[ExI] VERY cool. Toward mind uploading?

[Jason Resch]

It's still confused regarding the reference.

This reference is about the first time an insect brain has been emulated
within a virtual environment and found to replicate various behaviors like
running, self cleaning, and seeking food.

The AI still seems to think this is about deriving the connectome (which is
just a file) rather than emulating the connectome (which requires computing
their behavior), which has been done, and it as a prerequisite to get here.
But it's not the subject of the medium article.

Jason

On Sun, Mar 8, 2026, 1:42 PM BillK via extropy-chat <
extropy-chat at lists.extropy.org> wrote:

>
> On Sun, 8 Mar 2026 at 17:01, Ben Zaiboc via extropy-chat <
> extropy-chat at lists.extropy.org> wrote:
>
>>
>> Dros. /larva/ connectome??
>> Where did it get that from? We're talking about an adult connectome.
>>
>> These are going to be very different things, I'd expect (seeing as the
>> larva's structure is completely broken down and rebuilt during pupation,
>> and the larval and adult forms have different sensory and motor equipment,
>> their brains pretty much /have to/ be different).
>>
>> If this is a 'hallucination', and the article you provided is about the
>> adult fly brain, this just reinforces my tendency to be highly skeptical of
>> anything these LLMs say.
>>
>> Ben
>> ______________________________________________
>>
>
>
>
> I told Gemini that the video referenced was wrong. Gemini thought about it
> for 5 minutes (a long time or an AI!), then found the correct link and
> revised the analysis. No significant changes, though.
> BillK
>
> Gemini AI 3.1 Pro Thinking -
>
> Apologies for the error in the previous link. You are correct—the video I
> referenced was not the intended one.
>
> The correct research regarding the *Drosophila larva connectome*
> (published in *Science* by Marta Zlatic and colleagues) is indeed the
> first time an entire insect brain has been mapped at the synaptic level.
> This breakthrough directly addresses the functionalist debate.
> Discussion of Implications for the Three Objections:
>
> Based on the actual findings of the 3,016-neuron and 548,000-synapse map,
> here is a refined look at the implications:
>
> *1. Emulations of brains aren't possible*
>
>    -
>
>    *Status:* *Strongly Challenged.* * *Discussion:* Previously, this
>    objection relied on the "complexity gap"—the idea that biological brains
>    involve non-computable processes or too many variables (like
>    neurochemistry) to digitize. However, this project successfully mapped the
>    "first complete wiring map". By moving from the nematode (*C. elegans*,
>    ~300 neurons) to the fruit fly larva (~3,000 neurons), researchers have
>    proven that the engineering is scalable. It shifts the debate from "Is it
>    possible?" to "How long until we reach 86 billion neurons?"
>
> *2. Emulations of brains aren't conscious*
>
>    -
>
>    *Status:* *Unfalsifiable / Weakened.*
>    -
>
>    *Discussion:* The map shows exactly how the brain converts sensory
>    signals (smell, light) into complex behaviors (feeding, escaping). If a
>    digital copy exhibits identical "purposive" behavior—fleeing from "pain" or
>    seeking "food"—the functionalist argues there is no empirical reason to
>    deny it a corresponding internal state. Critics must now point to a
>    specific "missing" biological component that doesn't show up in behavior,
>    which becomes increasingly difficult as the behavioral repertoire of the
>    emulation expands.
>
> *3. Emulations of brains are differently conscious*
>
>    -
>
>    *Status:* *Supported / Reinforced.*
>    -
>
>    *Discussion:* The research found that the fly brain uses "nested
>    structures" and "recurrent neural networks" (feedback loops) that are
>    remarkably similar to high-powered Artificial Intelligence. However, the
>    digital version runs on discrete silicon cycles rather than continuous
>    biological chemistry. This suggests that while the "logic" of consciousness
>    might be the same, the *subjective experience* (the "texture" of its
>    thoughts or its perception of time) would likely be fundamentally different
>    from its biological counterpart because the underlying hardware dictates
>    the "refresh rate" of its reality.
>
> Recommended Video
>
> *Wiring map reveals how larval fruit fly brain converts sensory signals to
> movement <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pQuNLWKSZMQ>*
>
> This video discusses the details of the *Science* paper, explaining how
> the 3,016 neurons were mapped and how this "connectome" allows researchers
> to predict signal flow for complex behaviors.
>
> ----------------------------------
>
>
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