Speaking of Star Trek, the Poli-Sci-Fi Radio podcast got deep into the weeds this week on Dollhouse, The Prestige, clone "immortality," and how the transporter on Star Trek is a fax machine that shreds its input when it's done with it. (Bill has more on his home blog.)
Having spent a good portion of my childhood working out the metaphysical implications of such technology, I myself was moved to comment. As someone with a well-documented and simply unhealthy fear of death, I must admit that the consciousness-as-Ship-of-Theseus direction these discussions invariably take is both the only possible solution to the problem as well as a clear ontological horror in its own right.
Friday, May 01, 2009
Posted by Gerry Canavan at 9:31 AM
Labels: clones, consciousness, Dollhouse, immortal robot bodies, immortality, nerd physics, Poli-Sci-Fi Radio, science fiction, Ship of Theseus, Star Trek, teleportation, thanatophobia, you don't exist
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