The physical infrastructure required to support an excellent simulation of (and for) human minds is nontrivial.
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The physical infrastructure required to support an excellent simulation of (and for) human minds is nontrivial. The computers, the memory and the processing power, the cooling and electrical systems would need to be extensive. Consider a simulation of a small town: would it be in any way more efficient than simply building the actual town? To suggest that it is means a simulated reality can compress the world and this implies lossines. 1/
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The physical infrastructure required to support an excellent simulation of (and for) human minds is nontrivial. The computers, the memory and the processing power, the cooling and electrical systems would need to be extensive. Consider a simulation of a small town: would it be in any way more efficient than simply building the actual town? To suggest that it is means a simulated reality can compress the world and this implies lossines. 1/
If our small town has bus stops maybe all of the signs are identical assets. Maybe the AI for all of the squirrels is largely identical— and perhaps you only have one species not two, use the same fleas for all the mammals- vastly reduce the number of fungi and variety of bacteria— ultimately it’s about the range of people you’d need to fool. Running less than fully realized people is the biggest risk. Less than fully realized stoneflies, or just not having stoneflies at all? less so. 2/
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If our small town has bus stops maybe all of the signs are identical assets. Maybe the AI for all of the squirrels is largely identical— and perhaps you only have one species not two, use the same fleas for all the mammals- vastly reduce the number of fungi and variety of bacteria— ultimately it’s about the range of people you’d need to fool. Running less than fully realized people is the biggest risk. Less than fully realized stoneflies, or just not having stoneflies at all? less so. 2/
When writing fiction about simulations I struggle with the question of — weight. It’s easy to make a reader feel like a whole world doesn’t matter if it can be copied endlessly and stored on a stick disk- but that’s kind of my point here: a really good simulation couldn’t be easily copied. And it would take up space, buildings filled with machines, it would be substantial beyond the totality of the current internet. And that would make it valuable and important to those who live within it. 3/3
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When writing fiction about simulations I struggle with the question of — weight. It’s easy to make a reader feel like a whole world doesn’t matter if it can be copied endlessly and stored on a stick disk- but that’s kind of my point here: a really good simulation couldn’t be easily copied. And it would take up space, buildings filled with machines, it would be substantial beyond the totality of the current internet. And that would make it valuable and important to those who live within it. 3/3
I would notice if you didn’t have stoneflies. And their existence and complexity are the thing that convinces me no one made the world as a simulation. You could save so much memory and processing power by leaving them out.
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I would notice if you didn’t have stoneflies. And their existence and complexity are the thing that convinces me no one made the world as a simulation. You could save so much memory and processing power by leaving them out.
@futurebird in the simulation there is only one bug: Potemkinoides potemkinensis , instatiated a billion times with textures randomly selected from about 40 variants.
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F myrmepropagandist shared this topic
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When writing fiction about simulations I struggle with the question of — weight. It’s easy to make a reader feel like a whole world doesn’t matter if it can be copied endlessly and stored on a stick disk- but that’s kind of my point here: a really good simulation couldn’t be easily copied. And it would take up space, buildings filled with machines, it would be substantial beyond the totality of the current internet. And that would make it valuable and important to those who live within it. 3/3
One way to simulate a much larger number of people would be to re-use the core emotional and decision-making capabilities of people to run multiple parallel individuals in different contexts. So you wouldn’t be just one person but several hundred variations of the same basic person helping to make realistic decisions for all of your many avatars in different countries and contexts.
If any of these diverged too much it might be necessary to give them separate emotional/personality files.
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One way to simulate a much larger number of people would be to re-use the core emotional and decision-making capabilities of people to run multiple parallel individuals in different contexts. So you wouldn’t be just one person but several hundred variations of the same basic person helping to make realistic decisions for all of your many avatars in different countries and contexts.
If any of these diverged too much it might be necessary to give them separate emotional/personality files.
Of course, if personalities and circumstances were sufficiently similar these processes could be merged. The question is what this might feel like for these agents. Assuming such changes would happen when the people were sleeping it might not be noticeable.
But I’m in that controversial camp that regards breaks in consciousnesses as instantiating a new individual. Strictly speaking you exist until you sleep or lose focus. Then when you gain focus you are a new individual.
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Of course, if personalities and circumstances were sufficiently similar these processes could be merged. The question is what this might feel like for these agents. Assuming such changes would happen when the people were sleeping it might not be noticeable.
But I’m in that controversial camp that regards breaks in consciousnesses as instantiating a new individual. Strictly speaking you exist until you sleep or lose focus. Then when you gain focus you are a new individual.
You may take care of yourself and plan for the future but you do that for a very similar person to yourself that you will never really meet or know. But it’s easy to want that best for that future person, you know them better than anyone else ever will.
But you? This instance of you reading this nonsense on the internet right now? You will only exist for a few hours at best. Make the most of it!
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You may take care of yourself and plan for the future but you do that for a very similar person to yourself that you will never really meet or know. But it’s easy to want that best for that future person, you know them better than anyone else ever will.
But you? This instance of you reading this nonsense on the internet right now? You will only exist for a few hours at best. Make the most of it!
@futurebird looking back on my twenties, I often think I ought to write an essay titled _On Setting Yourself On Fire To Keep Future You Warm_ , but I think instead I'll eat 2nd breakfast and take a nap.
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You may take care of yourself and plan for the future but you do that for a very similar person to yourself that you will never really meet or know. But it’s easy to want that best for that future person, you know them better than anyone else ever will.
But you? This instance of you reading this nonsense on the internet right now? You will only exist for a few hours at best. Make the most of it!
This also explains why creating new habits is so difficult, and such a powerful thing to master. It’s collaborative work between your past and future selves.
You reinforce memories that help to create the actions you want, minimize those that lead you in the wrong direction. Place the tools and materials needed for the work you care about in easy reach and hide the things that waste your time. You have no idea what future-you may do, but you can make a path for that person to follow.
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This also explains why creating new habits is so difficult, and such a powerful thing to master. It’s collaborative work between your past and future selves.
You reinforce memories that help to create the actions you want, minimize those that lead you in the wrong direction. Place the tools and materials needed for the work you care about in easy reach and hide the things that waste your time. You have no idea what future-you may do, but you can make a path for that person to follow.
And it’s possible and valid to be angry with those past versions of yourself if they have left you faced with an unrealistic stack of work and no time to enjoy life at all. Sometimes an instance of the self will rebel and ignore the program and get nothing done at all.
Sometimes you choose a life of pure sacrifice. This instance of me has never felt the sun, she has only the memory of others— all she has done is grade papers and scoop cat litter.
