The document discusses space-based industry and its potential. It notes that space is one of the four pillars of transhumanism. Currently, value is derived from space through earth observation, telecommunications, and cosmic research. Barriers to further development include the high costs of launching materials into orbit and supporting human life in space. The document argues these assumptions could be overcome through greater autonomy of robots and drones, which could produce bulk materials in space at lower costs than human labor. It also speculates on alternative approaches to space development like using genetically engineered organisms or neural interfaces with other species that have benefits like long lifespans or innate flying abilities. The document has an optimistic view of future technological progress enabling new frontiers like indef

1. Singularity Salon
25 July 2012
Space Based Industry
Tony Smith
Kororoit Institute

2. Where I want to go [was: Saturn]

3. Where I want to go [was: Saturn]
• Background: Space one of four pillars of Transhumanism

4. Where I want to go [was: Saturn]
• Background: Space one of four pillars of Transhumanism
• Today’s state of play:Value delivery from space to Earth

5. Where I want to go [was: Saturn]
• Background: Space one of four pillars of Transhumanism
• Today’s state of play:Value delivery from space to Earth
• Barriers: Escaping gravity well, humans exposed in space

6. Where I want to go [was: Saturn]
• Background: Space one of four pillars of Transhumanism
• Today’s state of play:Value delivery from space to Earth
• Barriers: Escaping gravity well, humans exposed in space
• Synergies: Bulk materials, autonomy spectrum, economy

7. Where I want to go [was: Saturn]
• Background: Space one of four pillars of Transhumanism
• Today’s state of play:Value delivery from space to Earth
• Barriers: Escaping gravity well, humans exposed in space
• Synergies: Bulk materials, autonomy spectrum, economy
• Out of left field: Biomimicry and downscaled cyborgs

8. Where I want to go [was: Saturn]
• Background: Space one of four pillars of Transhumanism
• Today’s state of play:Value delivery from space to Earth
• Barriers: Escaping gravity well, humans exposed in space
• Synergies: Bulk materials, autonomy spectrum, economy
• Out of left field: Biomimicry and downscaled cyborgs
• Into the galaxy: Far edge party, beaming actor updates

9. Transhumanism and
Techno Optimism

10. Transhumanism and
Techno Optimism
• Bastard child of PC revolution of the 1980s

11. Transhumanism and
Techno Optimism
• Bastard child of PC revolution of the 1980s
• William Gibson: Neuromancer—cyberspace

12. Transhumanism and
Techno Optimism
• Bastard child of PC revolution of the 1980s
• William Gibson: Neuromancer—cyberspace
• Eric Drexler: Engines of Creation—nanotech

13. Transhumanism and
Techno Optimism
• Bastard child of PC revolution of the 1980s
• William Gibson: Neuromancer—cyberspace
• Eric Drexler: Engines of Creation—nanotech
• H Keith Henson: L5 Society, Alcor—parties

14. Transhumanism and
Techno Optimism
• Bastard child of PC revolution of the 1980s
• William Gibson: Neuromancer—cyberspace
• Eric Drexler: Engines of Creation—nanotech
• H Keith Henson: L5 Society, Alcor—parties
• Cognitive science phase of digital intelligence

15. Transhumanism and
Techno Optimism
• Bastard child of PC revolution of the 1980s
• William Gibson: Neuromancer—cyberspace
• Eric Drexler: Engines of Creation—nanotech
• H Keith Henson: L5 Society, Alcor—parties
• Cognitive science phase of digital intelligence
• Graphical user interface, hypertext, networks

17. Today’s value from space

18. Today’s value from space
• Earth observation: weather, mapping, military

19. Today’s value from space
• Earth observation: weather, mapping, military
• Telecommunications and geopositioning

20. Today’s value from space
• Earth observation: weather, mapping, military
• Telecommunications and geopositioning
• Learning from rest of cosmos via probes,
Hubble, observatories (not only up there)

21. Today’s value from space
• Earth observation: weather, mapping, military
• Telecommunications and geopositioning
• Learning from rest of cosmos via probes,
Hubble, observatories (not only up there)
• Almost all our raw energy coupled with
short and long term terrestrial aggregators

22. Today’s value from space
• Earth observation: weather, mapping, military
• Telecommunications and geopositioning
• Learning from rest of cosmos via probes,
Hubble, observatories (not only up there)
• Almost all our raw energy coupled with
short and long term terrestrial aggregators
• Tiny but historically significant infall of matter

24. • Earth only
intercepts one
part in 2.2
billion of the
Sun’s energy
output

25. • Earth only
intercepts one
part in 2.2
billion of the
Sun’s energy
output
• It took one
stray rock to
free future
Surabaya from
non-avian
dinosaurs

