From: Darin Sunley (darin25@hotmail.com)
Date: Sun Jul 12 1998 - 15:54:56 MDT
>Suppose the computer has redundancy internally so that everything is
>duplicated, two copies of each processor side by side, likewise for
memory
>elements, communication circuits, etc. You are run on such a computer.
>Someone proposes to remove some element of the redundancy so that
>there will no longer be this internal duplication. Will this kill you?
Further to someone's point eariler that there are two points of view
involved here, mine and my double's:
Is it meaningful to speak of two POV's when we have two, carefully
synchronized virtual worlds happening here?
>From my POV (as the virtual person who is not being deleted) I would
have no problem, since I maintain continuity of experience.
>From the POV of the deleted-me, I'm not certain. It seems to me there is
a difference between death and lack of continuity of experience.
Part of the difference here is with the idea of discrete clock ticks. If
I were to cease to exist between "clock-ticks" of the universe, then by
definition, I would never know. It would be like turning off the lights.
I feel, intuitively, that erasing one's percieved existence may be on a
different moral level then murder. Again, lack of continuity of
experience is not the same as death.
Why do I get the distinct feeling I'm defending this really badly? :)
Darin Sunley
darin25@hotmail.com
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