Brain in a Vat is a philosophical thought-experiment modified by Gilbert Harman, most commonly used to illustrate Cartesian skepticism and challenge certain aspects of human conceptions of knowledge, reality and consciusness.
Imagine a mad scientist was to create this increadibly complex machine into which he could place the human brain. This machine, which we will refer to as "the vat", would have the power to not only keep the brain alive and functioning, but also to create an entire fictional universe undestinguishable from the reality, by hacking the brain`s sensory sistem. This would be done by creating virtual stimuli and feeding it directly into the brain, with the goal of mimicing normal human sensory experiences, as these are already interpreted by the brain as electrical signals. Thus making it impossible to know whether what you`re experiencing is the reality or just a series of electrical signals sent through a super computer.
With this information in mind, is it truly possible for one to be sure of his existance as a complete human being, as opposed to merely being a brain in a vat exposed to a false reality? This is the question that has boggled philosophers ever since its original version containing a demon in the place of the vat, was first proposed in 1641 by René Descartes. Descartes answered his own version of the experiment with his famous line cogito, ergo sum (“I think, therefore I am”). By saying which he argues that either the world is real and he is experiencing it, or he is being deceived. However, in order for him to be deceived he first has to exist. Therefore, his ability to question his very existance is sufficient to prove that he indeed does exist, maybe not as a human being or as a brain in a vat, but nevertheless as something.
Cartesian skepticism
Also known as universal doubt, Cartesian skepticism is a form of methodological skepticism associated with the writings and methodology of René Descartes. It is a class of skeptical views against empirical knowledge based on the claim that claims to empirical knowledge are defeated by the possibility that we might be deceived,insofar as we might be, for example, dreaming, hallucinating, deceived by demons, or brains in vats. Knowledge in the Cartesian sense means to know something beyond not just all reasonable doubt, but instead all possible doubt.
Sense experience can`t give us knowledge because knowledge requires certainty and nothing we learn through our senses is certain. We can know something only if we are certain that it is true. Therefore, we don`t really know anything acquired through our senses.
Implications
This thought experiment has implications for various field including ethics (if you are a brain in a vat and the "reality" you`re experiencing is false, there is nothing wrong with doing terrible, otherwise unimaginable things to others), epistemology (the study of knowledge, its importance and implications to life in general), our understandings of what it means to be human, and many other philosophical disciplines.
As films like the Matrix, Existenz, and even the Truman Show indicate, the idea of living in a simulated world indistinguishable from the real one is likely to continue to fascinate the human mind for many years to come—whether or not it is a brain in a vat.
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