A Darkly Comedic Exploration of Media, Markets and Mass Manipulation

The Human Simulation

A psychological and financial thought experiment exploring propaganda, tribalism, media incentives, social conditioning, and the repeating patterns hidden inside modern life.

“The Human Simulation”

The Human Simulation is Matthew Tansley’s strange, occasionally unhinged exploration of media narratives, market psychology, social conditioning, propaganda, financial incentives, and the systems quietly shaping modern behaviour.

Part thought experiment, part social satire, part market psychology breakdown, the book explores how narratives, tribalism, fear, incentives, and repetition influence both society and financial markets.

Some readers will think it’s insightful.
Others will think Matthew has completely lost his mind.

Either way, you probably won’t look at headlines, online culture, or market behaviour in quite the same way afterwards.

A Note From the Author

If you still think unicorns are real, the media isn’t biased, democracy is alive and well, and crooked politicians are just ‘silly billies’, then this book may irritate you.

Even if you already suspect something feels off, you may still decide I’ve completely lost my mind by the end of it.

That’s fair enough.

But throughout the book I’ll walk through examples of how the ideas inside it connect to markets, media narratives, group psychology, financial behaviour, and the strange emotional cycles that increasingly drive modern life.

Some of those patterns also appear surprisingly often in financial markets.

In fact, parts of this framework helped shape how I interpreted the 2022 crypto collapse and the broader emotional cycle surrounding it.

So this is the deal:

First we look at propaganda, tribalism, behavioural conditioning, and mass psychology.
Then we explore what happens when those forces collide with media systems, incentives, and modern economies.
Finally, we look at how understanding recurring emotional and behavioural patterns can sometimes create an edge in markets and decision-making.

Worst case, you’ll have wasted your afternoon and can retreat back into your comfortable world view, merrily telling your in-group that Matthew is a nutjob to be avoided.
I wouldn’t blame you.

Best case, a few things start clicking into place.

You may not agree with every conclusion in the book. Honestly, I’m not even sure I agree with them. But if nothing else, it will make you look at modern life and mass behaviour a little differently.

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This book might be the ramblings of a mad man, I’m not sure. So to find out, I’m giving away a free version to anyone who signs up with Money and Mirth.

All the breasts,
Matthew