June '23

Black holes, interpreting reality, and the Apple Vision Pro.

Film poster for Blade Runner 2049 by James Jean

The News

Netflix: Summer 2023

Its that time of year again. I usually only pay for a streaming service for a couple months at a time, then once I get bored with their content, I’ll switch (between HBO/Netflix/Hulu/etc). That said, Netflix is set to release two new seasons for shows I thoroughly enjoy:

• The Witcher (Season 3)

• Black Mirror (Season 6)

This is just a PSA incase you forget (like I did) :p

Apple Vision Pro

Speaking of Black Mirror, anyone else see the Apple Vision Pro expo a couple weeks ago? As someone who is familiar with the computer vision technical space, I did not think we were this close to some of the features Apple announced.

For example:

• Interacting with a visual interface using just your eyes

• 3D pictures + video

• Casting movies + shows in pretty much any physical context

Feels like just yesterday we were talking about how this technology was 5-10 years away. Meanwhile, we’re a few short years (after Apple reduces the cost that is) from everyone owning a pair of these and spending the entirety of our time in the OASIS (reference to Ready Player One if anyone else has seen that movie — great depiction of a virtual reality simulation dominating a society imo).

For as much shit as virtual reality gets for being the epitome of a “future dystopian society” — I will say — some of these things are just plain cool.

Ideas

One Liners

Experimenting with a new “ideas” segment this month. Just a bunch of random one liners that I typically aggregate on my phone when they come to mind throughout the day/week.

• The Gods envy us.

• Adam and Eve were the last to be created by the hands of God.

• Road Work Ahead —> Gentrification Work Ahead

• What are your obscure interests?

Black Holes Abduct Photons

My interest in physics probably peaked by sophomore year in college (though it never completely waned) and more recently I tend to offset reading classic literature with some occasional scientific or economic work which scratches the itch. As of late, this focus has been on black holes.

Black holes are formed from collapsed stars and have such intense gravity that they warp time and space. And as you may already know, black holes get their name because at a certain point — referred to as the “horizon” — nothing escapes, not even light.

However, I learned recently that not all light is sucked into a black hole — some of it escapes. Yet, given how intense gravity is nearby, photons of light will sometimes spin around multiple times before finally escaping and shooting off into space (at the speed of light). This is what gives black holes the “ring of fire” look:

If you look closely, you can see that the “rings” spin faster near the event horizon and slower the farther away they get. This is a visual representation of how black holes “warp” space-time.

You can read more here if interested: The Photon Sphere

And I’d highly recommend this book on the entire subject: The Science of Interstellar

How Your GPS Works (Trilateration)

I think most people know the high level of how a GPS works. As in, you need a minimum of three points of reference to locate your exact position on Earth. This is often (wrongly) referred to as “triangulation”. Let me explain.

1. Satellite emits signal

   1. The signal contains one very important component: the time it was sent

2. Your GPS on Earth receives signal

   1. The GPS notes the time the signal was received

   2. It then compares the time the signal was sent to when it was received

   3. Using this time difference (and the speed at which the signal travels) the GPS receiver is able to determine the distance from the receiver to the satellite

So thats the basics of how a GPS receiver determines how far away a given satellite is (essentially just using timestamps). But as we all know, a GPS needs three satellites to determine its exact position. Lets take the example we just walked through (one satellite):

Your GPS doesnt know the angle at which the signal was propagated from the satellite — only the distance. Therefore, in relation to the satellite, you could be at any of the points on the above circle (which share the same distance from your GPS to the satellite). Hence, you need three distances (or three circles) to find your GPS’s exact location (the point which they all intersect):

Closing out, I want to add that this method is actually called “trilateration” which is often confused with “triangulation” given its simply using distances (not angles). So if someone ever tells you that a GPS uses triangulation to find your exact location feel free to correct them :p

Interpreting Reality

I’ve been rather interested in metaphysics recently and been doing a lot of pondering about the relationship between conscious experience and our innate human biology. That is — what is free will — if there be such a thing? Are we are simply neurons firing in concise intervals? If we make decisions because our neurons fire in accordance with some biological setting than how can we claim free will even exists? Does that mean life is deterministic?

I know its a heavy subject and honestly still do believe in “will to power” as Nietzsche likes to put it. Or if you’ve read Ayn Ran her response would probably be “Who is John Galt?”

But the crux of this argument (often made by Sam Harris) is that if we are beings that live a conscious experience based on predetermined biology and phycological disposition — then how can we condone someone for performing heinous acts? For example, if I steal a loaf of bread from a street vendor — the deterministic argument would be that if presented with that same decision a million times under the same exact biological/life conditions I would make the same (poor) decision regardless of morality/free-will.

And while its hard to argue with biology, no one truly believes this is the case right? We feel the gravity of making important decisions each and every day. And naturally you could argue that if someone were to honestly believe they did not have free will and that there decisions did not matter (given it was predetermined) then any decision to be made requires no stress, anxiety, or concern whatsoever. And do you know anyone like that? Where any decision, no matter the gravity, means nothing to them? That sounds like existential depression if you ask me.

I don’t know. Free will and human biology are an interesting paradigm when considered each in hand. Maybe they aren’t meant to be understood. Maybe that’s where faith lends a hand.

Some Literature

In honor of McCarthy passing away last week:

In the years to come he would walk the beach all but daily. Sometimes he’d lie at night in the dry sand above the wrack-line and like the mariners of old study the stars. Perhaps to see how he might plot his course. Or to see what enterprise might be read as favorable in their slow crawl over the black and eternal vastness. - Cormac McCarthy (The Passenger)