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While reading over a post by Yaniru ( http://www.astronomy.net/forums/god/messages/24885.shtml by the way, does anyone here know what shtml stands for?), one of his statements brought back memories of what I first began to ask questions about. Can a person live forever?
"Frankly, all I care is that consciousness exists and that it will survive my physical death. However, it appears to be all downhill thereafter because if I am to be reborn, I must lose consciousness and identity with my previous life. So as far as I am concerned, I then no longer exist. My present life as I know it is gone and I am gone."
I have had many ideas about that subject, focusing on what a conciousness must have to remain in service forever. Eventually, I reached the conclusion that I have no way of surviving much more than 100 years. For years I stopped questioning things... I just stopped asking questions about anything that could hurt me as much as I was hurt when I reached that conclusion. This was what I think: ===Conciousness draws from memories that we have. The connections in our brain are 'learned' and based on our experiences, DNA, etc. All of that is stored in the atoms and particles that make up th human brain. Neither the brain mass, nor the conciousness can be without the other. And, if either is substituted with even compatible replacements, all of the original concoiusness dies. With one exception. If a brain mass is wiped clean of all conciousness, then conciousness is recorded back into it (the same conciousness that was in it to begin with; a connection broken, then that same connection made again---- OR, a more advanced conciousness based on the connections of the original conciosness[the same conciousness but in a future time]), the original conciouness did die, but when it was recorded again, it was brought back to life. the conciousness in that example would not be aware of any changes, and it would be the SAME conciousness as it always was. It would be as much the same conciousness as I am the same conciousness now... as I am now.=== That was not what bothered me, this is:
--The biological brain cannot live forever. My early thoughts were to somehow transfer my conciousness to some sort of computer. However, that would mean that I would die forever. A new conciousness would be created in my likeness and it would be able to live forever, but I would die. If a new conciousness overwrote my mine, I would die, and I would still be alive... hoever, I would never know that I was once another conciousness, and I would defend the new conciousness as I would my previous one. The only to live forever from birth to death would be to have been born in a computer or other system that doesn't degrade with time; since I was not so lucky, I am doomed.--
Does the above agree or disagree with your thoughts?
Regards,
Phillip Martin |
