From: Robert J. Bradbury (bradbury@aeiveos.com)
Date: Fri Oct 11 2002 - 16:22:32 MDT
On Fri, 11 Oct 2002, gts wrote:
> Rafal and Robert...
Oh boy, now we are stirring up the mix. We may have
Soul Train on PCP here.
Where the hell is Anders in this discussion? This is his
field and he's either missing the game or sitting on the
sidelines chuckling as the rest of us struggle.
> Here are some additional research abstracts that should be of interest
> here and which support my case.
Oh yea, you wish. Ooopppss wait -- thats probably a personal attack.
Where is the Extropic BDSM mistress to punish me for such flagrant
violations.
> The first abstract supports my point to Rafal that non-DNA neural
> parameters change in response to the environment, implying that a record
> of today's non-genetic neuronal structures is insufficient for
> preserving the personality into the future.
Ok, snipping the abstracts and trying to be serious.
"non-DNA neural parameters change in response to the environment"
Granted. They are required to to produce "memory" as we know it.
"a record of 'today's' non-genetic neuronal structures is insufficent
for preserving personality into the future"
This is a bit unclear to me. You seem to be suggesting that
the personality (of people who have SAD) is regulated by DNA
and that must be preserved to reproduce the "personality".
But as an individual who may very well be affected by SAD,
I'm well aware of the fact that I may be able to move from
Seattle to Phoenix and trump the genetic program that may be
running my personality (or more accurately "moods").
So one vector of "personality preservation" seems to run
along the lines of "don't change any environmental conditions"
(which is certainly external to the DNA). Another vector
seems to run along the lines of "don't let any individuals
self-modify". And we *know* (I hope) that those vectors
should not be universally truncated in a transhumanistic vision.
If I know I'm affected by SAD, presumably dictated by my
genes, shouldn't my personality be able to say "screw that"?!?
And I've got a couple of choices -- either change the environment
dictating the amount of sunlight I'm exposed to or change the
genes that dictate the downstream effects of the lack of
sunlight.
With regard to uploading, outloading, upevolution, etc.:
I think the foundations of this discussion go back to the
question of whether or not the "functions" of DNA can or
cannot be "emulated". I'd like to have gts agree that they
can be emulated (I think this is my position and Rafals)
or that they cannot be emulated (and if so explain why this
is the case).
Robert
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