Turing Church working group

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At this moment the Turing Church is a closed working group at the intersection of science and religion. See http://turingchurch.org/ (login required). If you are in general agreement with the ideas in this blog (see the article on Ten Cosmist Convictions) and wish to participate in the working group, send me an email.

Cosmist Manifesto: Discussion on resurrection

Ben Goertzel has invited readers to comment his excellent Cosmist Manifesto. I look forward to seeing the text published as a book, and I will post many comments. There is an interesting discussion on technological resurrection going on in the comment thread of the post Ten Cosmist Convictions (Mostly By Giulio Prisco), please contribute. My first comment:

Many rationalists have knee-jerk reactions when the idea of technological resurrection of the dead is mentioned. Perhaps because they made a big effort to free themselves from religious superstition and are afraid of falling back into religion. But here we are talking about science and technology, not religion.

I consider the resurrection of the dead as a very remote possibility that may, or may not, be developed by future engineers.

May or may not, and how? We just don't know enough. Perhaps by quantum entanglement to the past as Ken suggests (it is known that other times are special cases of other MWI branches), or perhaps by other means. Perhaps those information patterns are dispersed that were our loved ones, as Samantha suggests, or perhaps the unfolding computation which is our reality is reversible up to a certain degree. Perhaps we will be able to acquire sufficient information from the past to "copy the dead from the past to the future", or perhaps not.

In passing note that, if our reality is a simulation running in a higher level of reality, there are conceptually simple resurrection mechanisms (the sysop can copy a pattern to another simulation). This is also a possibility that cannot be ruled out.

I prefer not to try formulating more precise speculations, and limiting myself to contemplating the idea that, perhaps, our universe may be compatible with resurrection of the dead, and our descendants may be able to achieve it. And as a student of science, I don't think resurrection is incompatible with our current knowledge of how the universe works.

All religions have developed the idea of resurrection, and it is simple to understand why: it is one of those ideas that help people getting through the night. It certainly helps me getting through the night, as I don't really expect to see engineered immortality (through biotechnology or mind uploading) in my lifetime.

And getting through the night is what really matters. As William James said, we should feel free to believe in unproven or even unprovable ideas, especially when this belief helps us finding meaning and achieving goals in our actual lives.

Please comment Ben's post Ten Cosmist Convictions (Mostly By Giulio Prisco), not this one.

teleXLR8 - Anders Sandberg on Neuroselves and exoselves: distributed cognition inside and outside brains

Anders Sandberg has inaugurated the teleXLR8 beta program in Teleplace on Sunday, April 18, with a great talk on Neuroselves and exoselves: distributed cognition inside and outside brains. After the talk there has been a lively questions and answers session.

The talk and Q/A video is available on blip.tv. Some of the participants, including Anders himself, had intermittent Internet connection problems. Other technical problems were solved in real time, and the video, which has been recorded using the native Teleplace recording feature without post-processing and editing, includes some very useful advice on how to properly set up sound devices and PPT presentations.

At the end of the talk Anders, following Kevin Warwick, said that the really important cognitive enhancements will be communication enhancements able to boost our collective intelligence, and that any method that improves communication is going to have a tremendous practical and ethical importance. I think this talk, enabled by modern interactive telepresence technology, has provided a good example of this concept.

Date and time: Sunday April 18 at 6pm continental EU (5pm UK, 9am PST, noon EST)

Title: Neuroselves and exoselves: distributed cognition inside and outside brains

Abstract: In the past the human mind was seen as atomic and clearly distinguished from the body and environment. As cognitive science has advanced this view has become increasingly untenable. The emerging view is instead that our minds are composed of networks of simpler parts. As we understand our brains better new possibilities for enhancing cognition biologically open up, but also intriguing possibilities to offload or copy our mental processes into external systems such as software. This talk will discuss the possibilities for distributed cognition inside our brains and computers and across society.

Anders Sandberg has a background in computer science, neuroscience and medical engineering. He obtained his Ph.D. in computational neuroscience from Stockholm University, Sweden, for work on neural network modeling of human memory. His research at the Future of Humanity Institute centres on societal and ethical issues surrounding human enhancement and new technology, as well as estimating the capabilities and underlying science of future technologies.

Teleplace is one of the best 3D applications for telework, online meetings, group collaboration, and e-learning in a virtual 3D environment (v-learning). It is a powerful telepresence environment where multiple participants can stream their webcam video to interactive 3D online meeting areas and workspaces. The virtual 3D space permits effectively organizing the work areas and creates the impression of “being there”, which is fundamental for effective remote collaboration. One of the main features of Teleplace is its ability to immediately import Office documents from the desktop for presentations and collaborative editing.

