Technological Singularity

[dwilkins]

I mentioned the term in the other thread about Neanderthals but thought this topic might deserve its own conversation. The following is an encyclopedic link for anyone not familiar with the topic:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Technological_singularity

Has anyone considered the implications for Christianity? I think that it might be pretty significant (given a switch to potentially immortal consciousness or a human/machine combination of existence).

Doug

[jeremiah]

Hello Doug,

Would you explain why you're using "immortality" at all? It seems all this would produce is a consciousness loaded on a computer still subject to corruption. Maybe at a slower rate than we, sure. But even if such a consciousness remained for five thousand years before the hardware was trashed or it's energy source was used up, this is hardly even potential immortality.

What kind of implications for Christianity are you thinking can come up?

Grace and peace to you Doug.

[dwilkins]

I used the term immortality because it's commonly used by fans of a technological singularity to describe in indefinite nature of the person's existence once uploaded. Of course, assuming the whole thing is even possible, there could be some sort of technological glitch at some point where someone's consciousness could be lost. However, if you assume that technology would keep advancing, I can see a situation 1,000 (or a million if you like) years from now where that would be very unlikely.

Having a situation where the memory and conscious decision making portion of the brain is separated from the body challenges our understanding of death and human anthropology. Pretending for a moment that the technology will ever eventually exist, it brings into question how we are going to define people dying. If we believe that the conscious personality is what ends up in heaven, what happens if it is indefinitely stuck in a RAM buffer some place? Do we run into a situation 100 years from now where people stop going to heaven until God arranges a crash of the mainframe?

In addition, after another couple of hundred years of nanotechnology and other robotic research I can see a situation where we start to loose track of when a person stops being a person and starts being more of a computer. The vision of those developing the technology only begins with a Borg-like paradigm.

I'm not completely persuaded that the technology will be possible, but I think it would be a good idea if Christians started taking the time to kick these topics around before we are caught having to play catch up.

Doug

[jeremiah]

Hello Doug,

I used the term immortality because it's commonly used by fans of a technological singularity to describe in indefinite nature of the person's existence once uploaded.

You meant micro while I thought macro, my mistake, I see what you mean now.

Of course, assuming the whole thing is even possible, there could be some sort of technological glitch at some point where someone's consciousness could be lost. However, if you assume that technology would keep advancing, I can see a situation 1,000 (or a million if you like) years from now where that would be very unlikely.

Right that was my point, this is precisely parallel to our own present probabilities of continuing to live or dying, only a slower rate of decay. And both exactly as fragile.

If we believe that the conscious personality is what ends up in heaven, what happens if it is indefinitely stuck in a RAM buffer some place? Do we run into a situation 100 years from now where people stop going to heaven until God arranges a crash of the mainframe?

I don't believe the Scriptures teach that anyone but God, Jesus, and angels are in heaven nor will ever be. If the idea of "the conscious personality ends up in heaven" is finally set aside, I would welcome that.

I'm not completely persuaded that the technology will be possible,...

Yeah man, I'll go back and read the wiki article more closely, but skimming it struck me as massively improbable. We (or our grandchildren) shall see. It makes me laugh to think whether these guys, if it were to be developed, would seek guidance from their 'superintelligence'.

[dwilkins]

Jeremiah,

When you say, "I don't believe the Scriptures teach that anyone but God, Jesus, and angels are in heaven nor will ever be. If the idea of "the conscious personality ends up in heaven" is finally set aside, I would welcome that", do you mean that you don't believe believers go to heaven after they die? Or, that heaven is the final destiny of believers?

Doug

[jeremiah]

Good morning Doug,

...do you mean that you don't believe believers go to heaven after they die? Or, that heaven is the final destiny of believers?

Yes, that is what I meant. I believe our hope to be that God's promise of "eternal life" to us will be by the resurrection on the last day.

Grace and peace.

[dwilkins]

Good morning Doug,

...do you mean that you don't believe believers go to heaven after they die? Or, that heaven is the final destiny of believers?

Yes, that is what I meant. I believe our hope to be that God's promise of "eternal life" to us will be by the resurrection on the last day.

Grace and peace.

And where do you spend that resurrection life?

Doug

[jeremiah]

As far as I can tell, the earth. Though please don't mistake me, I wouldn't say we won't ever enter or spend any 'time' in heaven after the resurrection. Just that I believe the earth is the only repeatedly explicit inheritance we're pointed to regarding where we spend that life.

[Soulsnaxx]

Hi Doug,

You asked, "And where do you spend that resurrection life?"

Someone asked the same question on the Narrow Path radio program. Here’s a brief video illustrating that conversation.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yfb_UcS_ecU

I think it will help answer your question.

[dwilkins]

I appreciate you posting that. I had a feeling that you'd say that but I didn't want to guess. I haven't been able to find any grounds for the idea that the New Heavens and New Earth is completely free of death, sin, and rebellion, so I disagree with this formulation. But that's for another discussion.

As far as the intermediate state goes, what's your take on going to heaven and the definition of physical death?

Doug