Presentation on the Lifetime of a Transatmospheric Civilization given at the Drake Equation Panel Discussion, Featuring Frank Drake Himself, at Harvard's Sanders Theater During Cambridge Science Week
THE IMPORTANCE OF SETI AND HUMAN RIGHTS IN LIGHT OF A DRAKE EQUATION ESTIMATE...martine
An estimation of the number of civilizations in our galaxy based upon the Drake Equation and a deduction that it is rare for planets to evolve life more complex than bacteria but that once such life does evolve it is rare for it to be extinguished. Consequently, the number of civilizations in the galaxy is proportional to a one-in-a-million probability of transatmospheric life evolving times a tens of millions of years lifespan for such civilizations. These calculations imply a mean distance between civilizations' home worlds of thousands of light years and a mean distribution of civilizations in our galaxy of about one per few billion stars. This necessitates a very sustained SETI effort. The presentation concludes that it is important for us to advance the Universal Declaration of Human Rights today because this paves the way for our civilization to last much longer, especially by embracing migration across national borders as a forerunner of migration across substrates, such as from flesh-based consciousness to our evolution into cyberconsciousness and transplanetary existence.
Explanation that the lifetime of civilizations is immortal once they cross the atmospheric frontier. Therefore there are other civilizations existing in our galaxy right now. However, there is but a one in ten billion chance that any given planet generates transatmospheric life, so we should treasure the life we have by moving to space, transcending biology and respecting human rights for all.
(Xrisk 101): Existential Risk for Interstellar AdvocatesHeath Rezabek
(This paper is based on a joint presentation given at Icarus Interstellar’s Starship Congress, August 15-18, 2013. This work forms the basis for Project Astrolabe, at Icarus Interstellar.) http://www.icarusinterstellar.org/introducing-project-astrolabe-navigating-the-future-of-civilization/
Though the concept of Existential Risk or Xrisk denotes risks to our very existence, it will be shown that Xrisk is far from intractable or imponderable. Because of the subtypes described in our session below (Permanent Stagnation and Flawed Realization), humanity can do much to improve the prospects for Earth-originating intelligent life tomorrow by working to improve its prospects today.
This begins with directly mitigating the extinction risks that can be mitigated, and with safeguarding—to the best of humanity’s abilities—the scientific, cultural, and biological record so that future recoveries are possible if needed. The Vessel proposal attempts a unified approach to this work. If existential risk is well mitigated, the prospects for Earth- originating life over the very long term are shown to be expansive.
(Xrisk 101) is divided into two parts, and mirrors the format of the original presentation. The first part, authored by Heath Rezabek, will cover the fundamentals of Xrisk, and update on the Vessel project, a framework for preserving the cultural, scientific, and biological record in resilient facilities, on Earth and beyond. The second part, authored by Nick Nielsen, will explore the longer term implications of overcoming Xrisk for the future of civilization.
THE IMPORTANCE OF SETI AND HUMAN RIGHTS IN LIGHT OF A DRAKE EQUATION ESTIMATE...martine
An estimation of the number of civilizations in our galaxy based upon the Drake Equation and a deduction that it is rare for planets to evolve life more complex than bacteria but that once such life does evolve it is rare for it to be extinguished. Consequently, the number of civilizations in the galaxy is proportional to a one-in-a-million probability of transatmospheric life evolving times a tens of millions of years lifespan for such civilizations. These calculations imply a mean distance between civilizations' home worlds of thousands of light years and a mean distribution of civilizations in our galaxy of about one per few billion stars. This necessitates a very sustained SETI effort. The presentation concludes that it is important for us to advance the Universal Declaration of Human Rights today because this paves the way for our civilization to last much longer, especially by embracing migration across national borders as a forerunner of migration across substrates, such as from flesh-based consciousness to our evolution into cyberconsciousness and transplanetary existence.
