From: Samantha Atkins (samantha@objectent.com)
Date: Sat Mar 09 2002 - 14:32:25 MST
Richard Steven Hack wrote:
> At 03:58 AM 3/9/02 -0800, you wrote:
>
>>> On Fri, 8 Mar 2002, Richard Steven Hack wrote:
>>>
>>>> I have no problem with that either. But the impression I got from some
>>>> of the comments on uploading was that it was intended as a *substitute*
>>>> for participating in reality or as the primary "residence" as it were
>>>> for a Transhuman.
>>>
>>
>>
>> What exactly would make reality in an uploaded state any less "real"
>> than reality in a non-uploaded state?
>
>
> The attitudes of those in it. That and the fact that you are inside a
> created system rather than interacting directly with the universe. By
> "reality" in my original post, I meant dealing with the physical
> universe outside one's personal physical boundaries. One can quibble
> the metaphysics, but you should be able to get my point.
>
>
One might argue that we have not interacted "directly with the
universe" since we climbed down from the trees, walked out of
the caves and started seriously building tools and culture.
This created habitat is no more artificial or less so than any
other we create. It is a way, in many aspects superior, of
dealing with reality. It is not make-believe or any less real.
Where are the "personal physical boundaries"? These
boundaries are quite porous. In an upload the boundaries might
or might not be considered to include the computational devices
one's program runs within and any devices one controls. But I
submit that is no less real and no less interacting with reality
than what you now experience. It is likely that you will be
much more aware of many more aspects of reality to far greater
depth than now and far more able to do interact with them. Even
now you can go into fugue if you want and cease to meaningfully
interact with reality.
- samantha
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