The talk has been sponsored by Teleplace and Italsat.

Emerging Technologies, Technological Singularity and the Transhumanist Vision , Barcelona, April 14

Full video of my talk (in Spanish)

On Wednesday, April 14, I gave a talk on "Emerging Technologies, Technological Singularity and the Transhumanist Vision" in Barcelona, at the IV International Conference on Universes and Metaverses: artistic applications of the new media, organized by Art, Architecture and Digital Society, a Research Group linked to the Department of Art History of The University of Barcelona.

Abstract: Discussion of various emergent technologies (virtual reality, neurosciences, bio/nano technologies, artificial intelligence) within the ethical and philosophical framework of the transhumanist vision and how the NBIC (Nano-Bio-Info-Cogno) convergence can take us to a Technological Singularity in this century.

El miércoles, 14 de abril he dado una charla sobre "Tecnologías Emergentes, Singularidad Tecnológica y la Visión Transhumanista" en las IV Jornadas Internacionales Universos y Metaversos: aplicaciones artísticas de los nuevos medios, organizadas por Arte, Arquitectura y Sociedad Digital, un Grupo de Investigación vinculado al Departamento de Historia del Arte de la Universidad de Barcelona.

Resumen: Discusión de diversas tecnologías emergentes (realidad virtual, neurociencias, bio / nanotecnologías, inteligencia artificial) en el marco ético y filosófico de la visión transhumanista y cómo la convergencia NBIC (Nano-Bio-Info-Cogno) nos puede llevar a una Singularidad tecnológica en este siglo.

Anders Sandberg on Neuroselves and exoselves: distributed cognition inside and outside brains, Teleplace, April 18

Anders Sandberg will give an online talk in Teleplace on Sunday, April 18:

Date and time: Sunday April 18 at 6pm continental EU (5pm UK, 9am PST, noon EST)

Title: Neuroselves and exoselves: distributed cognition inside and outside brains

Abstract: In the past the human mind was seen as atomic and clearly distinguished from the body and environment. As cognitive science has advanced this view has become increasingly untenable. The emerging view is instead that our minds are composed of networks of simpler parts. As we understand our brains better new possibilities for enhancing cognition biologically open up, but also intriguing possibilities to offload or copy our mental processes into external systems such as software. This talk will discuss the possibilities for distributed cognition inside our brains and computers and across society.

Anders Sandberg has a background in computer science, neuroscience and medical engineering. He obtained his Ph.D. in computational neuroscience from Stockholm University, Sweden, for work on neural network modeling of human memory. His research at the Future of Humanity Institute centres on societal and ethical issues surrounding human enhancement and new technology, as well as estimating the capabilities and underlying science of future technologies.

Teleplace is one of the best 3D applications for telework, online meetings, group collaboration, and e-learning in a virtual 3D environment (v-learning). It is a powerful telepresence environment where multiple participants can stream their webcam video to interactive 3D online meeting areas and workspaces. The virtual 3D space permits effectively organizing the work areas and creates the impression of "being there", which is fundamental for effective remote collaboration. One of the main features of Teleplace is its ability to immediately import Office documents from the desktop for presentations and collaborative editing.

The talk is sponsored by Teleplace and Italsat, We still have a few seats available, please write to me if you wish to be invited.

Are we actors in transcendent films?

Yesterday I was watching a good historic film, and I thought that perhaps this is the reason why transcendent post-humans may bother to simulate us (see the previous post): for the same reason why we enjoy historic novels and films.

Films now permit only passive watching from an external point of view, and offer only very limited clues on the thoughts and mental states of the characters (books are much better in this respect). But films-as-we-know-them will probably be replaced by full sensory and mental experiences indistinguishable from reality. For example:

First, films will use full 3D virtual reality technology to permit viewers moving in the scene (like live plays where the public can walk in the scene).

Second, once VR technology becomes fully immersive with full sensory stimulation, films may become indistinguishable from reality, but viewers will still know that they are watching a movie.

Then, viewers may have the option to "become" the characters, forgetting their primary lives and adopting the points of view of the characters, with their own scripted thoughts, memories and emotions.

And ultimately, the characters themselves may become fully autonomous and conscious entities, able to provide endless hours of entertainment to viewers by becoming different versions of themselves in different versions of the film's simulated reality. Are quantum many-worlds special effects?

So if you wanted to be a Hollywood star... perhaps you are one, acting within an entertainment simulation run by a Transcendent Mind. Perhaps if you do it well the Mind will copy you to other films.