I think that there are probably people for whom the ability to boss people around, kill others with impunity, have a harem of women, etc, is worth more than a shower and flushing loo.
Hmm, I moved some towards agreement on this one. Though the particular argument you use doesn’t apply to post-Singularity lower bound benefits. For a start, add immortality and much deeper insight into all things.
If there’s a universal, it’s that people enjoy gaining deeper insight—they value the first derivative of insight. Actually having insight can be a drag.
(Whatever, this is a technicality not relevant to the argument.) I doubt having insight is a downside in itself, only perhaps in as much as it makes it no longer possible to gain that insight without also losing it first; and beside the gaining of insight, there are lots of other things people value.
Having an insight can be a downside if the insight disrupts your worldview, or makes you face an unpleasant truth. There is no law saying that truth and happiness are always allies.
I think that there are probably people for whom the ability to boss people around, kill others with impunity, have a harem of women, etc, is worth more than a shower and flushing loo.
And modern medicine?
All such questions are tests of the imagination, really.
The harem bit looses some of its appeal when you think about the standards of dental care and how rarely people used to bathe.
Hmm, I moved some towards agreement on this one. Though the particular argument you use doesn’t apply to post-Singularity lower bound benefits. For a start, add immortality and much deeper insight into all things.
If there’s a universal, it’s that people enjoy gaining deeper insight—they value the first derivative of insight. Actually having insight can be a drag.
(Whatever, this is a technicality not relevant to the argument.) I doubt having insight is a downside in itself, only perhaps in as much as it makes it no longer possible to gain that insight without also losing it first; and beside the gaining of insight, there are lots of other things people value.
Having an insight can be a downside if the insight disrupts your worldview, or makes you face an unpleasant truth. There is no law saying that truth and happiness are always allies.