Let me offer a similar scenario that has the advantage of reality: we can implement it right now without waiting for future research.
We know where the pleasure centers of rats are. We can implant electrodes into these centers and stimulate them leading to rats being in, more or less, perpetual state of ecstasy.
We can right now create Happy Rat Farms where rats’ brains are electrically stimulated to experience lots and lots of great pleasure.
We can right now create Happy Rat Farms where rats’ brains are electrically stimulated to experience lots and lots of great pleasure. [emphasis in the original]
Sure we could, but how much would it cost us? Isn’t there anything better we could do with the same amount of resources?
Let me offer a similar scenario that has the advantage of reality: we can implement it right now without waiting for future research.
We know where the pleasure centers of rats are. We can implant electrodes into these centers and stimulate them leading to rats being in, more or less, perpetual state of ecstasy.
We can right now create Happy Rat Farms where rats’ brains are electrically stimulated to experience lots and lots of great pleasure.
Is it valuable to create Happy Rat Farms?
Or alternatively:
Should we wirehead those rats we use for toxicity testing of new medicaments?
Sure we could, but how much would it cost us? Isn’t there anything better we could do with the same amount of resources?