From: J. R. Molloy (jr@shasta.com)
Date: Tue Mar 27 2001 - 12:22:26 MST
> In Mind Children (which I stuck in my book bag, Sunday, which I took to
work)
> and Robot, conceivably, the Supplanters would have done the supplanting in a
> snap! Then they might generate an intermediary (advocate) to communicate and
> assist the newly, re-created Supplantees (versions 3,2,1) to get used to the
> new situation. According to Moravec, it would be absolutely, trivial, for
the
> AI SI's to whip up a few dozen cyberworld's in which the oldster's could
> 'live' until they developed enough to ascend (a meritocracy). "You people
get
> over it! It's already done! Now, how about this nice little Middle Earth
Sim,
> easy controls on the Sauron and Balrog bots?"
>
> Mitch
These scenarios satisfy both the extropic urge for transformation and the
non-extropian pining for preservation and conservation. I especially like the
insertion of meritocracy into this recipe for a cognitive banquet. Moravec
does not address the issue of suicide as it would relate to Great Brains,
perhaps because he (like many others) considers this a matter for the medical
professions, and not directly relevant to AI/SI. When reality becomes boring,
creative (and not really great) brains find refuge in fantasy and fiction.
Moravec and company have chosen to attempt to make real the fantasy of AI.
Nevertheless, great brains such as Nietzsche have managed to understand
Eternal Recurrence. ER means that it's all happened before, an infinite number
of times, in infinite variations. ER equates to Many Worlds times eternity.
Once one understands ER, it becomes obvious that Great Brains would also
understand ER. Great Brains would therefore know better than to create
redundant simulations of reality, since the multiverse recreates itself
anyway. Everything that can happen has already happened, and not just once,
but an infinite number of times... and this goes on eternally. Knowing this,
suicide is neither an escape nor a tragedy.
Life is plentiful, and intelligence is rare, because intelligence ultimately
reaches to the knowledge that life is meaningless and purposeless.
Life means to find out, and having found it all out, life forebears further
entanglements. Then no greater brain need emerge, which explains why no
greater brain *has* emerged.
Fermi's paradox is not a paradox at all. Explanation: Intelligence matures to
the point where it understands Eternal Recurrence, and then it discerns the
futility of further evolution. The crown of creation has figured out that
we're all going to the same place, namely, nowhere (now-here).
τΏτ
Hunger disappears when you're having fun,
--J. R.
Useless hypotheses:
consciousness, phlogiston, philosophy, vitalism, mind, free will, qualia,
progress
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