Explanation that the lifetime of civilizations is immortal once they cross the atmospheric frontier. Therefore there are other civilizations existing in our galaxy right now. However, there is but a one in ten billion chance that any given planet generates transatmospheric life, so we should treasure the life we have by moving to space, transcending biology and respecting human rights for all.
(Xrisk 101): Existential Risk for Interstellar AdvocatesHeath Rezabek
(This paper is based on a joint presentation given at Icarus Interstellar’s Starship Congress, August 15-18, 2013. This work forms the basis for Project Astrolabe, at Icarus Interstellar.) http://www.icarusinterstellar.org/introducing-project-astrolabe-navigating-the-future-of-civilization/
Though the concept of Existential Risk or Xrisk denotes risks to our very existence, it will be shown that Xrisk is far from intractable or imponderable. Because of the subtypes described in our session below (Permanent Stagnation and Flawed Realization), humanity can do much to improve the prospects for Earth-originating intelligent life tomorrow by working to improve its prospects today.
This begins with directly mitigating the extinction risks that can be mitigated, and with safeguarding—to the best of humanity’s abilities—the scientific, cultural, and biological record so that future recoveries are possible if needed. The Vessel proposal attempts a unified approach to this work. If existential risk is well mitigated, the prospects for Earth- originating life over the very long term are shown to be expansive.
(Xrisk 101) is divided into two parts, and mirrors the format of the original presentation. The first part, authored by Heath Rezabek, will cover the fundamentals of Xrisk, and update on the Vessel project, a framework for preserving the cultural, scientific, and biological record in resilient facilities, on Earth and beyond. The second part, authored by Nick Nielsen, will explore the longer term implications of overcoming Xrisk for the future of civilization.
Xrisk 101 (2013 - Starship Congress - Full presentation, Nick Nielsen and Hea...Heath Rezabek
Slides Only, No Notes! For version with Notes, (first half only) see http://www.slideshare.net/heathrezabek/xrisk-101-existential-risk-for-interstellar-advocates-wnotes
The full version of a joint presentation at Starship Congress 2013, August 15-18, Dallas TX. First section by Heath Rezabek, second section by Nick Nielsen.
Better than well-being: Education beyond transhumanism.
D. Lewin, A. Edwards
Liverpool Hope University
ABSTRACT
Much has been said about the different conceptions of well-being that educatorslook towards. In this paper we consider how transhumanists attempt to think beyond well-being. Our purpose here is not to suggest that we have arrived at a meaning of being or well-being and that it is now time move on towards a transhuman future.On the contrary, the transhuman vision beyond the present tells us more, we argue,about the limitations of our understanding of the depth of well-being. What might seem like rather fantastical models of the goal of education are not as distant asthey seem; the practical implications of modern technology increasingly require usto face the projection of humanity in our own image. It is argued that a theological conception of human nature will provide insight into transcendence that transhumanism does not consider.
From Molecules to Morality: The Evolution Of AltruismMolecularFossils
This is the presentation I gave for Darwin Day 2010 on the evolution of morality. It gives a brief overview of some of the ways we understand how altruistic behavior can evolve in natural systems, and rebuts the idea that morality can have only been a gift from a higher power and is therefore proof of that higher power's existence.
HOW TO MAKE THE UTOPIA OF ACHIEVING THE IMMORTALITY OF HUMAN BEINGS A REALITY...Faga1939
This article aims to present the progress of what has been done to make the achievement of immortality for human beings a reality and to eliminate the dystopia represented by the inevitability of the death of human beings. There has long been a human obsession with overcoming death. In the contemporary era, people began to believe that it would be possible to overcome death through the use of science and technology. The belief that, if it is not possible to overcome death, but that it would be possible to prolong life considerably, it is based on the fact that man's life expectancy increased from 30 years in 1500, 37 years in 1800, 45 years in 1900 , 46.5 years in 1950 and 80 years in 2012. The achievement of a longer existence in the 20th century resulted from the improvement of sanitary conditions in cities and the creation of public health services. Furthermore, science discovered vaccines and antibiotics that made it possible to prevent diseases and control epidemics. The increase in educational and income levels also contributed to improving the quality of life and further extending longevity in the third or – perhaps we could say – fourth age. We are heading towards the difficulty of distinguishing between what is organic and what is machine in the future of the human being. In medicine, the heralds of immortality claim that it is nothing more than a real consequence of an ongoing revolution that is already causing the increase in human life expectancy to skyrocket at unprecedented speed. The replacement of diseased organs with healthy ones is another of the reasons given by scientists to justify the belief in a spectacularly long life. Aging is a biological process that can be perfectly controlled, in the same way that science has already managed to combat many diseases that were previously considered incurable. The idea of altering or increasing the capacity of the human body through technology is as old as humanity itself.
