From: Wade Cherrington (Wade_c@uniserve.com)
Date: Sun Dec 08 1996 - 15:18:22 MST
>it implemented. Maybe, we can split it into Zones of thought: if
>you can't pass the arithmetic entrance test, you can admire the
>wonders of the Institute of Complexity from a distance, but can't
>touch them, or talk to their developers.
Since the the more advanced simulations will suck more server
time, it would make sense that we have some way of allocating
resources according to people's ability to effectively use them. It might
even prove an interesting exercise in a completely
laissez-faire system - people can gain credits for building a cool addition
to the world and charging admission, or for adding a link or program, or
could gain access to certain places by passing competency tests...all this
of course is speculation. First and foremost though, the world should be a
place just to have fun (but remember to bring your brain!), and for
transhumanists and other interested thinkers to chill out and chat with
others, share news and ideas, etc...
> The only downside that I see to this is that such creation would
>require effort to the tune of tens of millions of dollars (and then
>a lot more still). This could be done incrementally and after some
Immersive, full-sensory 3D will of course be an expensive proposition, due
to the high bandwidth and level of detail required. What I had more in mind
right now would just be a world that looked something like an online
Transhumanist/Extropian version of the game "Myst" but where you can
interact with other users online and play with some interesting applets.
(We can worry about building a "Permutation City" a little
closer to the Singularity...:))
>point the project may become self-supporting financially. Still, for
>the time being directing extropian effort into the more substantive
>development and propagation of ideas probably makes more sense.
> Ironically, the first large-scale VRML worlds that we may see,
>will most likely host various simulations of flesh, group sports,
>and "uploads" of natural objects/scenes. Thais is quite typical for
>many breakthrough situations, when the opportunities provided by
>the advanced fringe are exploited by the old but still powerful
>Establishment. (My other examples here would include human
>intelligence that is still a servant to people's primary animal
>urges, and results of the democratic revolution in Russia that
>came through passionate struggle of its best people but were
>mostly used to enrich the powerful Communist scums).
I'm thinking that if we play our cards right, we
might just be able leave the Establishment behind...
> I wonder if this scheme of events is going to work all the way
>through the rest of the social upload process (so far the liberation
>of different social functional mechanisms from the old physical
>carriers has been changing the tools, but not the nature, of the
>society).
Excellent call. Ayn Rand wrote along similar lines, about
how we live with and enjoy all the products of science,
reason and productive genius, yet if you look at what
occupies the time of 99% of society, we might as well be
still in the jungle. Changing this is unfortunately
not a matter of higher technology, but of memetics.
- Wade Cherrington
(wade_c@uniserve.com)
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"I believe in the type of optimism where we become our own gods"
- P.B. Shelley
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