We exist inside the story that the brain tells itself (Joscha Bach) | AI Podcast Clips

Bach suggests we don't exist in the physical world but within a narrative or story that our brain continuously writes and updates. This narrative is a simulation, a model of ourselves in relation to our environment.

Joscha Bach argues the opposite of common belief: physical systems cannot be conscious, only simulations can. Consciousness is considered a simulated property that simulates itself, a narrative constructed by the mind.

The self is a tool for modeling, arising from the mind's need to regulate the organism's relationship with the outside world. It helps predict interactions and serves as a focal point for consciousness and identification.

Reality can be viewed as a complex fractal generated by underlying rules. We experience it as a surface-level representation, like a spiral in the Mandelbrot set, without full access to the generator function or its deeper structure.

When the physical implementation ceases, the mind simulation ends. However, if an identity or idea is instantiated in others or in culture, it can persist, similar to how the Dalai Lama's 'governmental software' continues through tradition.

Color and sound are not inherent properties of the physical world but are representations created by our brain's mechanisms, particularly through the synchronization of oscillators. They are part of the subjective experience generated by our internal model.