International scientists have concluded that the structure of reality does not allow for the possibility of simulation. Instead of philosophical assumptions, they analyzed whether it is theoretically possible to recreate the laws governing the Universe using a computer system. The results of their work were published in the journal Journal of Holography Applications in Physics.
As noted by Mir Faizal, an adjunct professor at the Irving K. Barber Faculty of Science at the University of British Columbia, “there is an opinion that the Universe can be modeled. If this is possible, then within such a simulation, life capable of creating its own simulation could arise.”
Faizal added that this recursive nature—a process in which one simulation creates another—makes it extremely unlikely that our Universe is the original one. He noted that this question was previously beyond the scope of scientific inquiry, but recent studies show that it can be explored from a scientific perspective.
Modern physics views reality as something more than just matter. Quantum gravity, which unites the theory of relativity and quantum mechanics, suggests that even space and time may not be fundamental but arise from a deeper layer—pure information.
To determine whether it is possible to model this informational foundation, researchers employed mathematical principles, including Gödel's incompleteness theorem. This theorem states that in any logical system, there will always be true statements that cannot be proven within the system itself.
According to Faizal, this limitation also applies to physics. Scientists have demonstrated that it is impossible to encompass all aspects of physical reality using computational theory of quantum gravity. “Thus, it is not possible to derive a physically complete and consistent theory solely through computations,” emphasized Faizal.
He added that a complete description of reality requires what researchers call “non-algorithmic understanding,” which cannot be expressed through computational processes. Consequently, computations may be limited when they encounter the boundaries of what can be expressed logically.
Based on mathematical theorems related to incompleteness and indeterminacy, researchers concluded that the “deep information” of the Universe cannot be modeled. They showed that a complete and coherent description of reality cannot be achieved solely through computations. This requires a non-algorithmic understanding that, by its nature, goes beyond algorithmic computations. Thus, this indicates that our Universe is not a simulation.
