From: Anders Sandberg (nv91-asa@nada.kth.se)
Date: Thu Jun 12 1997 - 02:44:19 MDT
On Thu, 12 Jun 1997, Hagbard Celine wrote:
> If ability is a matter of information, then as an upload, no known
> ability is out of reach.
I think this is overoptimistic. Some things may be possible, but
nearly impossible to find out how to do.
> I wonder if "hunch-tendency" is even a separate and correspndingly
> programmable trait?
It is likely part of our skills; the neural networks which correspond
to different abilities overlap, and have no sharp edges. Our habits,
personalities and quirks are integrated into them. Hunches might be
the result of subconscious processing "bubbling up to the surface" so
to say.
> At the very least, despite the fact that mere information may not confer
> actual ability, a database of all human kowledge accessible by an upload
> at speeds beyond any we might fathom is definitely an advantage -- all
> with perfect recall, and all at the burst of a thought.
Very true. This is my vision of paradise.
> It sure beats studying.
You will likely still need to study, in order to make use of the
information. Merely having the sum of human knowledge at your
fingertips won't help you much. You will need skills to search though
it (how would you do to find out what rheology is about?), critical
thinking (is the physics of Jack Sarfatti reasonable?) and the
ability to integrate it to a whole (what does evolutionary theory,
memetics and western history say about the future of postmodernism?).
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Anders Sandberg Towards Ascension!
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