Yes, I've always been annoyed by the Mandela effect. Especially the little mustachioed Monopoly man who doesn't actually wear glasses.
I don't think we're living in a simulation. Anyway, I'm very rational, maybe too much so sometimes. On the other hand, for me, the Mandela effect is easy to explain:
- Human memory isn't perfect and is prone to various errors. Memories can be influenced by subsequent information, suggestions from other people, or false but convincing associations. Just two days ago, my girlfriend and I were talking about a vacation 2 years ago, and we both had a completely different recollection of a powerful event that had happened to us. And our brains managed to create a "false" memory for one of us with all the other events, the landscapes, the colors, the sensations and so on.
- Social media and forums enable the rapid and wide dissemination of information, including false memories. When groups of people discuss past events, their memories can influence each other, reinforcing collective false memories.
- Above all, the Mandela effect can, I believe, be reinforced by so-called "collective memory". That is, when social groups develop shared memories that become part of the group's identity. Social influence can lead individuals to adopt these collective memories, even if they are inaccurate.