Re: cool memeware

From: Anders Sandberg (asa@nada.kth.se)
Date: Thu Dec 19 2002 - 01:41:34 MST


On Wed, Dec 18, 2002 at 10:07:53PM -0800, nanowave wrote:
> Although I'm pulling the following range out of my rear end, and
> purposefully ignoring other important factors such as education, ideology,
> sf exposure, and web-ability etc., I feel a good transhumanist candidate
> (100% >H lore virgin) probably falls between the ages of 28 and 40 years,
> nine times out of ten. Any younger, and they're probably too focused on
> other matters to give much thought to getting old and actually dying one
> day, or trying to figure out their place in the evolving metaverse. Any
> older, and their memes/dreams have probably hardened more than their
> arteries.

I doubt this is true. My own experience is that it is very easy to
get younger people interested in transhumanism, maybe *too* easy -
they are attracted to it and then cling to it as a somewhat
undigested view they just have accepted, not really considered
deeply. On the other hand older people are far more mentally flexible
than our culture gives them credit for, but usually they demand a bit
more in-depth discussion before they start to believe in all the >H
stuff (which IMHO is a healthier approach but demands more of
proselytizers).

> That's why I thought this item was rather interesting:
> http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?click_id=116&art_id=qw1039668480796B241&set_i
> d=1

Sounds like a wonderful educational tool. I can imagine something
akin to the childcare classes today where people drag around a bag of
flour with a beepy alarm clock to simulate caring for a baby, but in
this case an "ageing awareness class" to get people to really
understand *why* life extension is a good thing.

-- 
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Anders Sandberg                                      Towards Ascension!
asa@nada.kth.se                            http://www.nada.kth.se/~asa/
GCS/M/S/O d++ -p+ c++++ !l u+ e++ m++ s+/+ n--- h+/* f+ g+ w++ t+ r+ !y


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