds

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  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2022-01-26 16:16:01
  • Update Date：2025-09-24
  • Status：finish
  • Author：David J. Chalmers
  • ISBN：0241320712
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Summary

How do we know that reality isn't an illusion？ In fact， how do we know anything about the external world？

This is an age-old philosophical conundrum asked by everyone from Plato to Descartes， but the consensus is that no one has succeeded in answering it。 In this book， the world-renowned philosopher David Chalmers， famous for formulating 'the hard problem of consciousness'， adds a 21st-century twist: how do we know we're not living in a virtual world？ Or a computer simulation？ Now that our lives are increasingly mediated by screens and technology， this question is more pressing than ever， and has recently been the subject of serious scientific debate。 In Reality+， Chalmers draws on discoveries from AI， virtual reality and other technologies to shed light on this and other age-old questions in technology。

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Reviews

Brian Clegg ，

Thanks to major IT companies putting a lot of time and effort into it （not to mention changing their company names）， virtual reality is rarely out of the news at the moment。 So it's timely that David Chalmers should attempt an exploration of the nature of virtual reality。 What he sets out to persuade us is that 'virtual reality is genuine reality'。 That virtual worlds don't have to be illusory， the objects within virtual worlds are real， life can be good and meaningful in a virtual world and tha Thanks to major IT companies putting a lot of time and effort into it （not to mention changing their company names）， virtual reality is rarely out of the news at the moment。 So it's timely that David Chalmers should attempt an exploration of the nature of virtual reality。 What he sets out to persuade us is that 'virtual reality is genuine reality'。 That virtual worlds don't have to be illusory， the objects within virtual worlds are real， life can be good and meaningful in a virtual world and that the simulation hypothesis - the idea that what we usually think of as reality could itself be virtual， while not provable could be true。I became a little wary early on as Chalmers is clearly a virtual reality enthusiast: he tells us he has 'numerous virtual reality systems' in his study。 This is not normal。 You might think from all the hype that everyone except you is an inhabitant of virtual worlds， but it's still a pretty small minority - around the 1 per cent mark in the UK - and there highly focussed on young gamers。 Until the whole business is far less cumbersome and more high quality， I can't see it becoming mass market。 （Remember when everyone was supposed to be watching 3D TV within a few years。 That went well。）However， while I don't agree with Chalmers on the idea that VR will soon be ubiquitous， I was still interested to see his arguments。 Unfortunately， they turned out to be classic waffly philosophical ones。 There was never any convincing evidence， for example， that VR was in any sense real - in the sense， for example， that without necessarily being able to vocalise it， we know what reality is and it should not be capable of being switched off。 In a sense this issue reflects the nature of philosophy。 I can define an object in a way that requires it to be made of atoms: quite clearly then it is not true that objects in virtual reality are real。 That doesn't make me right - but equally it can't be countered。I'll be honest， I found the constant philosophical noodling tedious - this is real 'how many angels can dance on the head of a pin' territory。 （Funnily enough， there is little evidence much time was ever spent discussing angels and pinheads in reality - by which I don't mean virtual reality。） Because of the VR context I had expected more scientific basis for the content， but there was very little that went beyond attempts at proof by argument rather than evidence。 The handwaving felt distinctly frustrating， but I suppose it's the nature of philosophy。Chalmers had an interesting idea to explore virtual reality's relationship with true reality - and the book is worthwhile because of that - but I didn't feel I had learnt much at the end of its 450+ pages。 。。。more

Owlseyes ，

https://www。theguardian。com/books/202。。。"Reality+ — looking forward to life in the metaverseDavid Chalmers’ rich and occasionally outlandish work of ‘technophilosophy’ argues that virtual reality is genuine reality"in:https://www。ft。com/content/e9d4875c-0。。。 https://www。theguardian。com/books/202。。。"Reality+ — looking forward to life in the metaverseDavid Chalmers’ rich and occasionally outlandish work of ‘technophilosophy’ argues that virtual reality is genuine reality"in:https://www。ft。com/content/e9d4875c-0。。。 。。。more

