Anders Sandberg wrote:
"
But that is a rather irrational position. Suppose somebody actually
manages to come up with a convincing experimental proof for a
non-material soul (I would really like to see the methods and
equipment section of that paper! :-), which was then independently
verified, elaborated and studied in the classical scientific
fashion. Would you still reject this interpretation, even when there
were good evidence for another position? Of course, one might have
different views on what constitutes enough evidence to change one's
mind, but beyond a certain point one is joining the Flat Earth Society
and creationists.
"
Yes ;)...
What i was saying is just that i'm not open minded at all in loosing the
possibility to build an intelligence. (artificial or natural are just the
same for me, there is no difference, human beings are parts of the nature
processes). It's like 2+2=4, I'm not open minded in loosing that too.
If non-material soul means new physical processes to study I can't have
something wrong with it.
But if non-material soul means something that is not connected to the
physics that build us... well it's total nonsense.
"
Since we put so much faith and cherish beliefs we can't be really open
This is important to remember for us transhumanists, since we put so
much faith in some technologies that might actually never be done. If
we stop being openminded about being wrong, even about our most
cherished beliefs,
"
"
we will become just like any other religion, cult or ideology.
"
It's, to some extent, the destiny of all belief-systems... I think.
Humans are beliefmachines... they tend to think that their arbitrary models
of reality are true.
A lot of science guys tends to believe that their models are true, they
forget the easy way that they are just models. Science even if it's
evolutive is also a belief system.
There is nothing wrong to be *a little* non openminded. I mean, it's just a
interesting property of
our brain protecting us from time to time.
What is irational is to believe that it is possible fo a human being alone
to be *strongly* openminded ;)... to be "too much" open minded is also to
loose time and energy that could probably be better used.
I'm not sure, but i think there is a majority of atheists in this list...
could you call it be open minded?
What if somebody bring you a good scientific paper wich is a proof of the
existence of god ? What will you do ? personnally, I will ask for a lot of
other papers and experiments, and if they are working too, well I will ask
to do the experiments by myself ;)... quite not open minded isn't?
"
BTW; the babay analog is spurious. It just shows that intelligence is
possible, just as biology shows that physical law allows nanotech. It
does not say we can necessarily build it.
"
Why ?;)
Just find two compatible mates, non steriles and you are able to generate a
new intelligence.
In another way, understand the process and hack it, analyse deeply the
genome and play with it to generate new kinds of intelligences the slow
way... It's possible to build, but it's probably far too slow to be really
interesting.
But perhaps we will generate zombies in this way, since the soul is perhaps not there ;))
delriviere
christophe