# Can We Test Whether the Universe Is a Simulation by Keith Devlin > “Can we develop a procedure that, in principle, would tell us whether or not our universe is a simulation (analogous to the way the now proven Poincaré Conjecture can tell us the universe’s shape)?” > **— Keith Devlin**, *2018, Edge Annual Question, “WHAT IS THE LAST QUESTION?”* ## Sources and Context - **Direct Edge response and surrounding essay:** [The Last Question](https://www.edge.org/response-detail/27547) — Edge published this exact, continuous passage in its 2018 Annual Question collection, *WHAT IS THE LAST QUESTION?*. The response page preserves the surrounding argument and qualifications. - **Complete local collection index:** [[research/Edge 2018 Full Quotation Curation|Edge 2018 Full Quotation Curation]] — retained source-first record for the response cohort and this passage's promotion status. ## Related Articles and Collections - **Collection:** [[collections/Edge|Edge]] - **Collection:** [[collections/Consciousness Continuity|Consciousness Continuity]] - **Collection:** [[collections/Neurotech|Neurotech]] - **Article:** [[articles/Technologies for Consciousness Mapping and Transfer|Consciousness Mapping and Transfer]] - **Article:** [[articles/The Organic-Synthetic Brain Atlas|Organic-Synthetic Brain Atlas]] - **Article:** [[articles/Machine Intelligence from Cortical Networks and the Allen Institute|Cortical Networks]] - **Wiki map:** [[wiki/Simulation Hypothesis|Simulation Hypothesis]] ## Related Topics - [[wiki/Simulation Hypothesis|Simulation Hypothesis]] - [[wiki/Virtual Reality|Virtual Reality]] - [[wiki/Predictive Processing|Predictive Processing]] - [[wiki/Deep Time|Deep Time]] ## Share on Social Media ``` “Can we develop a procedure that, in principle, would tell us whether or not our universe is a simulation (analogous to the way the now proven Poincaré Conjecture can tell us the universe’s shape)?” — Keith Devlin, 2018, Edge Annual Question, “WHAT IS THE LAST QUESTION?” https://bryantmcgill.com/simple-reminders-keith-devlin-test-whether-universe-simulation ```