X-Message-Number: 17458
Date: Tue, 04 Sep 2001 22:34:57 -0700
From: Mike Perry <>
Subject: A Brief Comment on the Future of Self

We hope (most of us anyway, I think) to become more than human in an 
unlimited future. A lot of things that are unclear now should become much 
clearer, including many properties relating to the self and its possible 
continuation over time. I think mathematics will play a significant part in 
this, as well as computational and informational issues. I am hopeful that 
fantastic things will eventually be discovered or worked out. Today we are 
rather fuzzy-minded creatures when it comes to this sort of inquiry. The 
evolutionary process didn't "anticipate" that we'd make a bid for 
immortality. It didn't equip us well, psychologically, emotionally, 
intellectually, for addressing the various problems, including 
philosophical ones. So we have more of a challenge. There are problems 
people bring up, such as what about memory loss or other possibly slow but 
ultimately profound changes--are we still "ourselves"? These we will have 
ways of addressing, that are presently unavailable. We will probably have 
much better memories, at least as an option. And there should be many other 
options. So I am confident of the difficulties being resolved, and 
reasonable, eventual agreement on the self: how it should be viewed, 
valued, and continued.

Mike Perry
optimistic about eternity

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