Ignoring the fact that this is a contrived edge case of disputable relevance to the Omega-predicting-human-decisions problem, there is still a model being run.
Why does it need to be a programmer? Why would non-programmers not be able to predict the output of this function with 100% accuracy?
What, then, is the difference in what a programmer does versus what a non-programmer does?
Clearly, the programmer has a more accurate mental model of what the function does and how it works and what its compiler (and the thing that runs the compiled code) or interpreter will do. Whether the function is “truly run” or “truly simulated” is at this point a metaphysical question similar to asking whether a mind is truly aware if you only write each of its computation steps using large amounts of small stones on the sand of an immense desert.
Ignoring the fact that this is a contrived edge case of disputable relevance to the Omega-predicting-human-decisions problem, there is still a model being run.
Why does it need to be a programmer? Why would non-programmers not be able to predict the output of this function with 100% accuracy?
What, then, is the difference in what a programmer does versus what a non-programmer does?
Clearly, the programmer has a more accurate mental model of what the function does and how it works and what its compiler (and the thing that runs the compiled code) or interpreter will do. Whether the function is “truly run” or “truly simulated” is at this point a metaphysical question similar to asking whether a mind is truly aware if you only write each of its computation steps using large amounts of small stones on the sand of an immense desert.