How magic really works in HPMOR, my guess:
Spells are like functions in a computer program—ways to manipulate data (the world) without understanding the underlying implementation (how the spell actually makes changes happen). The next level up from the magical world is an enormous computer such as the one described in Permutation City, except with quantum hardware to continuously and seamlessly recompute the present and the preceding six hours. The machine’s creator and friends copied themselves into this Universe, and gave themselves magic, implemented through spells/functions that change the physical world when triggered. One program provides a terminal or other way to create new spells, and appears to wizards who have become sufficiently experienced with magic to meet the terminal spell’s requirements. The Interdict of Merlin was created by one of these learned wizards, who decided the terminal was too easy to get access to, after a newly ascended wizard made a programming error and erased Atlantis. In this Universe, the solution to the hard problem of consciousness is that NPCs are philosophical zombies and PCs are game-players from a universe one or more levels below the magical universe. That is, Harry is fully conscious but is actually an alien sitting in a virtual-reality console and suppressing part of their mind so as to fully experience only Harry’s in-universe experience. In the alien’s universe, there is a satisfying and provable answer to the hard problem of consciousness.
EDIT: I’m seeing a lot of negative votes. I will argue my case if you tell me what’s wrong.
This theory overlooks some very important information. Although its a possible deduction from in universe information ( if I saw magic, then I’m a lot more likely to think I’m in a simulation) it overlooks that this is a story. “And then he woke up” is a classic case of a terrible unsatisfactory ending. The writer wants the book to be good and wants people to recommend it to other people.
How magic really works in HPMOR, my guess: Spells are like functions in a computer program—ways to manipulate data (the world) without understanding the underlying implementation (how the spell actually makes changes happen). The next level up from the magical world is an enormous computer such as the one described in Permutation City, except with quantum hardware to continuously and seamlessly recompute the present and the preceding six hours. The machine’s creator and friends copied themselves into this Universe, and gave themselves magic, implemented through spells/functions that change the physical world when triggered. One program provides a terminal or other way to create new spells, and appears to wizards who have become sufficiently experienced with magic to meet the terminal spell’s requirements. The Interdict of Merlin was created by one of these learned wizards, who decided the terminal was too easy to get access to, after a newly ascended wizard made a programming error and erased Atlantis. In this Universe, the solution to the hard problem of consciousness is that NPCs are philosophical zombies and PCs are game-players from a universe one or more levels below the magical universe. That is, Harry is fully conscious but is actually an alien sitting in a virtual-reality console and suppressing part of their mind so as to fully experience only Harry’s in-universe experience. In the alien’s universe, there is a satisfying and provable answer to the hard problem of consciousness.
EDIT: I’m seeing a lot of negative votes. I will argue my case if you tell me what’s wrong.
It seems ridiculously complicated. Simple hypotheses backed by evidence trump complex hypotheses.
This theory overlooks some very important information. Although its a possible deduction from in universe information ( if I saw magic, then I’m a lot more likely to think I’m in a simulation) it overlooks that this is a story. “And then he woke up” is a classic case of a terrible unsatisfactory ending. The writer wants the book to be good and wants people to recommend it to other people.