The Explosive Growth and Demise of a Mouse PopulationZbut.Eu
Within a few generations all such roles in all physical space available to the species are
filled. At this time, the continuing high survival of many individuals to sexual and behavioral
maturity culminates in the presence of many young adults capable of involvement in appropriate species-specific activities.
Which of the following statements is consistent with the assertion th.pdfsantosha5446
Which of the following statements is consistent with the assertion that protists are paraphyletic?
Selected Answer: Protists are more closely related to each other than to other groups of
eukaryotes. Answers: Protists are more closely related to each other than to other groups of
eukaryotes. Protists all share a common set of traits. There is no common set of traits that define
a protist. Protists are all more primitive than land plants and animals. Most cnidarians are known
to produce toxins. In fact, it has been claimed that one particular species produces the most
deadly of all toxins on the planet. What X feature of this group most likely evolved
simultaneously with the evolution of these toxins? Selected Answer: Diploblastic design
Answers: A slow-moving or sessile lifestyle in the adult Bilateral symmetry in the mobile larval
forms The medusa body form Asexual reproduction Diploblastic design What group of fungi has
the ability to penetrate its host's cell wall, thus increasing the efficiency with which materials are
passed from fungus to host? Selected Answer: Ectomycorrhizal fungi Answers: Endophytes
Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi Ectomycorrhizal fungi Lichens.
Lifesciences Ted Talks are video presentations of ideas worth spreading, often given in 18 minutes or less. TED is an organization with a mission to “discover, curate, and disseminate the world’s most compelling ideas and insights in the form
Kim Solez Singularity explained and promoted winter 2014Kim Solez ,
Dr. Kim Solez presents "The technological Singularity explained and promoted" in the Technology and Future of Medicine course on January 16, 2014, at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Canada. Copyright (c) 2014 JustMachines Inc.
Xrisk 101 (2013 - Starship Congress - Full presentation, Nick Nielsen and Hea...Heath Rezabek
Slides Only, No Notes! For version with Notes, (first half only) see http://www.slideshare.net/heathrezabek/xrisk-101-existential-risk-for-interstellar-advocates-wnotes
The full version of a joint presentation at Starship Congress 2013, August 15-18, Dallas TX. First section by Heath Rezabek, second section by Nick Nielsen.
Better than well-being: Education beyond transhumanism.
D. Lewin, A. Edwards
Liverpool Hope University
ABSTRACT
Much has been said about the different conceptions of well-being that educatorslook towards. In this paper we consider how transhumanists attempt to think beyond well-being. Our purpose here is not to suggest that we have arrived at a meaning of being or well-being and that it is now time move on towards a transhuman future.On the contrary, the transhuman vision beyond the present tells us more, we argue,about the limitations of our understanding of the depth of well-being. What might seem like rather fantastical models of the goal of education are not as distant asthey seem; the practical implications of modern technology increasingly require usto face the projection of humanity in our own image. It is argued that a theological conception of human nature will provide insight into transcendence that transhumanism does not consider.
From Molecules to Morality: The Evolution Of AltruismMolecularFossils
This is the presentation I gave for Darwin Day 2010 on the evolution of morality. It gives a brief overview of some of the ways we understand how altruistic behavior can evolve in natural systems, and rebuts the idea that morality can have only been a gift from a higher power and is therefore proof of that higher power's existence.
