Musk has been a bit of a hit lately, having already acquired Twitter for $44 billion in less than two weeks. He also tweeted that he wanted to buy Coca-Cola and wanted to overhaul the recipe...
In recent years, Musk, who is known as the "Iron Man of the real world" and a technology maniac, has made a series of crazy and bold fan operations, which can be said to have stunned everyone and startled thousands of waves.
Tesla CEO Musk
As a Chinese, Musk has become familiar with Musk because our country has introduced Tesla companies to vigorously develop the electric vehicle industry. The main reason for the introduction of Tesla is to trigger the "catfish effect", promote the development of new energy vehicles, and gradually form a domestic new energy vehicle industry chain. But in addition to Tesla and SpaceX, Musk actually has a company that specializes in brain-computer interface technology, called Neuralink.
Musk's vision is that people can directly export their "memory" and "consciousness" through the brain-computer interface, establish a server to store their "soul", and realize the "consciousness immortality" of people...
Ever since humans have gained consciousness, they have realized the existence of death, and "eternal life" is like a seductive poison, which has hooked the hearts of countless emperors and generals. Qin Shi Huang sent Xu Fudong to seek the elixir of immortality. In his later years, Emperor Wu of Han favored the alchemists, and The Laborers mobilized the people to pursue the immortal medicine. Even the "Qin Emperor Han Wu", who proudly stands in the forest of Chinese emperors and shines the pages of history, cannot avoid the temptation of immortality, and ordinary people are even more difficult to sustain themselves.
Since the confusion of "immortality" is inevitable, let's talk about whether "digital immortality" is immortality in some sense.
In fact, as early as two years ago, I discussed this topic with netizens. Netizens believe that the physical body is no longer there, and the memory and cognition can continue, then he may still be himself.
Of course, the next thing some people retorted was that the body was gone, and that the consciousness data uploaded to the computer was just a program.
A record of the discussion with netizens
My point of view is to recognize the rebuttal netizens, the flesh does not exist, the perception simulated by that data is only sensory, you think you are still the original self. You know, as a piece of data of the computer, it can be copied infinitely, is it difficult to think that each piece of data is the original self, you have countless of yourself?
Therefore, "consciousness eternal life" may not be eternal life in the true sense for the original self. I understand eternal life as the Mindless Mage, where the flesh does not die and consciousness lives forever. "Consciousness immortality" is only for others, and may feel that it is still the original you, but for yourself, in fact, physical death, you are already gone. Many people can't figure it out here, after all, because it feels like their life is continuing on the platform of the virtual world, like they can't figure out whether the "Ship of Theseus" is not the original ship?
The Ship of Theseus
"The Ship of Theseus" – In the 1st century AD, Plutarch asked the question: If the wood on Theseus's ship was gradually replaced until all the wood was not the original wood, would the ship still be the original ship?
Many people will certainly think that the continuation of consciousness is not necessarily a good thing. It would be nice if it were possible to achieve consciousness immortality now. You don't have to work so hard, you don't have to work hard, just enjoy yourself in the virtual world. Even if the uploaded "consciousness" is only a continuation of the consciousness in the body, whether he is the original self or not?
But will the truth really be what you think?
First of all, let's first talk about a popular American drama "Upload New Life" in 2020, I don't know if anyone has seen it?
The story takes place in the future world, where people create a virtual world where people can upload their consciousness and live in the virtual world before they die.
First of all, let's talk about this drama, in fact, the scenes in many places are still based on the current technology. For example, what the male protagonist is driving is a future car that can be fully autonomous, and the male protagonist was uploaded by his girlfriend in a car accident at the beginning, because the artificial intelligence on the car was wrong.
There are also 3D printers that can print any kind of food you want to eat, and people rely on 3D printing for three meals a day.
The male protagonist who was uploaded to the virtual world after being uploaded to the consciousness lives in a large sea-view room, and everything is luxurious to the extreme. Even the seasons outside the window can change as you please.
The food in the refrigerator is always full, you can eat it casually, and you can't eat fat anyway.
In this virtual world known as Lakeview Manor, everything is nearly perfect, but this luxurious life is not something that anyone can enjoy. The male protagonist is only uploaded here because he has the support of a rich second-generation girlfriend.
On the contrary, the children of poor families are uploaded by their families, and the families cannot afford huge expenses, so they have to squeeze into a small space, enjoying 2 G of traffic, eating and wearing the lowest level.
So, don't think that "conscious eternal life" is heaven and can escape work. Perhaps, when that day comes, the lives of ordinary people may be more difficult.
Second, "consciousness immortality" may also involve humanitarian issues, and in the virtual world, there will also be inhumane behavior. For example, in the British drama "Black Mirror" - the Black Museum, it tells the story of the death row inmates who are used to extract consciousness with technology after death, and the soul is locked up in the museum for people to visit and play.
The story is probably that the owner of the Black Museum finds a death row prisoner and promises to leave a sum of money for the family of the murder suspect, so that he can sign the "soul sale deed" after death.
But this black-hearted boss reborn the death row inmate is not a conscience discovery, but a extraction of his consciousness and made into a hologram.
Holograms of the afterlife consciousness extracted
He was recognized as the museum's main exhibits, game shows and cash cows. Every day, the tourists make money by torturing him, and make souvenirs of the most painful period of consciousness.
At the end of the story, the black-hearted boss is avenged by the criminal's daughter, and before he dies, he is also extracted from consciousness, and the tortured consciousness is made into a souvenir.
So, if one day, technology develops to the point where consciousness can be uploaded through a "brain-computer interface", will you still choose "consciousness immortality"?
I think many people will choose not to, if they can really live for thousands of years, even if they are uploaded to the luxurious virtual world, over time, they will become boring, like being locked up in a modern and well-equipped prison.
Life is fascinating precisely because it is short, every smile, every annoyance, every sadness, every moment. Pile by pile, piece by piece, beautiful or not, are our growth, and finally connected together, become our life experience.
Don't live a hundred, always worry about a thousand years.
Finally, to quote a sentence that actor Jin Shijia once said, "Face yourself truly, face life sincerely, and live sincerely." ”
Encourage the kings.