Whoa, Dude, Are We Inside a Computer Right Now?

The rhetoric in the article “Whoa, Dude, Are We Inside a Computer Right Now?” written by Ben Makuch is fairly convincing. The first sign of pathos can even be seen in the title, as colloquial language is used there and later in the article, so that the reader can relate to the topic even better. Later, there are two passages in which pathos is used to make emotional contact with the reader. Firstly, the author jokingly says that every college student with a gravity bong and The Matrix on DVD has thought about the question if our reality is the real one. This makes the reader think about the own reflections and discussions he or she might already have had. Secondly, the author presents the reader with the possibility of being controlled by an overweight 13-year-old Korean boy, which doubtlessly scares most people. The ethos is also very present in this article. In the second paragraph the author even stresses the fact that Rich Terrile is not just some college student but a well-regarded scientist and many more things and that he should be taken seriously. There is no lack of logos either, as the whole article is spiked with facts why this theory is very possible and not unrealistic at all. Some examples for this are the technological advances, which would make the incorporation of artificial consciousness into machines possible in just 30 years or the pixelation of the universe and the fact that even now supercomputers are twice as fast as a human brain. Overall, the article really makes this possibility sound very realistic through all three means of persuasion.