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Persona #115

David J. Chalmers

1966–present
Australian-American philosopher of mind, professor at NYU and ANU

The hard problem of consciousness — and virtual reality is genuine reality

Attribute Fingerprint

Rows where personas disagree are highlighted in gold. The full ontology grid (32 attributes) is shown.

Attribute David J. Chalmers
Time · Extent Infinite
Time · Ontological Status Substantival
Time · Grain Continuous
Time · Freedom Non-Deterministic
Time · Traversability Linear
Time · Dimensionality One
Time · Direction Uni-directional
Space · Extent Infinite
Space · Ontological Status Substantival
Space · Curvature Curved
Space · Dimensionality Three
Space · Locality Local
Matter · Extent Infinite
Matter · Ontological Status Emergent
Matter · Conservation Conserved
Matter · Dimensionality Three
Matter · Locality Local
Observer · Time Instance Single
Observer · Space Instance Single
Observer · Knowledge Extent Immediate
Observer · Knowledge Retainment Total
Observer · Physicality Both
Observer · Agency Active
Observer · Number Plural
Observer · Metaphysical Agency None
Observer · Moral Authority Reason
Observer · Theological Method N/A
Energy · Extent Finite
Energy · Ontological Status Substantival
Energy · Conservation Conserved
Energy · Dispersibility Irreversible
Information · Ontological Status Substantival
Information · Cosmic Conservation Conserved
Information · Personal Conservation Non-conserved
Information · Granularity Discrete

Dimension-by-Dimension Evidence

What each persona's writings reveal about their stance on each of the six dimensions.

⧖

Time

David J. Chalmers

Conventional modern. Virtual time and physical time are both real on the virtual-realist view.

✦

Space

David J. Chalmers

Substantival; virtual space is real space.

◉

Matter

David J. Chalmers

Emergent at the substrate level — what we call matter could be data structures, but genuinely real.

◎

Observer

David J. Chalmers

A single embodied (or virtually embodied) subject. Both physicality. Metaphysical agency: None.

⚡

Energy

David J. Chalmers

Conventional modern.

⧉

Information

David J. Chalmers

Substantival and discrete.

Internal Tensions

Where each persona's working synthesis strains against itself.

David J. Chalmers

Chalmers's twin commitments — that consciousness is a deep philosophical problem irreducible to physical processes, and that virtual entities are as real as physical ones — are sometimes read as in tension.