From: hal@finney.org
Date: Wed Nov 21 2001 - 22:48:20 MST
John Grigg writes:
> Art wanted to bring up all the scary possibilities of future nanotech.
> But, Merkle would bring things back to a positive note. I liked how
> Merkle could sidestep and put a positive spin on things. He is an
> adept speaker/debater. Art even commented on this several times in a
> sly way. lol Art wanted Merkle to expound on the dangers on nanotech
> programmed to devour the planet or kill people with blue eyes!
I just listened to the first hour, although the remainder should be
available at the artbell.com web site. This was an interesting exchange
but I wasn't too happy with the way Ralph sidestepped the question.
Art wanted to know whether nanotech wouldn't be a terrible tool for those
who want to destroy human life. This is a reasonable question especially
in light of recent events, and I think it needs to be answered squarely
and honestly, but it didn't seem to me that Ralph did that. He never
really came out and said yes or no, he would try to change the subject
or just refuse to answer. I thought he sounded evasive and unwilling
to admit that nanotech has a dark side.
Hal
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.1.5 : Sat Nov 02 2002 - 08:12:06 MST