26. Default assumptions
get us nowhere fast

27. Default assumptions
get us nowhere fast
• Getting bulk materials Earth to orbit is costly

28. Default assumptions
get us nowhere fast
• Getting bulk materials Earth to orbit is costly
• Human life support costly, worse getting back

29. Default assumptions
get us nowhere fast
• Getting bulk materials Earth to orbit is costly
• Human life support costly, worse getting back
• Material characteristics limit elevators,
combined with hoop stress limit ring worlds

30. Default assumptions
get us nowhere fast
• Getting bulk materials Earth to orbit is costly
• Human life support costly, worse getting back
• Material characteristics limit elevators,
combined with hoop stress limit ring worlds
• Traction beams and rail guns draw heavy load

31. Default assumptions
get us nowhere fast
• Getting bulk materials Earth to orbit is costly
• Human life support costly, worse getting back
• Material characteristics limit elevators,
combined with hoop stress limit ring worlds
• Traction beams and rail guns draw heavy load
• Given an off-planet economy, launch cost for
a human less than cost of living on on Earth

32. (Semi-)Autonomous
Robots, Drones, Cyborgs

33. (Semi-)Autonomous
Robots, Drones, Cyborgs
• Faster progress in these technologies will kill
incentive for humans to do set up in space

34. (Semi-)Autonomous
Robots, Drones, Cyborgs
• Faster progress in these technologies will kill
incentive for humans to do set up in space
• Achieving bulk material production key step

35. (Semi-)Autonomous
Robots, Drones, Cyborgs
• Faster progress in these technologies will kill
incentive for humans to do set up in space
• Achieving bulk material production key step
• Supplement with high value items from Earth

36. (Semi-)Autonomous
Robots, Drones, Cyborgs
• Faster progress in these technologies will kill
incentive for humans to do set up in space
• Achieving bulk material production key step
• Supplement with high value items from Earth
• Ion engines, solar sails, tractor beams

37. (Semi-)Autonomous
Robots, Drones, Cyborgs
• Faster progress in these technologies will kill
incentive for humans to do set up in space
• Achieving bulk material production key step
• Supplement with high value items from Earth
• Ion engines, solar sails, tractor beams
• Large construction can start with solar farms
beaming microwaves to farmland receptors

38. Synergistic partnership
with off-planet economy

39. Synergistic partnership
with off-planet economy
• Indefinite life extension takes social value of
each human brain way off sustainability scale

40. Synergistic partnership
with off-planet economy
• Indefinite life extension takes social value of
each human brain way off sustainability scale
• Life, the Universe and Everything: collect data

41. Synergistic partnership
with off-planet economy
• Indefinite life extension takes social value of
each human brain way off sustainability scale
• Life, the Universe and Everything: collect data
• If complex life rare, greater obligation to nest

42. Synergistic partnership
with off-planet economy
• Indefinite life extension takes social value of
each human brain way off sustainability scale
• Life, the Universe and Everything: collect data
• If complex life rare, greater obligation to nest
• Don’t give up on uploading, nor expect soon

43. Synergistic partnership
with off-planet economy
• Indefinite life extension takes social value of
each human brain way off sustainability scale
• Life, the Universe and Everything: collect data
• If complex life rare, greater obligation to nest
• Don’t give up on uploading, nor expect soon
• Even if life extension restricted to off planet,
still need to get down to 1 billion on Earth

44. Alternate route to Cyborgs?

45. Nothing stays the same

46. Nothing stays the same
• Genetic engineering of complex organisms

47. Nothing stays the same
• Genetic engineering of complex organisms
• Find neural architecture genes and/or
develop neural interfaces for other species

48. Nothing stays the same
• Genetic engineering of complex organisms
• Find neural architecture genes and/or
develop neural interfaces for other species
• Can fly 100 Sulphur Crested Cockatoos for
the same weight/supply cost as one human

49. Nothing stays the same
• Genetic engineering of complex organisms
• Find neural architecture genes and/or
develop neural interfaces for other species
• Can fly 100 Sulphur Crested Cockatoos for
the same weight/supply cost as one human
• Live as long, plastic social structure, vocalise

50. Nothing stays the same
• Genetic engineering of complex organisms
• Find neural architecture genes and/or
develop neural interfaces for other species
• Can fly 100 Sulphur Crested Cockatoos for
the same weight/supply cost as one human
• Live as long, plastic social structure, vocalise
• Instinctive flying a weightless benefit?