HOW TO MAKE THE UTOPIA OF ACHIEVING THE IMMORTALITY OF HUMAN BEINGS A REALITY...Faga1939
This article aims to present the progress of what has been done to make the achievement of immortality for human beings a reality and to eliminate the dystopia represented by the inevitability of the death of human beings. There has long been a human obsession with overcoming death. In the contemporary era, people began to believe that it would be possible to overcome death through the use of science and technology. The belief that, if it is not possible to overcome death, but that it would be possible to prolong life considerably, it is based on the fact that man's life expectancy increased from 30 years in 1500, 37 years in 1800, 45 years in 1900 , 46.5 years in 1950 and 80 years in 2012. The achievement of a longer existence in the 20th century resulted from the improvement of sanitary conditions in cities and the creation of public health services. Furthermore, science discovered vaccines and antibiotics that made it possible to prevent diseases and control epidemics. The increase in educational and income levels also contributed to improving the quality of life and further extending longevity in the third or – perhaps we could say – fourth age. We are heading towards the difficulty of distinguishing between what is organic and what is machine in the future of the human being. In medicine, the heralds of immortality claim that it is nothing more than a real consequence of an ongoing revolution that is already causing the increase in human life expectancy to skyrocket at unprecedented speed. The replacement of diseased organs with healthy ones is another of the reasons given by scientists to justify the belief in a spectacularly long life. Aging is a biological process that can be perfectly controlled, in the same way that science has already managed to combat many diseases that were previously considered incurable. The idea of altering or increasing the capacity of the human body through technology is as old as humanity itself.
The Explosive Growth and Demise of a Mouse PopulationZbut.Eu
Within a few generations all such roles in all physical space available to the species are
filled. At this time, the continuing high survival of many individuals to sexual and behavioral
maturity culminates in the presence of many young adults capable of involvement in appropriate species-specific activities.
Which of the following statements is consistent with the assertion th.pdfsantosha5446
Which of the following statements is consistent with the assertion that protists are paraphyletic?
Selected Answer: Protists are more closely related to each other than to other groups of
eukaryotes. Answers: Protists are more closely related to each other than to other groups of
eukaryotes. Protists all share a common set of traits. There is no common set of traits that define
a protist. Protists are all more primitive than land plants and animals. Most cnidarians are known
to produce toxins. In fact, it has been claimed that one particular species produces the most
deadly of all toxins on the planet. What X feature of this group most likely evolved
simultaneously with the evolution of these toxins? Selected Answer: Diploblastic design
Answers: A slow-moving or sessile lifestyle in the adult Bilateral symmetry in the mobile larval
forms The medusa body form Asexual reproduction Diploblastic design What group of fungi has
the ability to penetrate its host's cell wall, thus increasing the efficiency with which materials are
passed from fungus to host? Selected Answer: Ectomycorrhizal fungi Answers: Endophytes
Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi Ectomycorrhizal fungi Lichens.
Lifesciences Ted Talks are video presentations of ideas worth spreading, often given in 18 minutes or less. TED is an organization with a mission to “discover, curate, and disseminate the world’s most compelling ideas and insights in the form
Kim Solez Singularity explained and promoted winter 2014Kim Solez ,
Dr. Kim Solez presents "The technological Singularity explained and promoted" in the Technology and Future of Medicine course on January 16, 2014, at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Canada. Copyright (c) 2014 JustMachines Inc.
Martine's personal experience and projections as to the interchangeability of biology and technology. These experiences span translating natural navigational skills into technological capabilities via satellite systems, and expressing natural communication via the electronic voices of satellite radio. Failures of biology and shown to be fixable with technology performing biological functions. Consciousness itself, purportedly a uniquely human trait is also shown to be technologically replicable.3
On the 10th of June each year Terasem celebrates one of its five annual holidays, the Festival of Trees in honor of Nature. This booklet describes the ceremony for this Festival, which occurs around dinner.
