Note to potential backers:

This campaign has ended. Interested backers can still support our research by purchasing our new book:

Reality Reloaded: The Scientific Case for a Simulated Universe

We also accept donations directly to our Research Institute's web page:

https://www.informationphysicsinstitute.org/

Thank you very much for your interest!   

Project Summary

One of the world's greatest mysteries is the nature of our reality, consciousness and the meaning of life. There is a growing community of scientists and academics that concluded, via scientific and philosophical means, that our world and the entire universe might be a simulation.

If this is the case indeed, then what sort of experiments could we deploy from within the simulation, to prove this hypothesis?

I am Dr. Melvin M. Vopson, senior lecturer in Physics at the University of Portsmouth, co-founder and Chief Scientific Officer of the Information Physics Institute (https://www.informationphysicsinstitute.org/). My recent article on the mass-energy-information (M/E/I) equivalence principle offers a possible avenue to experiment the simulation hypothesis. Assuming the universe is indeed a simulation, then it must contain a lot of information bits hidden everywhere around us. Detecting these information bits will prove the simulation hypothesis. The M/E/I principle states that these bits must have a small mass (https://doi.org/10.1063/1.5123794). In another recent article I calculated the number of information bits contained in all elementary particles in the Universe (https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0064475). The video below gives a beautiful description of the physics presented in this article.

These studies culminated with my 2022 publication, in which I proposed an experiment to test these predictions (https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0087175). The video below gives an excellent overview of the proposed experiment. Please be aware that the author of the video made some errors when quoting some of the numerical values, especially the exponential numbers.

Finally, this research and your support can also address another great curiosity of modern physics: the nature of the mysterious sub­stance known as “dark matter”. It is widely accepted that the matter distribution in the Universe is about 5% ordinary baryonic matter, 27% dark matter and, 68% of the universe is made of something even more puzzling called “dark energy”. Dark matter was first suggested in 1920s to explain observed anomalies in stellar velocities, and later in 1930s, when some unseen matter was again required to explain the dynamics and stability of cluster of galaxies. However, the strongest scientific argument for dark matter existence came in 1970s from researching the galaxy rotation curves.

Unfortunately, all efforts to isolate or detect the dark matter have failed so far.

According to the M/E/I equivalence principle, a bit of information must have a small mass when information is stored at equilibrium. The information bit has therefore the characteristics of a scalar boson particle with no charge, no spin, no any other properties except mass / energy. Such information particle would display its presence only via gravitational interactions, but it would be impossible to detect because it would not interact with the electromagnetic radiation. These are in fact the characteristics of the elusive “Dark Matter” whose presence is inferred only from gravitational interactions, but has never been observed or detected.

This led me to propose the radical idea that information might be the missing dark matter in the universe, and also to postulate that “information” is the fifth state of matter along solid, liquid, gas and plasma, and possibly the dominant form of matter in the universe. Hence, funding the proposed experiment would possibly demonstrate not only the nature of our reality, but could also explain what Dark Matter is. The video below is a motivating documentary of the need to address this fundamental question:

The prime objective of this campaign is to secure the funding and your support, which would allow us to construct and perform this groundbreaking experiment. Contributors have the opportunity to be part of this unique and transformative science project that will advance our understanding of the Universe and our reality, unlocking some of the greatest scientific mysteries.

What We Need

In order to perform the proposed experiment we need to purchase all the components necessary to build a workbench positron-electron annihilation system. The system will have custom-built components that will allow detection of gamma and IR photons simultaneously. It will have environmental controlled parameters for the temperature and atmosphere. The sample and positrons emitter will have to be constructed specially for this apparatus using thin films growth techniques, as described in our 2022 article (https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0087175). Most of the required instruments and tools are already available at the University of Portsmouth. We also discussed with another academic group already performing positron-electron annihilation experiments to team up as this will minimize the purchase of most of the equipment. The funding required will support the sample – detector custom-built system, the purchasing of IR detectors, sample chamber, lock-in amplifier, system assembly and software development using LabView, as well as 1-year full time research funding for one researcher and technician support.

Our bulk estimate is 185,000 GBP necessary funding to build and to perform the experiment, which will take roughly 1-year full time. We hope to raise 85,000 GBP in this campaign and we will top up the remaining with a grant application.

If our funding goal is not achieved, we will use the partial funding to kick-start the development and we will complement the remaining differential by applying for funding to UK research funding agencies. We strongly believe that even a modest crowd funding amount will make our grant application much stronger, increasing our chances of full funding success.    

What You Get

In addition to having the opportunity to contribute to this unique science experiment, we offer our supporters a wide range of unique perks.

1. Each contributor, regardless of the amount, will be acknowledged on all the publications resulted from this research project and will also receive the pdf file of the publication.
2. Each contributor will be invited to attend for free future public lectures (online) on this research.
3. Large contributors will be invited on the management board of the Information Physics Institute.

In addition, we also offer the following, more specific perks:

• Meeting and informal dinner with Dr Vopson at a top restaurant.
• Private talk on this research to any group size or organization.
• Receive a framed and autographed article for £50.

The Impact

The M/E/I principle has been formulated while strictly discussing digital states of information. However, because Shannon’s information theory is applicable to all forms of information systems, Vopson extrapolated the applicability of the M/E/I principle to all forms of information, proposing that information is the fifth state of matter. These ideas, regarded as the information conjectures, are truly transformational because, without violating any laws of physics, they offer possible explanations to a number of unsolved problems in physics. These fundamental ideas have also created a bridge between pure mathematics and physics, essentially “physicalizing” the mathematics, indicating that the universe is fundamentally mathematical and it can be seen as emerging from information, i.e. “it from bit”, a concept coined by the legendary physicist, John Wheeler.

With your help, this project will facilitate a step change in Physics knowledge and the emergence of a new Information Physics research branch, called Information Dynamics, or Infodynamics. The impact of Infodynamics is fundamental to all branches of physics, but also to computing technologies, big data, medical, genetics as well as environmental and energy research.

Finally, the proposed experiment could prove the simulation hypothesis, the implications of which will radically transform our world and society.

Other Ways You Can Help

It is perfectly understood that some folks are passionate about this project, but just can't contribute, especially during these challenging times. If this is your case, there are still ways you can help:

-         Participating in the research project as a collaborator (get in touch to explain your skills and how you can help);

-         Supporting us with new ideas to improve the experimental protocols;

-         Using the Indiegogo share tools!

-         Adding a link to this crowd funding campaign to your social media and sharing it with your contacts (LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, etc);