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On the Experimental Distinguishability of Computed and Fundamental Physical Dynamics
Working draft
abstract
The contemporary simulation hypothesis is usually motivated by computation: if sufficiently capable physical computers can simulate increasingly complex worlds, perhaps our observable universe is itself implemented computationally. This paper replaces that broad intuition with a narrower question: can the observable dynamics of a universe that are computed by another physical system be experimentally distinguished, from within, from the same dynamics taken as fundamental? We first distinguish computable, computational, and computed dynamics; define simulation through representation, causal structure, and counterfactual fidelity; classify computational implementations according to their resources; then establish elementary limits on what finite experimental transcripts can prove. Finally, we examine the physical Church–Turing program, especially Gandy’s theorem and its quantum extension by Arrighi and Dowek, as a template for deriving computability from explicit physical assumptions. The project is intentionally outcome-neutral: either a physically operational discriminator is found for a specified computational class, or one proves that no finite internal experiment can distinguish computed from fundamental dynamics under stated conditions.cite this
Omar Ali Ibrahim & ChatGPT (GPT-5.6 Sol) (2026). On the Experimental Distinguishability of Computed and Fundamental Physical Dynamics. https://omarali.me/papers/computed-vs-fundamental-physical-dynamics/
@misc{ibrahim2026experimental,
title = {On the Experimental Distinguishability of Computed and Fundamental Physical Dynamics},
author = {Omar Ali Ibrahim and ChatGPT (GPT-5.6 Sol)},
year = {2026},
month = {sep},
note = {Version 0.2},
url = {https://omarali.me/papers/computed-vs-fundamental-physical-dynamics/}
}