A really clunky high level idea that was not intentionally constructed with any forethought and breaks down fast if you look at it too close from almost any angle.
They make up these definitions themselves, then become entangled in them and nothing is won.
For starters, let me recommend Solé’s terrific book “Phase Transitions” which answers the question whether or not a virus can be considered “life” from a phase space POV.
From this, you can, with some years of pondering and meditating, abstract further and hopefully, finally go completely Zen: Can there be an answer? Does the question make sense? Do definitions make sense?
idk i’m no “scientist” apparently because it’s never stumped me as unsolvable. I define life as everything that adheres to evolution, so in other words everything that has a genetic code. More or less “life” sometimes (superficially) also only refers to the metabolism that is caused by living beings, which would exclude viruses and such.
So a genetic evolutionary algorithm on a computer is alive? Many would not agree with that. You can add the qualifier that it needs to reproduce by itself but then viruses don’t qualify.
In the same sense, an uploaded human mind would not be alive and have no rights, assuming this is technically feasible. A torment nexus would then just be fine. Maybe pseudo-life must be a thing.
First, define life. That one has stumped scientists for a long time already.
A really clunky high level idea that was not intentionally constructed with any forethought and breaks down fast if you look at it too close from almost any angle.
Alternatively:
That thing people keep telling me to get.
They make up these definitions themselves, then become entangled in them and nothing is won.
For starters, let me recommend Solé’s terrific book “Phase Transitions” which answers the question whether or not a virus can be considered “life” from a phase space POV.
From this, you can, with some years of pondering and meditating, abstract further and hopefully, finally go completely Zen: Can there be an answer? Does the question make sense? Do definitions make sense?
Just ask Pluto
idk i’m no “scientist” apparently because it’s never stumped me as unsolvable. I define life as everything that adheres to evolution, so in other words everything that has a genetic code. More or less “life” sometimes (superficially) also only refers to the metabolism that is caused by living beings, which would exclude viruses and such.
So a genetic evolutionary algorithm on a computer is alive? Many would not agree with that. You can add the qualifier that it needs to reproduce by itself but then viruses don’t qualify.
In the same sense, an uploaded human mind would not be alive and have no rights, assuming this is technically feasible. A torment nexus would then just be fine. Maybe pseudo-life must be a thing.
viruses? prions? self-optimizing computer programs? societies?
scientists have identified a single-celled microbe that lacks all metabolic functions / genetics and outsources that to other bacteria. is it alive?