[ExI] Virtual Reality is where the aliens are

[Keith Henson]

On Fri, Aug 28, 2015 at 1:37 PM,  "spike" <spike66 at att.net> wrote:

snip

> The silence of the cosmos is making me damn uncomfortable, and I am thinking
> a lot on how to solve this psychological park bench I am on.  I know that my
> current understanding of the universe doesn't explain it; I know that even
> singularity theory doesn't explain it (it helps (but post-singularity
> societies should want to expand (and I see no evidence they have (ja?))))

This is perhaps a flawed assumption.  If the universe around us
suddenly expanded by a million fold, would we think interstellar
travel is even possible?

That is what happens if post singularity "humans" upload  into a fast
virtual reality.  Is this a strong attractor for all technological
societies?

> I
> am using some of my most creating thinking these days to try to resolve
> this, but I am no closer to getting comfortable than the homeless person on
> that hard old park bench.

On even days I think the aliens (and us) vanish into virtual reality.
On odd days I think we are the first in our light cone.  One day a
year I contemplate the grimmer possibilities and all the time work on
ways to avoid them.

> It could be something simple, such as advanced societies consistently fail
> to make the transition to renewable energy, so they all end up fighting over
> dwindling concentrated energy sources.  Or the really smart minority
> persistently get out-bred, so the population's collective intelligence and
> drive gradually dissipates like a mist in the cloudless spring dawn.
>
> I don't know Keith.  I worry.

I used to worry about this, but not for a number of years.  If Ray is
close to right, the kids who will lead the way into the singularity
have already been born.  If not, another generation will see advanced
genetic engineering and a crop of really smart kids.

Or if we are really unlucky, things will come unglued before we get to
either of those.  My best guess is that thing have already come apart
in some parts of the world and in such places they will get even
worse.

Keith

> spike
>