[extropy-chat] In the Long Run, How Much Does Intelligence Dominate Space?

Lee Corbin lcorbin at tsoft.com
Fri Jul 7 03:22:40 UTC 2006


Damien and Russell seized quickly upon a small error:

> On Wed, Jul 05, 2006 at 05:14:55PM -0700, Lee Corbin wrote:
> 
> > My guess goes quite contrary: moments after a Von Neumann type
> > probe lands on a planet---a probe incidentally which was designed
> > and sent by a vast superhuman intelligence---it rather quickly
> > takes over the entire surface of the planet. It also rather
> 
> > In that way, the initiating intelligence gets a copy of itself
> > going in almost no time. No further pellets are either welcome
> > or necessary. Within hours, they themselves (any incoming pellets)
> 
> What Russell said.  And more specifically, what's the energy supply, vs.
> the energy demand?  I don't think solar power is going to let you sweep
> a planet in hours.

Oh, all right!  But what about the *main point*?

I wrote, in case you forgot, 

   In that way, the initiating intelligence gets a copy of itself
   going in almost no time. No further pellets are either welcome
   or necessary. Within hours, [OKAY, DAYS, WEEKS, WHATEVER!] they
   themselves (any incoming pellets) are hopelessly far behind the
   technology ruling the planet's surface.

   Soon, as the planet begins to think for itself (assuming my 
   postulated radius "r of entity integrity" is that large),
   one of the main question on its mind is what to do about 
   incoming *signals* from the home world. Those distant worlds
   survive in a certain evolutionary sense if they are receptive 
   only to incoming algorithmic EM that does not threaten their
   already established identity.

I have been telling people this (on-list and off) for years and years.
If there is something wrong with it, I'd like to know.

Lee




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