与摩根·弗里曼一起穿越虫洞（2010）

比一般的蚯蚓小很多
much smaller than a typical earthworm.
这种几乎看不见的虫子叫做线虫
This barely visible worm is known as c. Elegans.
看起来貌似不起眼
Now, it may seem insignificant,
但这家伙荣幸地成为了
but this little guy has the distinction
生物学和神经科学中被研究的最透彻
of being one of the most thoroughly studied animals
的动物之一
in all of biology and neuroscience.
史蒂芬和他的同事
Steven and his colleagues
正在把数十年来对这种小虫的研究
are compiling decades of research about this tiny worm
编译成为
in order to create
世界上最真实的计算机生物
the world's most realistic computer-generated creature.
它只有1千个细胞，更准确地讲是959个
It only has about 1,000 cells, 959 to be exact,
只有302个神经元，大约95个体壁肌肉细胞
and only 302 neurons, about 95 body wall muscle cells.
听起来很容易造出来，但并不尽然
That sounds easy enough to build, but it's not.
每一个细胞都需要运行自己特定的计算机代码
Each cell needs to run its own specific computer code.
并且所有这些代码必须一起工作
And all the pieces of code must function together,
就像细胞间彼此连接
just as the connected cells do.
一旦完成，它将不仅有真实的外表
When finished, it won't just look real.
也会有真实的行为
It will act real.
它会寻找虚拟的食物，制♥造♥虚拟的废物
It will seek virtual food, produce virtual waste,
产生虚拟的后代
and create virtual offspring.
创造它绝非儿戏
And making it will not be child's play.
这个小遥控车
This little, remote-controlled car
其部件数量只有线虫的大约十分之一
only has about one-tenth as many parts as c. Elegans.
这里
Now, here,
我们还有一个正常尺寸的车，由上千个部件构成
we have a full-size car made of thousands of parts
包括了计算机、接线
including computers and wiring.
它能做各种各样复杂的工作
It does all sorts of complex things,
比如导航、空调
like navigation, air conditioning.
照明
It has lights.
一只虫子的组件
A worm's components
像车的组件一样，是彼此连通的
are interconnected, just like those of a car.
除了构建虫子的肌肉细胞
In a worm, in addition to building muscle cells
和神经细胞
and nerve cells,
我们也需要对肌肉细胞是如何协作的
we're also creating models of how muscle cells work together
以及神经系统该怎样工作进行建模
and how the nervous system should work.
然后，我们把这些肌肉细胞与神经系统相连
Then, we can connect the muscle cells to the nervous system.
我们做完了这些事，结果可能是这样的
Now, when we do that, this may be the result.
漏洞重重，根本不好使
Nothing.
涉及到的相互作用太复杂了
Because of all the complex interactions.
如果史蒂芬和他的同事们
But if Steven and his colleagues
精确地模拟出线虫的每一个细胞
precisely simulate every cell of c. Elegans
所有的子程序能一起正常工作
and get all those individual programs working together,
那他的计算机化的虫子就可以做到任何车都做不到的事情
his computerized worm will do something no car can.
它可以完全在自己的控制下生活
It will live and act completely under its own control.
这是个难得多的挑战
It's a much bigger challenge
相比于用程序创造酷炫的游戏角色
than just programming flashy video-game characters
它们只是看起来像生命的一种近似解
that look like real-life approximations of creatures.
如果我们想，我们已经可以编程实现
If we wanted to, we could already program a c. Elegans
让线虫看起来能做各种神奇的事情
and make it look like it can do all sorts of amazing things.
迄今为止，史蒂芬和他的同事
So far, Steven and his colleagues
已经写完了虫子部分肌肉和神经细胞
have written programs for some of the worm's muscle
的程序
and nerve cells.
但他们仍然在攻克
But they're still working on code to simulate
模拟它们之间复杂的电学和化学相互作用
the complex electrical and chemical interactions
的代码
between them.
我们还有大把的工作要做，才能把一切都建好
So we still have a lot of work to get everything built,
彼此连通成网，使得我们的虚拟虫子
wired and connected together so that our virtual worm
能像真实的、生物的虫子一样行动
will behave just as a real, biological worm.
下一个阶段就是去模拟更复杂的生物
Then the stage will be set to work on more complex creatures.
一个人是由上万亿个细胞组合起来的
A human is made up of trillions of cells,
所以创造一个生物学上精确的
so creating one biologically accurate,
计算机生成的人类
computer-generated person
就好比把1亿辆车的所有零件
would be like wiring together all the parts
全都连线在一起
in more than 100 million cars.
