glitch in the Matrix

English

Etymology

Referencing the Matrix series of movies (1999–), in which humanity is imprisoned in a lifelike simulation of reality while machines have taken control of the "real" world.

Noun

glitch in the Matrix (plural glitches in the Matrix)

1. (informal) An extremely bizarre event that seems to be only explainable by a glitch in the fabric of reality.
   • 2016 April 27, Lauren Ingram, “’I guess I know what my son will look like in 70 years’: Dad comes face to face with the ’future version’ of his child in the grocery store”, in Daily Mail‎^[1], London: DMG Media, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2017-02-04:

     Some people linked to other Reddit threads about photos of time travel 'proof' or 'glitches in the matrix'.

   • 2019 June 3, Luke Buckmaster, “Forget the pyramids, the greatest mystery of our time is what happened to Yahoo Serious”, in Katharine Viner, editor, The Guardian‎^[2], London: Guardian News & Media, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2023-06-03:

     Over the years I have invested an inordinate amount of time obsessing over the glitch in the matrix that delivered us this weirdly named man (born Greg Pead) and then took him away so suddenly.

   • 2021 December 7, Nitsuh Abebe, “John Wilson, the Genius Behind the Weirdest Show on TV”, in The New York Times‎^[3], New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2023-07-10:

     But Wilson does magic with his staggering archive of street footage, all full of details that, if you encountered them yourself, you'd ponder for days: peculiar behaviors, dreamlike coincidences, strange omens and general "glitches in the Matrix," as he puts it.

   • 2023 July 13, Elizabeth McCafferty, “More and more people believe we live in a computer simulation – but why?”, in Dazed‎^[4], London: Dazed Media, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2023-07-17:

     Jessica, based in Long Island, New York, has been receiving 50 to 100 emails per week of people sharing their 'glitch in the matrix' stories.

See also

• simulation hypothesis