The Fermi Paradox & Virtual Worlds: Colonizing Inner Space

Many believe humanity's future lies among the stars, colonizing distant planets around alien suns, or perhaps building artificial worlds, space habitats, and megastructures. But what if instead of traveling to worlds far away in outer space we create virtual worlds to live in instead, colonizing inner space? We will explore this possibility of simulated universes and what it might mean for humanity, and also ask if this might be a solution to the Fermi Paradox, the strange absence of other life in our own universe.

Credits:
The Fermi Paradox & Virtual Worlds: Colonizing Inner Space
Episode 167, Season 5 E01

Written by:
Isaac Arthur

Editors:
Alex Chamak
A.T. Long
Cooper de Ruiter
D. Hemanshi
Darius Said
Edward Nardella
Evan Schultheis
Keith Blockus
Mark Warburton
Matthew Acker
Safia Postgate
Sigmund Kopperud
Matthew Campbell

Cover Art:

Graphics by:
Jarred Eagley
Mihail Yordanov

Produced & Narrated by:
Isaac Arthur

Audio Editor:
Eric Schneider

Music Manager:

Music:

[isaacarthurSFIA]

Starting up our FIFTH Year for SFIA, thanks for joining us!
As a headsup, next week's episode will also be coming out very early in the morning, we're not changing our normal release time to early, just some hectic scheduling and I'd rather release a few hours earlier than late. the policy has kind of switched from "Every Thursday *at* 11 AM Eastern Time" to "Every Thursday, *by* 11 AM". I know nobody ever seems to mind them early, but I don't want folks expecting it as the norm.

[RiflemanTV]

My mind was fricking blown when you were talking about local populations becoming too tribal and splitting the virtual world into different servers, I could only imagine this being used as a way to study what parallel universes would be like.

[abiku]

This was actually a *fantastic* 1st video of the season. Holy crap Issac, you are becoming a legend!

[azdgariarada]

What are you doing up so early? Oh right, uploading amazing content.

Carry on.

[chrisr]

We are virtually assured another great episode

[kayrosis]

Such a great opening to Season 5!
Love the stellaris soundtrack, and can't wait for the VR 4X stellar empire command games of 5-10 years from now

[ripwolfe]

Run out of topics? Bahahaha! As vast as the universe is, and as bizarre as quantum mechanics is, and as weirdly curious and exploratory as a lot of humans tend to be, I think not.

[montebarger]

Happy new year Isaac, time to grab a drink and a snack. Thanks for all the hard work, keep the awesome content coming.

[ramonpizarro]

When you were discussing dream states and laughing off the idea we live in a simulation, my eyebrows rose and I believe I may have had a momentary existential crisis, thanks for that
This is an amazing start to the fifth year of the channel, please keep up the great work and may the new year bring you Health, Wealth, and Happiness in abundance!

[cannonfodder]

It is 5:27 A.M PST here in California and I should be asleep but I decided to watch this before bed anyway. *So Glad I did.*

Lately I have been in a mental rut, your videos were for some reason not making me light up despite them being great. This one though... I was simply enraptured. *The implications are simply eye opening, how much thought you and your team has put into thinking Virtual Worlds has blown my mind.* For this was something I never put any thought into before.

Add the new music choice and wonderful visuals. Oh my... I was smiling so widely. The stories that could be told and concepts explored. The implications for the future... my mind was racing. Thank You so much for rekindling that mental glow and expanding my mental horizons immensely again.

What a great video to start 2019. Fantastic work Isaac and Team.

[SKy_the_Thunder]

As a gamer this is the first time I have seen someone seriously describe and contemplate what I consider my ideal world! Thank you for that, Isaac!

[fuzzbombxx-]

Well done with the 5 year milestone Issac! And yet another great vid :)

[JoelDowdell]

At about 27 minutes in, you managed to freak me out about simulation hypothesis more than most people can. Talking about simulations where you don't remember the "real" world and how people might start studying those worlds, wondering why the night sky is full of stars, why they aren't inhabited.
Excellent video as always.

[starsilverinfinity]

Why even go to space if you can make your own custom virtual worlds. . .
Oh that’s right to get the resources to build more virtual worlds!

[francoislacombe]

I like that you now have so many videos on this channel that you can reference them to expand on almost any side concept being evoked in the current video.

[stm]

I'm learning game design and I love this idea and the way you covered it. I admit I am a sucker for the simple solution that this is one of the first technological/space fairing civilizations in the universe because for the first 9 billion years there weren't enough main sequence stars with heavy metals around them to make life-bearing planets. Add in the amazing luck of getting the mitochondria and chloroplasts without them being digested or destroyed by the cells housing them and inventing the biological hardware for supporting powerful imaginations that could discover and use tools and get into space and we are probably the first, or at least first in our galaxy.

[davidcraig]

Boromir: One does not simply walk into Mordor. Isaac: Hold my virtual coffee

[nil]

This is the most amazing video on your channel so far.

[Phtie]

Thanks for 5 years of awesome mind expanding content Isaac!!

[troymcguffey]

Once again you nailed it! Good show my friend.