This is probably more due to uploading being outside the overton window than anything. The existence of large numbers of sci fi enthusiasts and transhumanists who think otherwise implies that this is a matter of culture and perhaps education, not anything innate to humans. I personally want to recycle these atoms and live in a more durable substrate as soon as it is safe to do so. But this is because I am a bucket of memes, not a bucket of genes; memes won the evolution game a long time ago, and from their perspective, my goals are perfectly aligned.
Also, I think the gene-centered view is shortsighted. Phenotypes are units of selection as much as genes are; they propagate themselves by means of genes the same way genes propagate themselves by means of phenotypes. It’s just that historically genes had much more power over this transaction. Even I do not want to let go of my human shape entirely—though I will after uploading experiment with other shapes as well—so the human phenotype retains plenty of evolutionary fitness into the future.
So if I upload my brain onto silicon, but don’t destroy my meat self in the process, how is the one in the silicon me? Would I feel the qualia of the silicon me? Should I feel better about being killed after I’ve done this process? I really don’t think it’s a matter of the Overton window, people do have an innate desire not to die, and unless I’m missing something this process seems a lot like dying with a copy somewhere.
I’m talking about gradual uploading. Replacing neurons in the brain with computationally identical units of some other computing substrate gradually, one by one, while the patient is awake and is able to describe any changes in consciousness and clearly state if something is wrong so that it can be reversed. Not copying or any other such thing.
Ah I do personally find that a lot better than wholesale uploading, but even then I’d stop short of complete replacement. I would be too afraid that without noticing I would lose my subjective experience—the people doing the procedure would never know the difference. Additionally, I think for a lot of people if such a procedure would stop them from having kids they wouldn’t want to do it. Somewhat akin to having kids with a completely new genetic code, most people seem to not want that. Hard to predict the exact details of these procedures and what public opinion will be of them, but it would only take some people to consistently refuse for their genes to keep propagating.
I feel like “losing subjective experience without noticing” is somehow paradoxical. I don’t believe that that’s a thing that can conceivably happen. And I really don’t understand the kids thing. But I’ve never cared about having children and the instinct makes no sense to me so maybe you’re right.
This is probably more due to uploading being outside the overton window than anything. The existence of large numbers of sci fi enthusiasts and transhumanists who think otherwise implies that this is a matter of culture and perhaps education, not anything innate to humans. I personally want to recycle these atoms and live in a more durable substrate as soon as it is safe to do so. But this is because I am a bucket of memes, not a bucket of genes; memes won the evolution game a long time ago, and from their perspective, my goals are perfectly aligned.
Also, I think the gene-centered view is shortsighted. Phenotypes are units of selection as much as genes are; they propagate themselves by means of genes the same way genes propagate themselves by means of phenotypes. It’s just that historically genes had much more power over this transaction. Even I do not want to let go of my human shape entirely—though I will after uploading experiment with other shapes as well—so the human phenotype retains plenty of evolutionary fitness into the future.
So if I upload my brain onto silicon, but don’t destroy my meat self in the process, how is the one in the silicon me? Would I feel the qualia of the silicon me? Should I feel better about being killed after I’ve done this process? I really don’t think it’s a matter of the Overton window, people do have an innate desire not to die, and unless I’m missing something this process seems a lot like dying with a copy somewhere.
I’m talking about gradual uploading. Replacing neurons in the brain with computationally identical units of some other computing substrate gradually, one by one, while the patient is awake and is able to describe any changes in consciousness and clearly state if something is wrong so that it can be reversed. Not copying or any other such thing.
Ah I do personally find that a lot better than wholesale uploading, but even then I’d stop short of complete replacement. I would be too afraid that without noticing I would lose my subjective experience—the people doing the procedure would never know the difference. Additionally, I think for a lot of people if such a procedure would stop them from having kids they wouldn’t want to do it. Somewhat akin to having kids with a completely new genetic code, most people seem to not want that. Hard to predict the exact details of these procedures and what public opinion will be of them, but it would only take some people to consistently refuse for their genes to keep propagating.
I feel like “losing subjective experience without noticing” is somehow paradoxical. I don’t believe that that’s a thing that can conceivably happen. And I really don’t understand the kids thing. But I’ve never cared about having children and the instinct makes no sense to me so maybe you’re right.