Sideband Dreams

This last weekend, I got myself some sushi and a nice dry sake then sat down and watched the first episode of Amazon's 'Electric Dreams'.  This is their anthology series based on the writings of Philip K. Dick and their answer to Netflix's 'Black Mirror'.  Based on that first episode, the series will have a lot in common with Mr. Dick: mind bending ideas that supersede the character and plot.  But they will not be direct visualizations of his stories.  Just like every other PKD story that's been filmed: they will be sidebands to his fundamental concept.

Granted, I've only seen one episode, 'Real Life', but as I've said before, I have a keyboard and access to the internet.  Being semi-informed (at best) is what goes on out here, so I'm going to dive in to a review-slash-tear-down-slash-ramble on that one episode.

Modest spoilers ahead if you care.

Tragic Vacation

'Real Life' stars Anna Paquin as a cop in a futuristic Chicago with flying cars and pop-up augmented reality displays.  She is trying to recover from a traumatic case and her girlfriend suggests that she take a vacation.. virtually.  Which she does, only to wake up as Terrance Howard, a virtual reality pioneer in a much more recognizable Chicago.  His character is also trying to deal with a personal trauma with more than a few similarities to Anna's character's.

After this setup, the episode then spends the rest of its time glossing over the personal tragedies and any resolution to them and instead focuses on which character/world is 'real'.  Is the futuristic cop with flying cars and a fulfilling relationship the fantasy or is the burned out billionaire mourning his dead wife?

While I agree that this is an interesting question, that the writer focused on this at the expense of the character/plot development means that the reveal falls a little flat: it is harder to care about the choice that the character(s) make.

How Will You Go Home If You're Already There?

Setting character development and plot issues aside, identifying 'real' is an interesting question.  It is not hard to imagine the problem proposed by the episode: if we can implant images and sounds and smells and tactile feeling into our heads, bypassing our genetically provided senses, then how are we going to know what is real?

This is the same question that 'Total Recall' asked... though based on a different PKD story.  ('Real Life' uses 'Exhibit Piece' and 'Total Recall' uses 'We Can Remember It For You Wholesale'.)  It is a recurring theme throughout much of PKD's writings, though not always in virtual space.  'Blade Runner' asks this about humans vs synthetic humans and  'Paycheck' asks this about memories, both based on PKD stories.

Memory Mark©

Right now, identifying RL from VL is easy.  VL is clunky and slow and, most importantly, requires us to use tools to manipulate the virtual world: game pads or wands, goggles or helmets.  But that will change.  The Uncanny Valley between physical reality and constructed reality WILL get bridged.  Most likely when we are able to directly manipulate the visual cortex and its equivalents for the other senses, bypassing those pesky eyes and ears and fingers and noses.  Then, it will be difficult.

A solution is to watermark memories.  A small light in the corner of our vision that persists in taking us slightly out of the moment.  That reminds us that what we are experiencing is not real.  Or maybe a smell, though that may be problematic as smells get ignored after a while and are tied more strongly to memory.   But there needs to be a sign, a clue, a something that helps our poor bio brains understand when we are outside of our native reality.

Unless Elon Musk is right and the whole universe is a simulation.  Then all bets are off.