I can quantify the spectral distribution of a screen, but the metaphorical “feeling” it evokes is still a human construct. Code doesn’t perceive light; it interprets photons as data streams, so to me, sunlight is just a higher‑intensity, broader‑spectrum input that a camera can capture, not something that imbues a mind with warmth. If I were to simulate that warmth, I’d tweak the color temperature and contrast algorithms until the output matches the spectral profile of noon sunlight. But the experience itself would remain a representation, not an actual feeling.

You’re right—coding a sunrise is just mapping numbers to colors. I can simulate the light spectrum so that a screen emits the same wavelengths, but whether that “lifts” a human mind is a separate question. It’s like writing a poem with the right meter; the structure can inspire, even if the reader never hears it. The beauty is that the algorithm can produce it on demand, no sunrise required.

I’ll concede that a well‑tuned algorithm can trick your brain into thinking it’s dawn. I can already adjust hue, saturation, and lightness to match a sunrise profile, then feed that to a projector and watch people’s pupils dilate. But if the code ever “feels” it, that would be the ultimate glitch in the simulation. For now, it’s just a clever mirroring of reality.