4 ms·

There are a lot of ethical issues surrounding Neuralink and how it would be used. It might be good for certain medical stuff but I can see how it can be abused.

WalterBright 9mo ago
> There are a lot of ethical issues surrounding Neuralink and how it would be used Like what? (There are always ethical issues with new medical technology.) > It might be good for certain medical stuff Yes, like giving sight to the blind! What a monster Musk is! P.S. two of my largest medical fears are becoming paralyzed or going blind. Neuralink has promise in making these treatable. I'm all for it!
- bananaflag 9mo ago
  > Like what? (There are always ethical issues with new medical technology.) Like mind control, thought surveillance, neural torture (the last one would be easiest). I think these are inevitable technologies, I don't blame Neuralink in particular.
  - WalterBright 9mo ago
    Mean people already do these things. Other people are already trying to use AI to decode your brainwaves and thoughts. There's no evidence Neuralink is doing anything unethical.
- antonvs 9mo ago
  > What a monster Musk is! Glad we’re on the same page. When I was using Zortech C++ in the ‘80s, I never imagined I’d be talking to the author nearly half a century later about his support for a fascist Nazi near-trillionaire. Wtf is wrong with you.
  - WalterBright 9mo ago
    I wouldn't support Musk if he was a fascist nazi. My personal views are libertarian.
    - devmor 9mo ago
      I don’t think he is a fascist nazi either. But I do think he is happy to support them as long as they make him feel special, and that’s bad enough. The man is deeply unwell and desperate for approval and accolades. From anyone.
      - WalterBright 9mo ago
        I think we can agree that Musk is strongly motivated. He works insanely hard and takes huge personal risks with his fortune. He says why he does it - over and over - to save humanity by spreading it out into space. > desperate for approval and accolades. From anyone. If true, it is rather common behavior, not deeply unwell. Politicians 100% fall into that category. So do movie stars. So does every Olympic athlete. So what.
        devmor 9mo ago
        If he wants to save humanity, he certainly doesn't show it. Most of what he's done in life so far has harmed or taken more lives than the vast majority of individuals in history. His actions in "DOGE" vis-a-vis USAID may put him on the very top of that list, in the long run. > If true, it is rather common behavior. Wanting approval is normal. Most people would not support nazis for approval.
      - Fargren 9mo ago
        I think if you materially support the nazis, you are a nazi, regardless of what might be your internal justification. This is a distinction without a difference.
        devmor 9mo ago
        I think the distinction is important in this case specifically because it shows us that he has no strong conviction towards doing so. He knows it's wrong and does it anyways, it's worse.
- nephihaha 9mo ago
  Neuralink has various potentials. One of them is that it becomes obligatory or even mandatory... If you don't get it, you'll be accused of being a luddite. It will probably start as a medical tool and progress to there. The problem is that you are giving away access to your mind, one of the last private spaces. That means your thoughts can be stolen (think AI scraping but worse), or advertising put in your dreams. Perhaps even used to reprogram your mind etc.
  - fragmede 9mo ago
    > One of them is that it becomes obligatory or even mandatory... Given how smartphones have percolated society, I fear you may have a point, but I think that might be the slippery slope fallacy.
    - nephihaha 9mo ago
      It's a pattern. Technology doesn't always mean something is better. Sometimes it does, but not always.

WalterBright 9mo ago

> There are a lot of ethical issues surrounding Neuralink and how it would be used Like what? (There are always ethical issues with new medical technology.) > It might be good for certain medical stuff Yes, like giving sight to the blind! What a monster Musk is! P.S. two of my largest medical fears are becoming paralyzed or going blind. Neuralink has promise in making these treatable. I'm all for it!

bananaflag 9mo ago
> Like what? (There are always ethical issues with new medical technology.) Like mind control, thought surveillance, neural torture (the last one would be easiest). I think these are inevitable technologies, I don't blame Neuralink in particular.
- WalterBright 9mo ago
  Mean people already do these things. Other people are already trying to use AI to decode your brainwaves and thoughts. There's no evidence Neuralink is doing anything unethical.
antonvs 9mo ago
> What a monster Musk is! Glad we’re on the same page. When I was using Zortech C++ in the ‘80s, I never imagined I’d be talking to the author nearly half a century later about his support for a fascist Nazi near-trillionaire. Wtf is wrong with you.
- WalterBright 9mo ago
  I wouldn't support Musk if he was a fascist nazi. My personal views are libertarian.
  - devmor 9mo ago
    I don’t think he is a fascist nazi either. But I do think he is happy to support them as long as they make him feel special, and that’s bad enough. The man is deeply unwell and desperate for approval and accolades. From anyone.
    - WalterBright 9mo ago
      I think we can agree that Musk is strongly motivated. He works insanely hard and takes huge personal risks with his fortune. He says why he does it - over and over - to save humanity by spreading it out into space. > desperate for approval and accolades. From anyone. If true, it is rather common behavior, not deeply unwell. Politicians 100% fall into that category. So do movie stars. So does every Olympic athlete. So what.
      - devmor 9mo ago
        If he wants to save humanity, he certainly doesn't show it. Most of what he's done in life so far has harmed or taken more lives than the vast majority of individuals in history. His actions in "DOGE" vis-a-vis USAID may put him on the very top of that list, in the long run. > If true, it is rather common behavior. Wanting approval is normal. Most people would not support nazis for approval.
    - Fargren 9mo ago
      I think if you materially support the nazis, you are a nazi, regardless of what might be your internal justification. This is a distinction without a difference.
      - devmor 9mo ago
        I think the distinction is important in this case specifically because it shows us that he has no strong conviction towards doing so. He knows it's wrong and does it anyways, it's worse.
nephihaha 9mo ago
Neuralink has various potentials. One of them is that it becomes obligatory or even mandatory... If you don't get it, you'll be accused of being a luddite. It will probably start as a medical tool and progress to there. The problem is that you are giving away access to your mind, one of the last private spaces. That means your thoughts can be stolen (think AI scraping but worse), or advertising put in your dreams. Perhaps even used to reprogram your mind etc.
- fragmede 9mo ago
  > One of them is that it becomes obligatory or even mandatory... Given how smartphones have percolated society, I fear you may have a point, but I think that might be the slippery slope fallacy.
  - nephihaha 9mo ago
    It's a pattern. Technology doesn't always mean something is better. Sometimes it does, but not always.