CROSSROADSCROSSROA DS Language StudioÊs Newsletter July
July,ly , 201
20 1 6
Recently, world-famous entrepreneur and
CEO of the Tesla company Elon Musk put
forward a startling argument: The odds areoverwhelming that we are all playing a partin an advanced civilization’s computer
simulation.
Simulation theory argues that reality as
we know it is in fact a simulation of which weare totally unaware. Bizarrely, such ahypothesis may not be as unusual as it firstappears. There is a long scientific andphilosophical history of the concept thatreality is an illusion, going way back to
Indian prehistory and the philosophy ofMaya (illusion). In ancient Vedic literature,
Maya meant extraordinary power andwisdom. In later Indian traditions, Mayasuggests a "magic show, an illusion wherethings appear to be present but are not what
they seem," or that the true power of reality
is concealed from us.
EllaMany
credibletechnologistsandfuturologists predict that enormous amountsof computing power will be available in theJanis This is the basis of Musk’s argument,future.
which in turn derives from the work ofeminent Oxford University professor Nick
Bostrom, who published a paper in 2003
arguing that at least one of the following
propositions is true: (1) Virtually all
civilizations at our pace of development willgo extinct before they reach the technologicalcapability of creating ultra-realistic video
games;(2)
Civilizations
with
such
technological capabilities are uninterested inrunning such computer simulations; (3) weare almost certainly living in a computer
simulation. It follows that the belief that
there is a significant chance that we will one
day become humans who run ancestorsimulations is false, unless we are currentlyliving in a simulation.

In the darkness of our current ignorance, it
seems reasonable to apportion one’s belief
roughly evenly between (1), (2), and (3).
Unless we are now living in a simulation, ourdescendants will almost certainly never run
an ancestor-simulation.
It’s important to realize that it’s not only ina metaphorical sense but also in a very literal
sense that we’re in a simulation. This meansthat we ourselves and everything around us
exists in a computer built by some advancedcivilization. This could be good news or badnews depending on what you think themotivations of the simulators are, and whatwill happen after the simulation ends.
Bostrom believes that even if it takes
millions of years to create such a simulation,
his theory still holds and that the same bigquestions about the universe are relevant
whether it was created by God, the Big Bangor a teenager with a futuristic Xbox. Even
Robert Rupert, philosophy of mind professor
at the University of Colorado, says that thecomputer simulation hypothesis is “definitelyworth taking seriously” and that if conscious,
intelligent
characters could
be created inside
a computer
simulation, thenit tallies withhow many of us
already think ofour existence.

Article by Colm
NET LESSONS: Too busy to come to CROSSROADS?
…. Try our lessons on the net!
Here’s a bio on Elon Musk:
www.biography.com/people/elon-musk-20837159

Joshua Says: Recently many new websites have become available for students to
do some English self-study. Many of these sites are free while some are accessible fora small fee. Although these sites can never substitute for the care and attention a“live” teacher can provide, I think some of the better ones are quite useful as
supplementary resources to help and support your studies between lessons with us. I
recommend you have a look at some and tell me if you find any especially useful.
Junko Says: Recent weather forecasts say that Japan’s summer this year may
be influenced by “La Nina”. I’m sure you’ve heard of El Nino. La Nina is thecounterpart of El Nino and is characterized by unusually cold ocean temperaturesin the Equatorial Pacific. In a La Nina year, we often have very hot and longsummers. I also learnt that La Nina’s influence in summer usually causes a colder
than usual winter. All this sounds like I can’t do without air-conditioning this year.
Mark Says: In New Zealand July 4 - 10 is Māori Language Week - Te Wiki ote Reo Māori. During this time, Kiwis are encouraged to use as much of oursecond official language as possible in our daily lives. Here are some usefulphrases you can use if ever in New Zealand: Kia ora (Hello / Thank you), Keite pehea koe? (How are you?), Ke te pai (I'm fine / good).
Colm Says: Brexit has sent shockwaves through Europe, with many people
still in disbelief that the United Kingdom has chosen to leave the European
Union. There are many arguments both for and against this development. But
the good news for people in Japan is that the Yen has become stronger. It
might be a good time to pay a visit to Ol’ Blighty.
Danielle dit: Dès le début du mois de juillet, il a commencé à faire trèschaud. Et j’ai bien peur que cela continue pendant tout l’été. Ilparaîtrait que l’été va être long et chaud. Même si c’est l’été, la chaleur
m’empêche de profiter des journées. Je préfère rester à l’intérieur aufrais. Quoiqu’il en soit, pensez à protéger votre tête et hydratez-vousbien quand vous sortez au milieu de la journée !
ACROSS
5 a result achieved by reasoning
6 lack of knowledge or education
8 an idea presented for consideration
10 allocate or distribute
11 something that appears to be true but is not
12 a concept that is not yet probed to be true
13 hidden from view
14 being greatly unusual or unconventional
15 having ability
16 no longer in existence
DOWN
1 a position higher than others
12
2 adds up to
3 surprisingly different
4 expressing one thing in terms of another7 a technique of representing the real world
9 worthy of belief

