4 ms·
Actual people are vastly outnumbered by entropy fluctuations in the long run, according to any number of valid cosmological models. Their total population is gr
by rad88 3y ago
Actual people are vastly outnumbered by entropy fluctuations in the long run, according to any number of valid cosmological models. Their total population is greater than 10^35 by far, and does not depend on whether superintelligence is possible or likely to destroy the actual human race. That question makes no difference to almost every human who will ever have a thought or feeling.
You could say, well, that's just a theory -- and it is a dubious one, indeed. But it's far more established by statistics and physical law than the numbers Bolstrom throws out.
- adamsmith143 3y agoThe last gas I passed had 10^23 entropy fluctuations in it. So you're saying those are more important than the 100 Billion human lives that came before them?
- rad88 3y agoI'm saying that it's unscientific nonsense. Bolstrom has predicted that the number of people potentially in the future is between approximately 0 and 100,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000. This isn't an estimate that can or should factor into any decision at all. 100B people are going to live in the 21st century. Worry about them.
- adamsmith143 3y agoI think discounting future lives because you can't precisely count them is immoral at best and actively evil at worst.