[extropy-chat] >H pleasure (was: MOVIE: "The Singularity")

[Samantha Atkins]

On Sep 27, 2005, at 7:21 PM, Emlyn wrote:

> On 28/09/05, Adrian Tymes <wingcat at pacbell.net> wrote:
>
>> Which is not to say it won't be a problem.  I recall Natasha's
>> description, from several years ago, of telepathic intimacy.  Things
>> like that, while not absolute, could well prov to be powerful enough
>> addictions to essentially cause many to vegetate for long enough
>> periods as to cause near-term resource shortages.  (Even a
>> self-replicating system needs a certain minimum resource base to
>> survive, especially if a large part of itself has ceased
>> self-replicating or doing any other productive labor yet still  
>> requires
>> support.)
>>
>

I don't see it as a real problem, especially for >human folks able to  
observe and tinker with their own workings.  Such addictions would be  
noticed and corrected.  Anyone who has traveled a hedonistic path for  
very long comes to see pleasure for pleasure sake as rather boring  
sooner or later as long as heavy physiological addictions are not a  
significant issue.    Most of us learn there is more to do of  
interest than eat bon bons all day.

> Some days, I have great trouble working out how that differs from
> right now. Currently, there seem to be more than enough raw resources
> to go around, with very little of the population working on anything
> related to producing them (eg: 1% of workers are agricultural workers
> in the US, 10% I think are in manufacturing, remembering from "Rise of
> the Creative Class" by Richard Florida).
>

With modern agricultural methods more than 1% is not necessary.  Come  
MNT we may not need hardly any human workers to produce all the food  
and other material needs of all of humanity.  Does that mean than all  
human beings are useless?  Is the only meaning to existence to work  
at agriculture or manufacturing?  Do you think so?

> Whereas about 60% are service industry, about 30% are creative class
> (I think, my numbers might be out, for instance that all adds up to
> 101%!)
>


> Might we not view large chunks of the service industry and the
> creative class workers as producing nothing tangible? I do wonder
> whether much of modern work is the market inventing make-work to keep
> the money flowing.
>

Performing services for one another is producing nothing real?  How  
so?  Is the only thing of value a material object?  What of  
information, innovation, new ideas, exploration, entertainment,  
expanding insight, understanding,  ability, enjoyment?

What makes life meaningful to you?  There is no real "from the  
outside" to judge from.

- samantha