Recent findings suggest the universe we inhabit might be nothing more than an extensive computational simulation. This concept gained traction nearly two decades ago, and now, a groundbreaking study provides fresh, physics-based support. Melvin Fobson, a physicist from the University of Portsmouth, introduced the “Second Law of Information Dynamics,” a revolutionary principle established following extensive viral mutation research. Published in the journal AIP Advances in 2022, this law posits that information is a physical quantity with mass that can be stored, processed, and deleted within material systems, akin to data compression, storage, or deletion in computers.
Fobson’s hypothesis takes a curious stance regarding electrons, the universe’s abundant particles. Despite varying locations across the cosmos, all electrons share identical properties, such as charge and mass. How does an electron in a distant galaxy resemble one within the human body? According to Fobson, information about electrons’ properties is somehow imprinted upon the electrons themselves, serving as a physical “instruction manual” that electrons ‘read’ to acquire their attributes. This guide is said to possess mass, much like humans do when measured on a scale.
The Second Law of Information Dynamics asserts that the entropy of information (a chaos measure) in systems containing information states must remain stable or decrease over time. This implies that information systems become more organized and less random with time, contradicting the Second Law of Thermodynamics, which states that physical systems tend to become more disordered over time.
Due to its universality, the Second Law of Information Dynamics is anticipated to have profound implications across various science and technology fields, including information theory, computing, genetics, and cosmology. It could also help explain the occurrence of new mutations in DNA sequences.
The “simulation hypothesis,” initially proposed around 20 years ago by Nick Bostrom, a philosopher from Oxford University, suggested that we’re more likely to live in a simulated world than an actual one. In physics, a similar picture emerged, indicating the universe could indeed be a “hologram.” In his book “The Black Hole War,” British physicist Leonard Susskind discussed our 3D world, encompassing galaxies, stars, and planets, as a 3D image of reality encoded on a distant 2D surface.
Now, according to Fobson’s new study, also published in AIP Advances, applying the Second Law of Information Dynamics to various physical systems in biology, atomic physics, and cosmology might suggest that our universe is a 3D simulation. This finding not only revives the simulation hypothesis discussion but also adds a compelling layer of scientific intrigue, encouraging further exploration into our understanding of reality.
