Scientist who claimed he lived in 'the Matrix' suddenly disappeared 30 years ago in eerie true story
Jacobo Grinberg Zylberbaum experimented with shamanism, astrology, telepathy and meditation before he suddenly disappeared in 1994.
Born in Mexico City in 1946, Grinberg had a fascination with the human mind from an early age.
At just 12 years old, Grinberg witnessed his mother die from a brain tumour, and from that point on he decided he would study the human brain.
In the 1970s, Grinberg travelled to New York City to study psychophysiology at the Brain Research Institute, earning a PhD.
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Shortly after, Grinberg returned to Mexico and founded his own laboratory at the Universidad Anáhuac which specialised in psychophysiology.
Later, in 1987, Grinberg furthered his passion and founded the Instituto Nacional para el Estudio de la Conciencia (National Institute for the Study of Consciousness).
This is where Grinberg began to merge his scientific expertise with studies into things like meditation, shamanism, telepathy, and witchcraft and their connection to brain activity.
Most notably, Grinberg combined his scientific discipline with shamanism in an attempt to understand the 'magic world' and uncovering the relationship between science and consciousness.
Despite writing over 50 books on these kinds of topics, Grinberg and his work was largely rejected by the scientific community due to its connection with things like shamanism.
On December 8 1994 just a few days before his 48th birthday, Grinberg vanished and has not been seen since.
Given Grinberg's curiosity with matters of the 'magical', rumours and conspiracy theories began to swirl about his mysterious disappearance.
One of the most notable theories involves Grinberg's belief in a holographic simulation of reality, otherwise known as 'the Matrix'.
The theory posits that we are living in a simulated reality (different from a computer simulation theory) and that our world is simply a detailed illusion projected by our brains.
Grinberg believed that under the right circumstances, people can interact with 'perceptual reality' in an active sense rather than just watching it. And some theorize that this is what happened to Grinberg.
Other conspiracies are what you might expect, some suggest he was kidnapped by the CIA for 'knowing too much' while others say he could have been abducted by aliens.
Some connect his work with shamanism and meditation to his disappearance, suggesting he may have gotten so deep into the study of consciousness that he accidentally slipped into another dimension.
Aside from a supposed sighting by a gas station worker in New Mexico, the scientist has not be seen since.