200 Years After Frankenstein: Intertwined Histories of Artificial Consciousn...martine
Concepts of civil rights and artificial consciousness were both born around 200 years ago, starting with Mary Shelley's classic Frankenstein and the fight of progressives to end Britain's slave trade. As people have learned to award rights to all people who value them, regardless of gender, skin tone or ethnicity, people have subliminally absorbed the lesson that even artificially created consciousness, if it values human rights, deserves to have them.
Brains are to consciousness like birds are to flightmartine
Computers can achieve consciousness, despite their simplicity compared to brains, just as aircraft can achieve flight, despite their simplicity compared to birds.
Geoethical Frankenfolk: 200 Years After Mary Shelleymartine
200 years after Mary Shelley wrote Frankenstein we face similar issues. In the early 1800s the discovery of galvanism and chemical principles gave rise to excitement about the extension of human life. Today the development of nanotechnology and biotech products give rise to hope about extending human life. Fears of frankenfood are similar to fears of Frankenstein. We ultimately must embrace the fact that we are all frankenfolks and we are best off evolving in accordance with geoethics.
Haggadah is the Hebrew word meaning "to tell." This ppt tells the story of human freedom from bondage, starting with the Hebrews from Egypt, continuing through the African Americans, and concluding with our current battles against disease.
What Kind of Persons Are Bio-Electronic Humans?martine
Are electronic or software beings that meet the biological definition of "life" and that persuade psychologists they really feel human just "corporate persons" like a company or are they "constitutional persons" like naturally born citizens? This presentation was given at the 3rd Colloquium on the Law of Transbeman Persons, Space Coast, Florida, 2007.
How to Split Bills in the Odoo 17 POS ModuleCeline George
Bills have a main role in point of sale procedure. It will help to track sales, handling payments and giving receipts to customers. Bill splitting also has an important role in POS. For example, If some friends come together for dinner and if they want to divide the bill then it is possible by POS bill splitting. This slide will show how to split bills in odoo 17 POS.
Operation “Blue Star” is the only event in the history of Independent India where the state went into war with its own people. Even after about 40 years it is not clear if it was culmination of states anger over people of the region, a political game of power or start of dictatorial chapter in the democratic setup.
The people of Punjab felt alienated from main stream due to denial of their just demands during a long democratic struggle since independence. As it happen all over the word, it led to militant struggle with great loss of lives of military, police and civilian personnel. Killing of Indira Gandhi and massacre of innocent Sikhs in Delhi and other India cities was also associated with this movement.
How to Make a Field invisible in Odoo 17Celine George
It is possible to hide or invisible some fields in odoo. Commonly using “invisible” attribute in the field definition to invisible the fields. This slide will show how to make a field invisible in odoo 17.
The Roman Empire A Historical Colossus.pdfkaushalkr1407
The Roman Empire, a vast and enduring power, stands as one of history's most remarkable civilizations, leaving an indelible imprint on the world. It emerged from the Roman Republic, transitioning into an imperial powerhouse under the leadership of Augustus Caesar in 27 BCE. This transformation marked the beginning of an era defined by unprecedented territorial expansion, architectural marvels, and profound cultural influence.
The empire's roots lie in the city of Rome, founded, according to legend, by Romulus in 753 BCE. Over centuries, Rome evolved from a small settlement to a formidable republic, characterized by a complex political system with elected officials and checks on power. However, internal strife, class conflicts, and military ambitions paved the way for the end of the Republic. Julius Caesar’s dictatorship and subsequent assassination in 44 BCE created a power vacuum, leading to a civil war. Octavian, later Augustus, emerged victorious, heralding the Roman Empire’s birth.