1

2

3
4
5

67
8

910

11

13

14
15

(print version here)

www.CrosswordWeaver.com

16

On a warm and peaceful day around 400BC, the Chinese Philosopher
Chuang Chou was dozing under a tree. He felt so relaxed that he soonslipped into a deep sleep. When he awoke, he realized that he had been
dreaming, or had he? His dream was so real that he was uncertain
astoThat’s me!
just who was the dreamer and who, or what, was the “dreamt”. He ponderedon this for a whilethen went off to relate the events of his dream to his friend, another wise old Sage who lived
in the next valley. He started the account of his “dream” somewhat embarrassedly, „somepeople my think IÊm crazy.....‰ His dream, as it has been recorded down through the ages goeslike this:„I, Chuang Chou, dreamt I was a butterfly, fluttering hither and thither, to all
intents and purposes a butterfly. I was conscious only of my happiness as a butterfly,
unaware that I was Chou. Soon I awaked, and there I was, veritably myself
again. Now I do not know whether I was then a man dreaming I was a butterfly,
or whether I am now a butterfly, dreaming I am a man‰.
While his friend was thinking about this paradox, he noticed a butterfly flittering aroundsome flowers off to their left. He pointed to this with his folded up fan (all the Sages of thetime carried one) and with these words asked Chuang to observe the butterfly:„You see that butterfly fluttering from flower to flower, Chuang? It is thesame as millions upon millions of other butterflies all over the world. You ask,
are they the dreamers, or are they being dreamt by us? It would seem to me
that neither species would continue to exist if the other, whichever group are
the dreamers, stopped dreaming.....‰.....Speaking of Paradoxes.....
During my travels in India, I met a wandering Sadhu (a holy man) who said to me the following:„Every person at birth is allocated a certain number of breaths during his or her lifetime. That number
can never be changed and whena person has used up the last of their allotted breaths their life
ceases, they die‰. He then said,„Therefore, if one wishes to live a long life, one must control
the rate at which one breathes byslowing down their inhaling and exhaling cycle. And,‰ he said,„if one stops breathing altogether,
one will live forever!‰S T I G M A T I S E DBNIB A N N I N GD
E N C L O S E DNUFNSLR E E K I N G
R E L E G A T I N GGDAIM O M E N T U M
R E V O L T I N GREGECSM
D E S I G N A T E DEGENGC O N F R O N T E D
H A B I T U A L L YCH

Last Month’s Puzzle Solution
ACROSS
1 accused and classified as disgraceful
5 officially prohibiting something
6 closed in or surrounded
8 giving off a strong, unpleasant smell
9 assigning to a lower position or rank
10 a forward moving force or power
11 greatly offensive, disgusting
14 assigned a task or job to someone
15 opposed in a hostile way
16 by habit or custom

DOWN
2 enjoying to excess
3 damaged or spoiled appearance
4 forbidden by law
7 not fresh
12 short for cigarette
13 an unpleasant odor, smell

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