Are we living in a simulation? A new study digs into the unsettling possibility

One evening, while nursing a cup of tea, I found myself pondering a question that once seemed purely the stuff of science fiction: could our entire universe be nothing more than an elaborate computer programme? A recent study from the American Institute of Physics suggests this unsettling idea might be more than idle speculation, thanks to a fresh look at how information behaves at the deepest levels of reality.

Key points at a glance

• In 2019, physicist Dr Melvin Vopson proposed a mass-energy-information equivalence, arguing that information itself carries mass

• His follow-up work introduces a second law of infodynamics, showing that information entropy can decrease over time

• These findings hint at a purpose-built mechanism—much like data compression in software—that could point to a simulation hypothesis

Could information be a new kind of matter?

The heart of this theory lies in treating information not as an abstract concept but as a measurable entity capable of influencing physical systems. Drawing on Shannon’s renowned information theory, which underpins everything from mobile communications to data security, Dr Vopson and collaborator Serban Lepadatu investigated two very different information stores: digital files and the RNA genome of viruses. Conventional wisdom—based on the second law of thermodynamics—would predict a continual rise in entropy, that familiar march towards disorder. Yet the team observed something counterintuitive: the entropy of these information systems remained stable or even fell until they reached an equilibrium state. As Vopson explains in AIP Advances, “This powerful new law offers an additional tool to examine how information systems evolve over time.”

Tracking a fall in entropy

Perhaps the most vivid example comes from the ever-evolving SARS-CoV-2 virus. By charting the Shannon entropy of various viral variants against their mutation counts, the researchers found a clear linear decline in information entropy as mutations accumulated. In my own lab notebook, I jotted down a real-world parallel: sorting my overflowing email inbox often feels like pruning away chaos—each archived thread reduces the digital clutter, mirroring the virus’s steady informational slimming as it mutates.

Are atomic rules whispering about code?

The intrigue deepens when ordinary atomic physics comes into play. Take Hund’s first rule, a staple in physics courses: electrons spread out in a way that maximises total spin. Vopson shows this isn’t just a quirky rule of thumb but a direct consequence of the second law of infodynamics. Electrons arrange themselves to minimise information entropy, much as a piece of software might optimise its code for speed and efficiency.

Implications for the simulation hypothesis

Finally, the study turns cosmic. In an ever-expanding universe, physical entropy climbs, so to satisfy energy conservation and adiabatic expansion, information entropy must drop—preserving the total entropy budget. This cosmic bookkeeping resembles how computer programmes routinely compress data to save storage and energy. “Eliminating redundant information is akin to an algorithm stripping out superfluous code to optimise performance,” notes Vopson. If our universe follows the same pattern, could it be the ultimate data compression at work?

While the idea remains speculative, Dr Vopson suggests one tantalising test: collide a particle with its antiparticle and look for low-energy photons—the theoretical residue of erased information bits. Detecting those would not only cement information as a fifth state of matter but might even unravel the mystery of dark matter, which makes up some 27 per cent of the universe’s energy density. Until then, each flicker of symmetry in snowflakes, genomes and galaxy spirals reminds us that beneath the beauty of nature lies a questing mind, ever eager to decipher the code of existence.

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Brandon Lee

Hi, I’m Brandon from the Decatur Metro team. I guide you through the trends and events reshaping our region.