What if Flat Earth is an alternate reality universe?
For those who do not know there are groups of people who claim to believe the earth is flat. This is called "Flat Earth Theory". In my opinion the power of alternate reality games when in combination with blockchain technology such as Ethereum is dramatically underestimated. There is the potential to harness these technologies to promote wisdom and to reduce ignorance. At the same time there is the potential to take alternate reality technology to a scary place.
In an alternate reality the participants agree to act as if the in game narrative is real. So I use the flat earth theory as an example because it could be a perfect "rabbit hole" into an alternate reality. A rabbit hole is similar to the red pill from The Matrix where those who take that option are led down an alternate reality path. When the potential of blockchain technology is added to alternate reality then we can see that people can be rewarded for promoting any narrative using all artistic forms of expression. A narrative could begin with the rabbit hole that the earth is flat and then expand from here to logical expansions of earth is flat theory.
For instance if we all agree (shared consensus) that the earth is flat in our alternate reality and the blockchain records our shared agreement then we all agreed to accept that narrative. If we have a flat earth then logical comes into play where by deduction we can expand the theory with "if the earth is indeed flat then...".
"In the modern era, pseudoscientific[5] flat Earth theories have been espoused by modern flat Earth societies and, increasingly, by unaffiliated individuals using social media.[6][7]"
What if we are seeing the birth of these alternate reality games right now?
How many of you are aware of a game called: Proof of Craig Grant? On the face of it the concept might seem ridiculous. To build a game around a particular individual? But there is nothing which prevents anyone even now from creating a complete alternate reality around themselves with themselves as the central theme (and using their own persona as the rabbit hole). Proof of Craig Grant could easily evolve into a fully fledged alternate reality universe if for example Craig Grant were to bring philosophical elements from his book and create his own language(s) around it. From there his own narratives could further the game and even reward players who add to the story line in various profitable ways.
At this time Proof of Craig Grant and the Proof of Weak Hands concept is in my opinion benign. The point is that there is no limit to how these games can evolve. Metagaming is ultimately what I refer to and in my opinion we will see a lot of very creative expressions going forward. As a result I hope to trigger a discussion on the merits of metagaming and would like to learn if most of you think it will remain mostly benign or even evolve into something beneficial?
"Flat Earth" as a caption got my attention as a Geoscientist
In relation to the flat earth as a theoretical basic scientific explanation of virtual earth study, Blockchain in theory might not be well appreciated by lots of people out there. Real life applications is pertinent for sustainability.
Proof of Craig Grant even put a disclaimer for users not to play. It is a kind of leveled ground where anyone can be a success
I love the way you use the flat earth theory as an analogy to Blockchain.
You see the usability of cryptos as the direct child of Blockchain will definitely bring exposure to their parents which is Blockchain technology. I can categorically say Blockchain is just the future
I think at some point, we won't be able to tell what - or who, is real...
Source
Thinking on the cutting edge, thanks for sharing!
Id say we all live in our own version of reality already, but the thought to which extent we could create new more unified alternative realities via eg blockchain agreements is interesting. I almost wanted to use the word scary, but thinking of it, most of us are already down for one of the biggest alternative realities ever created. It is being played out in the world every day in the name of money, fortune, pride, beauty = western culture. We might go as far to say, that culture is per definition a form of alternative reality building. In the culture game the stakes for following the rules of the created reality are often no less then life or death.
Today this processed is definitely being amplified, and streamlined for personal use, via modern technology, which gives way to more absurd (subjective) realities.
It all depends on whether your model of reality is accurate or not. If you for example rely on an inaccurate model of reality for your alternate reality then it can promote stuff which isn't even based in science. For example western culture believes in race even though race isn't backed by science.
oh I didn't know that about race. So we are all just one race? That makes racism look even more asinine and idiotic. thank you sir!
Our mind is powerful and we have the ability to create parallel worlds. Everything is based on our belief the blockchain technology makes its way in all areas and if we all believe that blockchain can change our life for the good of human beings, it will be so.
The earth can be flat for those who believe it is. for others the earth is round, the inequality of thought makes this world interesting.