Would it make a difference if the laws of physics prevent or allow a machine from operating in ‘duplicate’ mode?

  • Lumidaub@feddit.org
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    4
    ·
    2 days ago

    For all I know I’ve been cut and and pasted 20 times in the last 5 minutes. There’d be no practical difference and I’d feel the same. This is only an issue if you think there’s something like a “soul”.

        • Lemmywinks@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          4
          ·
          edit-2
          1 day ago

          You have absolutely no reason to believe that.

          What happens if there’s a malfunction in the machine and the copy is made at the other end without the original version being destroyed? Do you think you would experience both perspectives simultaneously?

            • Lemmywinks@lemmy.world
              link
              fedilink
              arrow-up
              2
              ·
              1 day ago

              Right, but even if everything did work as intended there is still the possibility that it might not have done, and that possibility helps us understand what is actually happening, which is that you are killed and a copy of you is created somewhere else. There is absolutely no reason to believe that your experience would magically transfer over to that copy.

              • Lumidaub@feddit.org
                link
                fedilink
                arrow-up
                1
                ·
                edit-2
                22 hours ago

                What do you mean by “your experience”?

                There is nothing magic about this. I am what my brain does. My physical brain and its physical contents are cut and pasted.

                Edit: “cut and pasted” is used here like with digital files, to avoid saying “copypasted” because I’m actively avoiding that can of worms of creating concurrently existing copies.