这也许需要几十年甚至几个世纪
It may take many decades or even centuries,
但我相信，终有一天
but I believe that, one day,
我们能够建立我们自己的虚拟版本
we should be able to build virtual versions
不管怎么看都与我们相似
of ourselves that are like us in every way.
所以我们必须接受这种想法
So we'll have to get used to the idea
即虚拟的、人工的实体也许有一天
that virtual or artificial entities may someday think
会有自主的思维和行为
and act for themselves.
嘿！怎么跑了！
Hey, wait!
如果我们已经生活在了虚拟现实里
If we're already living in a virtual reality,
我们肯定是栩栩如生的人工生物
then we must be those lifelike artificial creatures.
但我们怎么能证明这一点呢？
But how can we prove it?
这名物理学家相信，在我们的宇宙中
This physicist believes he's found a glitch
他发现了一个小故障
in the workings of our universe
可以告诉我们，黑客帝国是个现实
that could show us the matrix is a reality.
人工环境建立于3D网格之上
Artificial environments are built on a 3-D grid.
如果有人在计算机里建立了我们的宇宙
If someone built our universe in a computer,
我们应该能够发现支撑着万物的这种网格结构
we should be able to find this grid underpinning everything.
我们尚未发现任何迹象
We've never seen any sign of it,
但一位科学家认为，他知道如何看到
but one scientist thinks he knows how to look
宇宙的表面之下
under the surface of the cosmos
去确认是否有一个人工的线框
to determine if there is an artificial wire frame
把现实结合在了一起
holding reality together.
西拉斯·比恩
Silas Beane,
华盛顿大学的一名核物理学家
a nuclear physicist at the University of Washington,
把网格想象作橄榄球场
thinks about the grid like a football field.
众所周知，橄榄球是格子状的
A football field is known as a gridiron
因为有这些距离标记
because of all the yardage markers.
如果你想象一下，扩展这些距离标记
Now, if you imagine extending those yardage markers
从边线到边线，再从底线到底线
from sideline to sideline and from end zone to end zone,
然后进一步扩展这些网格线
then further extend those grid lines
向球场上方延伸到三维
into the third dimension above the field,
你就得到了一个网格或者说栅格的结构
then you have a grid or lattice structure,
这与电子游戏环境
which is very similar to the foundations
的基础很类似
of the environment of a video game.
直觉上，我们认为周围的空间
We instinctively think of the space around us
是连续、不可分的
as continuous and indivisible.
空间不能划分成方块
Space doesn't appear to come in cubes.
但在数字现实中，是可以的
But in a digital reality, it would.
这样的网格必须比我们所知道的最小的东西
Our grid would have to be smaller than the smallest thing
亚原子粒子，还要小
we know, a subatomic particle.
这些相互连接的
There would still be minute distances
网格上的点之间
between the points on the grid
仍然有微小的距离
that are connected to each other.
如果我们活在模拟中
If we're living in a simulation,
时空看起来就会像是这样
then this is what spacetime could look like.
空间总是离散的小块，而不是连续的
Space will always be in discrete pieces rather than continuous.
粒度这麽细的三维网格
Such a fine-grained, 3-D grid
我们在日常生活中是不可能注意到的
would be impossible to notice in our daily lives.
它们甚至能躲过所有的科学实验
It would even elude almost all scientific experiments.
但是西拉斯和他的同事们
But Silas and his colleagues
设计了一个方案，探测它是否存在
have devised a plan to detect it if it exists.
他认为宇宙中最具爆♥炸♥性的事件
He thinks the most explosive events in the universe
也许会出♥卖♥♥♥它
might give it away.
超新星产生了
Supernovas generate streams
超高能量的宇宙射线粒子流
of super-high energy cosmic ray particles,
但物理学家们发现它们有些怪异的地方
but physicists have noticed something strange about them.
他们期望看到的能量最高的宇宙射线缺失了
The highest-energy cosmic rays they expect to see are missing.
西拉斯认为网格可能是罪魁祸首
Silas thinks the grid might be the culprit.
如果现实是真实的
If reality is real,
我们的宇宙中没有人工的结构
and there's no artificial structure to our universe,
那麽宇宙射线粒子诞生之初
then there is no upper limit on the energy
所拥有的能量就不会有上限
that a cosmic ray particle can have when it is first created.
但这个上限似乎的确是存在的
But there does seem to be a limit,
我们称之为宇宙射线截断
what we call the cosmic ray cut-off.
如果宇宙射线受到限制，只能沿着网格线移♥动♥
If cosmic rays are restricted to moving only along grid lines,
它的能量看起来就会是断裂的
it could act as a break on their energy.