Diane Hernandez ，

Is virtual reality genuine reality？ Are we all living in a simulated reality right now？ Is it possible to lead a life in a virtual world that is just as good， or better， than “real life”？ In Reality+， a philosopher explains his thoughts on these and six other common philosophical questions in our current computer-enhanced world。I love a book that makes me stop reading and ponder what I just read。 This book does this multiple times。 The author takes complex ideas and breaks them down for non-brai Is virtual reality genuine reality？ Are we all living in a simulated reality right now？ Is it possible to lead a life in a virtual world that is just as good， or better， than “real life”？ In Reality+， a philosopher explains his thoughts on these and six other common philosophical questions in our current computer-enhanced world。I love a book that makes me stop reading and ponder what I just read。 This book does this multiple times。 The author takes complex ideas and breaks them down for non-brainiacs。 Using pop culture references and cartoon illustrations allows everyone to understand his points。If you are a gamer and/or loved The Matrix， you need to read this book。 It will change the way you view the world。 Reality+ also has some brilliant plot ideas for science fiction authors too。 5 stars and a favorite！Thanks to W。W。 Norton & Company and NetGalley for a copy in exchange for my honest review。 。。。more

Quan Le ，

Chalmers did an excellent job presenting historical philosophical problems through a new lenses in hopes of presenting solutions in modern and future technology！ The book is very beginner friendly while still maintaining philosophical complexity

Kristine ，

Reality+ by David J。 Chalmers is a free NetGalley ebook that I read in late December。Just a day or so after watching Matrix Resurrections， I began to read this book， which goes way deeply into what characters from the movie might've mentioned in passing or experienced as just another aspect of the Matrix， like seamless， tangible virtual interactions and realities different than our own， questions that need to be addressed when thinking about if one person's view of the world is real or an illusi Reality+ by David J。 Chalmers is a free NetGalley ebook that I read in late December。Just a day or so after watching Matrix Resurrections， I began to read this book， which goes way deeply into what characters from the movie might've mentioned in passing or experienced as just another aspect of the Matrix， like seamless， tangible virtual interactions and realities different than our own， questions that need to be addressed when thinking about if one person's view of the world is real or an illusion， and keeping parts of yourself for yourself without divulging everything and the full extent of your persona online。 。。。more

CB_Read ，

I wasn't able to completely finish this ARC before it was archived， but I'm so glad to have read the first half of this book。This book is as much an updated primer on the traditional problems of philosophy as it is a collection of original arguments from Chalmers。 The author writes clearly and persuasively without diminishing other points of view， and he keeps the denser sections of philosophical arguments toward the end of each section， allowing pretty much anyone to pick up this book and gain I wasn't able to completely finish this ARC before it was archived， but I'm so glad to have read the first half of this book。This book is as much an updated primer on the traditional problems of philosophy as it is a collection of original arguments from Chalmers。 The author writes clearly and persuasively without diminishing other points of view， and he keeps the denser sections of philosophical arguments toward the end of each section， allowing pretty much anyone to pick up this book and gain something from it。What makes the traditional problems （of knowledge， of reality， and of value） in need of updating is the invention of virtual reality， writes Chalmers。 Even though ancient philosophers have puzzled at these questions since well before our time， the author argues that VR is special because it allows us to come closer to solving these ancient problems。 Potentially the most controversial premise of Chalmers's book is his core thesis: Virtual worlds （VR） are real worlds; they are genuinely inhabited by real objects （that are digital） and by real people （"pure sims" as he calls them）; and， based on arguments from the Simulation hypothesis， it is impossible to prove that we are not living in a virtual world of our own。Nearly the entire first half of the book is dedicated to this question and Chalmers evaluating the arguments for and against it。 Certain chapters get into the weeds， while others maintain an overview of the subject。 I wish I hadn't spent as much time reading every word of this section and instead pushed through to the middle and beyond， because that's where the really interesting stuff is。 Chalmers must first establish the Simulation hypothesis before moving on， so I understand why it is presented the way that it is。An exciting new book from one of contemporary philosophy's most "out-there" philosophers。 。。。more

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Reality +: A Philosophical Journey through Virtual Worlds

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Reality +: A Philosophical Journey through Virtual Worlds&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Reality +: A Philosophical Journey through Virtual Worlds&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0