Lyle Burkhead wrote:
>
> Well, it doesn't bother me. Maybe we disagree less than I thought. I
> don't use the word Singularity, but my ultimate aim is probably similar
> to yours.
What's your ultimate aim.
> Raising money isn't a problem for me at this stage of my
> life; I am pursuing my own projects with my own money. But I certainly
> agree that action is essential, and action requires money.
Lucky you! How'd you get there? What projects?
> I wonder: why do you think it is necessary to pursue your project under
> the aegis of Extropianism?
What do you mean by "under the aegis"?
Using the usual definition - the cause I feel responsible to - I operate under the aegis of Externalism. (No, I am not going to define it one more damn time - if you want to know, I think there's something in _Coding_.) Anything else, including the Singularity, is a means to an end.
> -- or Singularitarianism, which sounds even
> more cultish?
Heh. Do you suppose I haven't been trying to think of a less awkward phrase?
But I don't even label my project Extropy - I disagree with the Practical Optimism principle - although I do suppose that the project is about ultratechnology, so it is Extropianist, and it is certainly Singularitarian.
> There is another meme that *is* about making money, and
> that meme plays a more fundamental role in your life than Extropianism.
Greed? Survival? Hedonism?
> Maybe a simple reframe is all you need. Your project could be conceived
> in a different context, described in different terms, and carried out
> under a different aegis. As I said in one of my last posts before
> dropping off the list two years ago, Extropianism is just a watered down
> version of the ur-meme. Why not go back to the real thing? Your own
> people will give you all the money you need, if you explain what you
> want to do in terms that make sense to them. That would be one way to
> set events in motion.
Yeah? What is this ur-meme, and how would I need to rephrase the Elisson Project before someone (say, you) would start writing checks?
--
sentience@pobox.com Eliezer S. Yudkowsky
http://pobox.com/~sentience/AI_design.temp.html
http://pobox.com/~sentience/singul_arity.html
Disclaimer: Unless otherwise specified, I'm not telling you
everything I think I know.