Future of Gender
Rick Knight (rknight@platinum.com)
Thu, 14 Aug 97 10:25:44 CST
Eliezer observes:
How would thoughtsharing of various types affect sexual mores? Define
an Augmented human as a "primary" human supported by several other
experts sharing the world through virtual reality and communicating
continuously, waking and sleeping, on subvocal/subconscious/hypnotic
channels.
I respond:
I can only respond to this on the very surface as it triggered
something I have been meaning to point out. Sentimental and fanciful
puss that I am, I have seen "Contact" three times. After an initial
viewing of a movie I like that much, I start analyzing content and
looking at the not-so-obvious stuff.
BLOWING PART OF THE MOVIE WARNING!
One thing I noticed in my return visit is Ellie's meeting with the
entity (on the beach) that manifested as her father. Even after she
had deduced her thoughts/memories had been "downloaded", and the
entity congratulated her on her observation, he still *behaved* as if
he were her father commenting that she had her mother's hands. In
that moment, it occurred to me that Ellie and the entity had shared
the most intimate of contacts possible to two conscious creatures.
Blows the lid of what we try to achieve in our most intimate sexual
moments (unless, of course, one's sexual experiences are pursued for
the sake of dominance and power attainment).
I'd like to have extended discussions on the waking and sleeping part.
There's something in me that likes the (what I presume to be) private
nature of sleep and dreams. And I'm not really a private person!
Rick