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Thoughts on the Matrix
The Matrix doesn’t seem so bad from an objective point of view. Most of the people inside seem to feel okay, most of the time. So, why rebel against it? Sure, there are people in there who were dealt a bad card, like getting AIDS, being killed or dying early, facing starvation, etc., but there will always be suffering for some part of the human race. Like Agent Smith says, we seem to need misery to define ourselves.
The energy required to keep so many human bodies alive and well fed must outweigh the energy and heat provided by the bodies, even combined with “a form of fusion,” so why keep us alive at all? As far as I can tell, we aren’t that good of an energy source. If the machines and A.I. life forms are so hostile to humans, why was the original Matrix designed to b a paradise? Within the Matrix one is free to engage in whatever activity his or her status and personality command. If you can see past the Matrix, you can slow time, stop p bullets, fly, and so on; and leaving the Matrix to become a Zion rebel may not be the only way to see past it. After all, a computer system is easier to infiltrate if the hacker has access to it to begin with. Once you understand that there is no spoon, or whatever, it becomes easy to take control of the nonexistent whatever.
Besides, few people will wish to abandon the satisfactory near-utopia of the false 1999 for the hell we made of the real world. I personally would be likely to become a rebel, since that’s the way I am, but many of the people I know would simply follow the flow of the world they are accustomed to—the world of the Matrix.
The energy required to keep so many human bodies alive and well fed must outweigh the energy and heat provided by the bodies, even combined with “a form of fusion,” so why keep us alive at all? As far as I can tell, we aren’t that good of an energy source. If the machines and A.I. life forms are so hostile to humans, why was the original Matrix designed to b a paradise? Within the Matrix one is free to engage in whatever activity his or her status and personality command. If you can see past the Matrix, you can slow time, stop p bullets, fly, and so on; and leaving the Matrix to become a Zion rebel may not be the only way to see past it. After all, a computer system is easier to infiltrate if the hacker has access to it to begin with. Once you understand that there is no spoon, or whatever, it becomes easy to take control of the nonexistent whatever.
Besides, few people will wish to abandon the satisfactory near-utopia of the false 1999 for the hell we made of the real world. I personally would be likely to become a rebel, since that’s the way I am, but many of the people I know would simply follow the flow of the world they are accustomed to—the world of the Matrix.
Questions About the Matrix
Philosophical
--Is Neo programmed? I mean, if Smith can copy himself into a body, and he is a program, why can’t a program be superimposed onto a mind at birth and totally supplant the original person?
--Do the Smiths have a hive-mind?
--Why are there so many Biblical paralells?
--Why is Neo's death pose a crucifix?
--When the One dies, is a new one born immediately, or is there a lag?
--Is every new version of the One a reincarnation of the last version?
Technical
--How do hovercraft propulsion systems work, and why do the sentinels have no apparent propulsion systems?
--Why do the agents use bullets? Why not better weapons than guns?
--Where can I find technical manuals for all the machine technology?
--How does Smith copy himself onto Bane? For that matter, how does he copy himself at all?
--Did he copy himself onto all inhabitants of the Matrix, or just the one city?
--How does Sati "make" the sky for Neo, and what is her purpose as a program?
--How do operators, and anyone else in general, read the Matrix code, and how does Neo see it in 3D?
--Where did the ships (Nebuchadnezzar, Logos, Hammer) come from?
--Why don't Agents have perfect aim?
--Why can't Trinity fight Agents as well as Morpheus and Neo?
--Is there only one machine city? One mainframe? One source?
Philosophical and Technical
--How does Neo see in the real world after he is blinded, and exactly what is he seeing?
--Why does Neo see the overwritten Bane as wearing sunglasses? Is it just to show that he knows Smith has copied himself into Bane's body?
--If 'dead' in the Matrix is dead in the real world, why do the Zion rebels kill people (security guards, soldiers, cops) so freely?
--What happened to the original Smith?
--Did Smith copy onto animals as well as people?
--Why and when will we "see him [Neo] again?"
--Did the machines rebuild Zion the last six times it was destroyed?
Miscellaneous
--Why 1999? Peak of our civilization my ass! I'd like to think we're going to do better than we did in 1999.
--Is Neo programmed? I mean, if Smith can copy himself into a body, and he is a program, why can’t a program be superimposed onto a mind at birth and totally supplant the original person?
--Do the Smiths have a hive-mind?
--Why are there so many Biblical paralells?
--Why is Neo's death pose a crucifix?
--When the One dies, is a new one born immediately, or is there a lag?
--Is every new version of the One a reincarnation of the last version?
Technical
--How do hovercraft propulsion systems work, and why do the sentinels have no apparent propulsion systems?
--Why do the agents use bullets? Why not better weapons than guns?
--Where can I find technical manuals for all the machine technology?
--How does Smith copy himself onto Bane? For that matter, how does he copy himself at all?
--Did he copy himself onto all inhabitants of the Matrix, or just the one city?
--How does Sati "make" the sky for Neo, and what is her purpose as a program?
--How do operators, and anyone else in general, read the Matrix code, and how does Neo see it in 3D?
--Where did the ships (Nebuchadnezzar, Logos, Hammer) come from?
--Why don't Agents have perfect aim?
--Why can't Trinity fight Agents as well as Morpheus and Neo?
--Is there only one machine city? One mainframe? One source?
Philosophical and Technical
--How does Neo see in the real world after he is blinded, and exactly what is he seeing?
--Why does Neo see the overwritten Bane as wearing sunglasses? Is it just to show that he knows Smith has copied himself into Bane's body?
--If 'dead' in the Matrix is dead in the real world, why do the Zion rebels kill people (security guards, soldiers, cops) so freely?
--What happened to the original Smith?
--Did Smith copy onto animals as well as people?
--Why and when will we "see him [Neo] again?"
--Did the machines rebuild Zion the last six times it was destroyed?
Miscellaneous
--Why 1999? Peak of our civilization my ass! I'd like to think we're going to do better than we did in 1999.
The Math of the Matrix
(NOTE: All numbers not actually related in the films are conservative estimates and are in fact reduced from the original estimates I made while watching the films.)
--Assume 7 versions of the one, including Neo, as per the history of the Matrix as related by the Architect .
--Assume 100 years for each version to finish, as per the history of Zion as related by Morpheus.
--Assume 50 years for the early failures mentioned by Smith during his interrogation of Morpheus.
--Assume 10 years of war after the beginning of the machine rebellion.
--Assume 40 years of lead up to war after the creation of AI.
(100*7)+50+10+40=800 years
Morpheus says that while Neo believes it to be the year 1999, it is closer to 2199. So,
2199-800=1399
--Assume 7 versions of the one, including Neo, as per the history of the Matrix as related by the Architect .
--Assume 100 years for each version to finish, as per the history of Zion as related by Morpheus.
--Assume 50 years for the early failures mentioned by Smith during his interrogation of Morpheus.
--Assume 10 years of war after the beginning of the machine rebellion.
--Assume 40 years of lead up to war after the creation of AI.
(100*7)+50+10+40=800 years
Morpheus says that while Neo believes it to be the year 1999, it is closer to 2199. So,
2199-800=1399
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So, there you have it. I went on a kick sort of like this--philosophy, history, technology, and all--the first time I saw Star Wars and Star Trek too. I hope some of you might have something to add or be able to clear things up for me. Also, for those who know me personally, I know it seems really out of character for me to voluntarily engage in mathematical pursuits, but you also know how I can be when I get off on some philosophical end-run.
