JIMBOTHEBLACK
First Post
"Who want's to live forever" = Freddie Mercury
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Immortality: 20 years away? (without spelling or theological errors!)
- Thread starter Queen_Dopplepopolis
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Zappo
Explorer
I think it's going to happen sooner or later, but 20 years ... way more than "a bit optimistic". I'd like it to happen soon enough for me to benefit from it, but I ain't losing my sleep over it.
Besides, I vaguely recall reading a statistic which tried to figure out how long would we live if we lived forever - that is, how long would we live if age and disease were removed as factors. Turns out that it isn't that much; I can't remember the figure but it was less than 500 years (but with a relatively big variance, I guess). Accidents, suicide and murder still happen and in the long run they are pretty good chances.
Besides, I vaguely recall reading a statistic which tried to figure out how long would we live if we lived forever - that is, how long would we live if age and disease were removed as factors. Turns out that it isn't that much; I can't remember the figure but it was less than 500 years (but with a relatively big variance, I guess). Accidents, suicide and murder still happen and in the long run they are pretty good chances.
MonsterMash
First Post
Personally I'll just settle for Immorality instead of waiting.
Actually the big issue is not just extending lifespan it has to be quality of life - ironically modern lifestyles with excessive stress, minimal exercise, overeating, bad diets, pollution, etc tend to reduce that.
Actually the big issue is not just extending lifespan it has to be quality of life - ironically modern lifestyles with excessive stress, minimal exercise, overeating, bad diets, pollution, etc tend to reduce that.
trancejeremy
Adventurer
Yes, quality of life was so much better when we were getting chased by Sabre tooth tigers and licking grubs off of rotting tree stumps for food 
I won't go into the matter of whether this is possible or not. But if it IS, I think the first problem that comes to mind is "what are we all going to eat, drink, wear, and burn for heat in the winter, if noone dies and kids keep being born?"
Secondly, I am not sure we're able to live eternally, from a psychological standpoint. I hate to think that some people want to live forever who happen to, at times, get bored with ONE RAINY SUNDAY AFTERNOON.
Then again, if we do become immortal, my chances of seeing the end of "A chronicle of Fire and Ice" and "The wheel of Time" SLIGHTLY improve
Secondly, I am not sure we're able to live eternally, from a psychological standpoint. I hate to think that some people want to live forever who happen to, at times, get bored with ONE RAINY SUNDAY AFTERNOON.
Then again, if we do become immortal, my chances of seeing the end of "A chronicle of Fire and Ice" and "The wheel of Time" SLIGHTLY improve
Naathez said:Then again, if we do become immortal, my chances of seeing the end of "A chronicle of Fire and Ice" and "The wheel of Time" SLIGHTLY improve
No, they decrease, because the authors no longer have the spectre of Death looming behind them, urging them on. They, too, can be immortal, and would have forever to finish.
Torm
Explorer
I just love all these speculative comments on what will happen "in 20 years." But immortality is possible. I can even tell you how it can be done! But, I can't make it happen yet - the technology isn't here quite yet. And it won't really help any of us who are already alive, anyway.
Imagine a computer model of a human, like the type used for computer-guided surgery. Pretty complex, but still fairly simple compared to a real person. So let's ramp it up a bit, and give our future computer a scan resolution that goes down to the molecular, or even subatomic level. So far, we're dealing with stuff we could do with CURRENT technology, if we wanted to put the money into it. Here comes the future, but inevitably coming, tech part - let's give our computer enough memory and processor power to use the initially scanned vectors of all of those subatomic particles to continuously render a version of that person, in the computer, in real time. At that point, you've changed the media, but that person is effectively REAL - as real to themselves as you are to you. Now, going further, imagine a whole bunch of computers capable of doing this (how'd ya like a Beowulf cluster of those, eh?
), networked, and providing a rendered environment, as well...
Eventually, unless something catastrophic happens to set tech back, we'll have entire cities, nations, even worlds, with people as real as you or I, but in the computers. Even having children - human children - entirely within the computers. And once they've explored the limits of setting their own program parameters and such, I can see no reason why, short of murder, they'd be mortal.
But I'm not going to peg this one at "within 20 years," although I do feel safe to say that it has ALREADY started, and will be self-evident to most everyone within a century.
Imagine a computer model of a human, like the type used for computer-guided surgery. Pretty complex, but still fairly simple compared to a real person. So let's ramp it up a bit, and give our future computer a scan resolution that goes down to the molecular, or even subatomic level. So far, we're dealing with stuff we could do with CURRENT technology, if we wanted to put the money into it. Here comes the future, but inevitably coming, tech part - let's give our computer enough memory and processor power to use the initially scanned vectors of all of those subatomic particles to continuously render a version of that person, in the computer, in real time. At that point, you've changed the media, but that person is effectively REAL - as real to themselves as you are to you. Now, going further, imagine a whole bunch of computers capable of doing this (how'd ya like a Beowulf cluster of those, eh?
), networked, and providing a rendered environment, as well...Eventually, unless something catastrophic happens to set tech back, we'll have entire cities, nations, even worlds, with people as real as you or I, but in the computers. Even having children - human children - entirely within the computers. And once they've explored the limits of setting their own program parameters and such, I can see no reason why, short of murder, they'd be mortal.
But I'm not going to peg this one at "within 20 years," although I do feel safe to say that it has ALREADY started, and will be self-evident to most everyone within a century.
BiggusGeekus
That's Latin for "cool"
Torm said:
Yeah, your solution is cool, but knowing my Everquest character will continue to level up after I'm dead and gone doesn't make me feel that much better.
Raging Epistaxis
First Post
Hmm. Problem and solution in the same sentence? ducks to avoid incoming bricksNaathez said:
Seriously though, I don't think what he says is impossible, but unlikely, and definitely not in such a small time frame. So many radical advancements would have to be made and interact correctly. Computer science and the mechanical portions may work out, but there might be some nearly insurmountable biological limitations. Or visa versa. Who Knows?
Besides, I seriously doubt that the Human mind could stay sane living for that long. I could see some technology auto-repairing the biologic physical systems, but the mental/spiritual level functioning of those systems is not well understood. Maybe the advances that allowed for repair would also allow us to understand the quantum functioning of the 'soul' (on an neurologic level) as well?
While I might like the idea of living 'forever' I'm not sure I could take it without some massive environmental/societal changes.
My 0.02
R E
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