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Letter: Who exactly is running this simulation? (2)

Published 7 January 2026

From Mel Earp, Macclesfield, Cheshire, UK

One of the most common forms of simulation is a video game. The entities within that are bit patterns. What happens to the bit patterns has been programmed and all that can happen is only that which has been programmed. If we are in a simulation, remember that not only are we in it, but we are being simulated, too. We can do only what the creator of the simulation has put in it. And really fundamental is that, just as a games programmer is not inside the game, the creator of the simulation, of which we are a part, is not inside it with us – anywhere.

Issue no. 3577 published 10 January 2026

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