51. Before the heat death

52. Before the heat death
• Why bother to transition beyond human?

53. Before the heat death
• Why bother to transition beyond human?
• Eggs in one basket, von Neumann probes

54. Before the heat death
• Why bother to transition beyond human?
• Eggs in one basket, von Neumann probes
• Interstellar challenge to focus tractor beams

55. Before the heat death
• Why bother to transition beyond human?
• Eggs in one basket, von Neumann probes
• Interstellar challenge to focus tractor beams
• Extrapolate sci-tech changes of last 500 years

56. Before the heat death
• Why bother to transition beyond human?
• Eggs in one basket, von Neumann probes
• Interstellar challenge to focus tractor beams
• Extrapolate sci-tech changes of last 500 years
• Mind objects less than 1Gb unique data

57. Before the heat death
• Why bother to transition beyond human?
• Eggs in one basket, von Neumann probes
• Interstellar challenge to focus tractor beams
• Extrapolate sci-tech changes of last 500 years
• Mind objects less than 1Gb unique data
• Building galactic network for mind updates

58. Or just to see what’s there?
Partying with Keith
Henson in the late
1980s was much
about Alcor and
Keith’s grander plan
for a party at the far
edge of the galaxy,
as Keith described to
Ed Regis for Great
Mambo Chicken.

59. In 1987 Keith Henson founded the Far Edge Committee. The Those were Keith Henson's travel plans for the immediate
group's sole purpose was to begin planning for the Far Edge Party, future-for the next million years or so-but as extravagant as
an enormous gathering of downloaded multiple selves that was to it all was, none of it was in the least impossible, not in the
be held in the far-off future and at the other side of the Milky Way. age of downloading, when every smart person had made
and stored away dozens of duplicate selves already. All you
Henson came up with the idea after realizing there was no way that
had to do was make a number of extra copies of yourself,
he personally was going to make a grand tour of the Galaxy if there
place them in assembler-made starships, and send them
was only one copy of Keith Henson alive, even if that copy was
winging to all corners of creation. Those supplemental
supposed to live forever. He might live forever, but the Galaxy sure
downloaded minds would stop at every new star system for
wouldn't.
as long as they cared to and, in their spare time, would
“There are 100 to 200 billion stars in our galaxy alone,” Henson make even more copies of themselves, as well as their
said, “and even with nanotechnology to help, it will take a year or spaceships, all of which would then rocket away to the next
two per star system, not counting travel time between stars. nearest solar system, where the whole process would repeat
Visiting every interesting object in serial is literally impossible, itself. Making new spacecraft wouldn't be any problem
since the interesting places won't last long enough. I don't want to either, not in the era of advanced nanotechnological excess,
take such a long time looking over this one small flock of stars that when unending quantities of anything could be had for
most of them burn out.” virtually nothing.
Plainly there was a problem here: how could a single person see all “So we will sweep across the Galaxy,” Keith Henson said,
there was to see if part of your destination went up in smoke while “and converge for a giant party, scientific meeting, and for
you were still in transit? You couldn't, of course, not if you were those who want it, a memory merge, so they can have seen
just one person. But if you were many people—a bunch of parallel all the wonders of the Galaxy.”
selves—well, then, that would be a different story. In that case your
Naturally, there were a few problems still to be worked out.
different selves could visit the Galaxy's major hot spots
For one thing, a clean sweep of the Milky Way might take
simultaneously, before any of those great cosmic tourist attractions
quite some time—a full two hundred thousand years even
had a chance to evaporate. That way, all of you could see
at half the speed of light. How could all the multiple selves
everything.
be expected to show up simultaneously after all those
“We won't have to make hard choices about which way to go,” years? And where would they meet?
Keith Henson said. “We take all roads.”
“How do we get them all together at the same place?”
Later, after your multiple personalities had collectively experienced Henson wondered. “How do we get back together at a place
all there was to experience, you could get them back together again we can't even see from here? Should we give one party per
to communicate and share memories. Each of you would behold galaxy? Or one on the far side of the Virgo cluster? How
what every other self had seen and done, so it would be as if a many centuries should we party? How much bean dip will
single person had in fact done it all. we need?”

60. Waiting for Andromeda

61. Questions?

62. Questions?
• Keith Henson on Space Solar Power
‣ http://www.theoildrum.com/node/7898

63. Questions?
• Keith Henson on Space Solar Power
‣ http://www.theoildrum.com/node/7898
• Sulphur Crested Cockatoos: the movie
‣ http://vimeo.com/46665891

64. Questions?
• Keith Henson on Space Solar Power
‣ http://www.theoildrum.com/node/7898
• Sulphur Crested Cockatoos: the movie
‣ http://vimeo.com/46665891
• @ynotds