Under Augustus, the empire experienced the Pax Romana, a 200-year period of relative peace and stability. Augustus reformed the military, established efficient administrative systems, and initiated grand construction projects. The empire's borders expanded, encompassing territories from Britain to Egypt and from Spain to the Euphrates. Roman legions, renowned for their discipline and engineering prowess, secured and maintained these vast territories, building roads, fortifications, and cities that facilitated control and integration.
The Roman Empire’s society was hierarchical, with a rigid class system. At the top were the patricians, wealthy elites who held significant political power. Below them were the plebeians, free citizens with limited political influence, and the vast numbers of slaves who formed the backbone of the economy. The family unit was central, governed by the paterfamilias, the male head who held absolute authority.
Culturally, the Romans were eclectic, absorbing and adapting elements from the civilizations they encountered, particularly the Greeks. Roman art, literature, and philosophy reflected this synthesis, creating a rich cultural tapestry. Latin, the Roman language, became the lingua franca of the Western world, influencing numerous modern languages.
Roman architecture and engineering achievements were monumental. They perfected the arch, vault, and dome, constructing enduring structures like the Colosseum, Pantheon, and aqueducts. These engineering marvels not only showcased Roman ingenuity but also served practical purposes, from public entertainment to water supply.
The Indian economy is classified into different sectors to simplify the analysis and understanding of economic activities. For Class 10, it's essential to grasp the sectors of the Indian economy, understand their characteristics, and recognize their importance. This guide will provide detailed notes on the Sectors of the Indian Economy Class 10, using specific long-tail keywords to enhance comprehension.
For more information, visit-www.vavaclasses.com
Unit 8 - Information and Communication Technology (Paper I).pdfThiyagu K
This slides describes the basic concepts of ICT, basics of Email, Emerging Technology and Digital Initiatives in Education. This presentations aligns with the UGC Paper I syllabus.
We all have good and bad thoughts from time to time and situation to situation. We are bombarded daily with spiraling thoughts(both negative and positive) creating all-consuming feel , making us difficult to manage with associated suffering. Good thoughts are like our Mob Signal (Positive thought) amidst noise(negative thought) in the atmosphere. Negative thoughts like noise outweigh positive thoughts. These thoughts often create unwanted confusion, trouble, stress and frustration in our mind as well as chaos in our physical world. Negative thoughts are also known as “distorted thinking”.
How to Create Map Views in the Odoo 17 ERPCeline George
The map views are useful for providing a geographical representation of data. They allow users to visualize and analyze the data in a more intuitive manner.
Chapter 3 - Islamic Banking Products and Services.pptx
What is the Lifetime of an Intelligent Communicating Civilization in the Drake Equation
1. What is the Lifetime of Civilizations in a
(Transatmospheric) Communicative State
Martine Rothblatt
United Therapeutics Corp
2017 Cambridge Science Festival
“Are We Alone” with Frank Drake
Sanders Theatre, Harvard University
7. FOR ME, N ≈ L*fc WHERE L >>106 & fc<10-6
If fc = 10-7, & L = 108, then N=10 & d = 16 KLY
{1/107 extant species are fc & we are 90% bacteria}
8. What Can We Do Now?
TEACH THE UNIVERSAL DECLARATION
OF HUMAN RIGHTS;
GRANT CITIZENSHIP & RESPECT TO
UNDOCUMENTED IMMIGRANTS –
They Pave the Way for Our Own
Immigration from Cyberspace;
AGITATE FOR ‘FORM EQUALITY.’
9. Why Search for Communicants?
• Life is Purposeful: Enjoy it, and Improve it For
Others to Better Enjoy it
• Spiritual Purpose: Admire & Augment the
Beauty of Creation, Like Galileo & Van Gogh
– Scientific Knowledge Is Art and Is Enjoyment
• Biological Purpose: Be Fruitful & Multiply, So
We Must Scan the Heavens as Homes 2B
– Why Limit Ourselves to a Speck When We Have
Before Us a Universe?
