Re: Pointless Re: Eugene's nuclear threat

From: Eugene Leitl (eugene.leitl@lrz.uni-muenchen.de)
Date: Wed Oct 04 2000 - 13:56:29 MDT


Eliezer S. Yudkowsky writes:

> Did you just utter the sentence "I'm not to be held responsible if that
> hardware is to be put to wrong use by irresponsible people"?
 
Oh, my. He has entrapped me, your Honour.

Seriously, you know recombinant DNA technology? Very useful for all
kind of things: pharmaceuticals, diagnostics, agriculture, nowadays
even gerontology. Even more goodies in the future. Alas, also handy
for badass bioweapons. Same technology, different use. Some good, some
bad. One is saving a sick little girl from leukemia, other is giving
her a roaring case of Ebola. Quite different, don't you agree?

So is molecular circuitry. No uploads without. Unfortunately, also
very handy for >H AI. I think playing Rabbi Loew before uploads are
there is irresponsible, since suddenly confronting us with beings of
potentially vastly larger fitness. I don't think uploads are nearly as
dangerous because of their limited initial kinetics, and "eternal
life" does have a ring, so that sounds worthwhile. You think I'm full
of it, and you're in posession of the single truth telling you the
risks are worth the chances, so let's just agree to
disagree. Hopefully, both of us are wrong, and the tight spot isn't
nearly as tight as it appears.



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