From: joedees@bellsouth.net
Date: Tue Jan 29 2002 - 18:15:06 MST
On 29 Jan 2002 at 18:16, L' Ermit wrote:
> [ben 4*] As far as I am aware, no studies have been conducted about the
> changes in human brain behaviour [em]at the moment of death[/em]. Imagine
> that death provokes a 'powersurge' capable of augmenting that wattage, for
> example. Hence my statement about not discarding that which has yet to be
> proven false below.
>
> [Hermit 4] Many deaths in hospitals (particularly when the terminal patient
> is a prospective donor) are instrumented by EEGs or (in Europe/South Africa
> by Angiogram) and some have been monitored by more sensitive instruments.
>
> [Hermit 4] There are no energy surges at death - and no sources of such
> energy (death occurs due to a lack of energy) - thus the hypothesized effect
> does not occur.
>
> [Hermit 4] That said, there is no reason to think that we will not develop a
> way to transfer the brain state (including memories which are a function of
> the state) from a [b]functioning[/b] brain into a suitable neural network.
> My own opinion is that this "mental cloning" will be possible within a 30
> year event horizon. At that point, two of "you" will exist as "you" are a
> function of your brain state. "Souls", being an imaginary object intended to
> convey the concept of "self", are not necessary for this process to work.
> Transfering the chaotic state of a dead or dying neural mesh will not
> accomplish anything useful (or why cryopreservation is just another way of
> disposing of redundant human tissue).
>
Of course, as soon as the self is uploaded and thus effectively cloned,
the identities of the two selves will begin to diverge, as their
experiences will from that point differ.
>
> Regards Hermit
>
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