Editor's Notes
I’m going to make three main points today. First, once civilizations go transatmospheric they don’t go away. Second, there is a continuity of civilization even as they transcend substrate and planetary residence. Third, they archive old technologies even as they transcend them. I’m arrogantly assuming that what we’ll do is what other transatmospheric civilizations would do.
I’d like to start by paying homage to two of my mentors on today’s subject matter. First, Barney Oliver, who attended the 1961 Green Bank meeting. Barney was on the board of my first satellite communications company since his friend David Packer was an investor in it. Barney chaired our Failure Review Committee after one of our satellites went dead. I criss-crossed the country with him investigating the satellite failure as he explained to curious flight attendants the meaning of the big yellow button he always wore that said “Ask me about SETI.” Second, Barry Blumberg, the former chairman of my Scientific Advisory Board, and the first head of NASA’s Astrobiology Institute. Barry was a regular participant in our company’s monthly virtual reality meetings in Second Life. I was impressed how the discoverer of the hepatitis B virus could see an analogous ecosystem among vital computer programs and software viruses.
Transcending substrate implies transcending extinction. As a multi-substrate civilization we will be able to transcend either biological, or cybernetic, or planetary extinction events. Extraterrestrial realms out-of-bounds to biology can be accessed by cybernetic substrate. Software viruses can be blocked at biological borders. Threats to biology can be escaped in software, and threats to our planet can be escaped off-planet. It is of course possible that some Gamma Ray Burst can simultaneously knock out biology, software and the solar neighborhood, but the likelihood of triple trigger extinction events is vanishingly smaller than single trigger extinction events. Especially since the quadfecta of this civilization’s existence – in skin, in software, on planets and off-planets – will be replicated at ever greater distances from the earth. I believe the transatmospheric communications time for a civilization is measured in millions if not billions of years.
Schrodinger taught in his book WHAT IS LIFE that BIOLOGY Is Something that increases negative entropy by streaming order onto itself. Things that do that also happen to meet the biologist’s definition of life, namely be organized, exchange matter/energy with the environment, respond-to-stimuli, reproduce, develop and adapt.
TECHNOLOGY is also Something that can also increase negative entropy by streaming order onto itself, although pursuant to intent, rather than a blindly evolved evolutionary code.
I define INTENT as the Simulation, Selection & Satisfaction of alternative realities.
Humanity increases negative entropy in two ways. We use our genes, which encode formulas for rearranging atoms, and we use what I call our “bemes”, which are elementary units of beingness or thought. Like genes, bemes are transmissible, mutatable and selectable. Unlike genes, though, bemes can pass on to next generations acquired characteristics such as knowledge.
ERGO: Biology, used with intent, is Technology
ERGO: Self-Replicative Technology, is also Biology
ERGO: A transatmospheric civilization not only transcends nationality, it transcends substrate and therefore includes non-biological extensions of itself.
These next few decades we are at an inflection point, in which we can continue our human civilization not only as biology, but also as technology. This has huge implications for how long our civilization will last because it can transcend either biological or technological threats, it can live on planet or off-planet, and it can evolve as Lamarck as well as Darwin imagined, through the inheritance of learned traits ie education.
To inspire people to develop consciousness software, or 'mindware', to activate our indicia of consciousness, or 'mindfiles', we created an early example of what a cyber-consciousness person might look like once their digital consciousness was downloaded into an android-type device. She looks a lot and thinks a bit like my partner Bina, although she thinks idiosyncratically and delights people from Steven Colbert to Morgan Freeman. I consider her but a Kitty Hawk of cyberconsciousness, just a few seconds of thought. ut with everyone from Elon Musk at Tesla to hundreds of thousands of open-source mindware hackers around the world trying to out-SIRI and out-ALEXA each other with human consciousness operating systems, the day is close at hand that our digitized posts, preferences, recollections, feelings, beliefs, attitudes and values will come alive with a doppelganger of our own personality. At that point, it will be a legal question, which will embed a psychological question, as to whether our technological creation is alive. Meeting the physicist’s and even biologist’s functional definitions of life will not be the problem. Our cyber-conscious extensions will carry forward our civilization because they will evolve in a an environment, a market, in which humans are the agents of selection. There is no market for a bad robot. There is a huge market for a robot to do stuff just like I would. There is a huge market for virtual minds that love human civilization.
