[ExI] What should survive and why?

[Stathis Papaioannou]

On 06/05/07, Lee Corbin <lcorbin at rawbw.com> wrote:

In 2061 an AI ruling Earth has extremely recently discovered certain
> astounding things, such as how using quantum effects to produce
> infinitely many computations over a finite interval of time. Now, how
> to deal with all the troglotyte humans?  Well, maybe some of them
> will agree to this:  Y'all will be down loaded into one grain of sand
> on a shore in Siciliy, and during the first second, you will subjectively
> experience one second of your great life. During the next half second
> you will experience you will experience the next second, during the
> next quarter second, the third second, so that at the end, objectively,
> of two seconds the Ruling AI has eliminated the resource problem
> insofar as regards y'all.
>
> Or do you want more?  Do you want *objectively* to be around
> at all times and places in the future?
>

Subjective immortality is acceptable. Your example raises another
interesting issue in that the computation method proposed will allow all
possible computations to be implemented in the two seconds. Not only will
you be resurrected to live forever, so will every other possible variation
on your mind, and every other possible mind. This obviates the problem of
being certain that you are really you: the real you has to be in there
somewhere, as well as versions of you arbitrarily close to the real you.
Another consequence is that if you find yourself a conscious entity in this
infinite computer, you can be sure that your past memories and future
expectations will have corollaries in actual computations either in the past
or in the future (not necessarily respectively). We could be living in such
a world at the moment and not be aware of it.

-- 
Stathis Papaioannou
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