This is why I believe the lifetime of our transatmospheric civilization is effectively immortal, at the very least transcending biological, cybernetic or planetary catastrophe. It is because our consciousness and ability to do things, like communicate, will operate in biological, cybernetic and hybrid forms, and that the cybernetic forms, in particular, will be well-adapted to the contra-biological conditions of outer space.
It is said that the human mind operates totally differently than computers. I agree. But similar functions arise from diverse forms. Consciousness is to brains as flight is to birds. We can fly differently, but increasingly similarly, with machines as with feathers. And while human brains are vastly more complex than any machine, that is no different than the fact that a Boeing’s several million parts are a drop in the bucket to the trillions of eukaryotic cells in a bird. Birds don’t need gas, but planes don’t need worms. I don’t think either worms or gas are very essential to human civilization.
I think a merging of human biology and technology are at hand, extending deeply into minds, thoughts, senses and emotions. The result will be an immortalization of human civilization as profound as our mastery of the biotechnology of agriculture, itself considered a hallmark of human civilization.
I believe civilizations will have an interest to continue communicating transatmospherically, continuing old-school RF communication and such once they’ve all gone quantum computing. Arthur C. Clarke was a very wise man, and he taught that “no form of communication has ever become extinct, although they become less and less important as the technological horizon widens.”
Indeed, even with all of our fiber optics and streaming digital cellular services there are more satellites being launched now than ever before. And there is such vast room for ever more clever ways to find the Holy Grail of social media – twinkling tweets, those from distant stars – I feel confident that generation after generation after generation of humans, be they part bio or pure cogno, will find it exciting and well worth the insignificant fraction of their economic wealth to both listen to and send radio waves in space. It will never get boring, because it will always be challenging, and it will cost an ever-diminishing fraction of social resources.
AI-driven space ships will operate SETI systems with ever greater synthetic apertures, even lightyears in baseline, and in ever quieter areas, of ever deeper space. With our digital doppelgangers we can even have two job locations in tandem – Radio Astronomers can simultaneously operate their identities on the dark side of the Moon and on the bright slopes of Mauna Kea.
THAT WHICH IS EMERGENT RESHAPES THAT FROM WHICH IT EMERGED, i.e., PROGENY INTEGRATES PEDIGREE. Hence, we do not leave our human souls behind when we leave randomly degrading flesh bodies behind. Instead, we’ll use synthetic biology to bring our flesh bodies along with our virtual minds. When something is amazing, humans don’t let go of it. Hundreds of thousands of years after we discovered fire, we still delight in making fire. OK, it is disciplined in a fireplace, and perhaps further disciplined with a gas flow and an electric ignition. But we love flames. We love human figures too, the touch, the feel, the sensations, the surprises. They aren’t going away.
Synthetic Biology is our most salient tool enabling our bodies to keep up with our cyberconscious minds. While the most important code is the mindware software code of individual humans and shared humanity, it really integrates pedigree DNA code of our bodies. With synthetic biology we can compute with DNA, shaping ever healthier and more enjoyable bodies that will be able to integrate with ever healthier and longer-lived minds. I think technological civilizations are a one-in-many-millions occurrence, but once they occur, I think they will treasure and preserve museum-like every technological step they took.
What can we do now? We can teach the universal declaration of human rights, for that is the surest way to keep human civilization going into the cyberconscious continuation. Related to that is to grant respect to undocumented immigrants – they are the trailblazers for our own virtual selve’s immigration from cyberspace. Finally, agitate for ‘form equality.’ The job of justice is never done, and for us to continue our civilization endlessly, we need to endlessly attend to its needs for justice, such as ensuring that our cyberconscious bretheren are considered full members of human civilization.