S.O.S. #4 The Rubbish Heap

S.O.S. #4 The Rubbish Heap May 4, 2020 15:01:18 GMT

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Post by Eva Yojimbo on May 4, 2020 15:01:18 GMT

May 4, 2020 1:45:29 GMT Arlon10 said:

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May 3, 2020 21:11:54 GMT:

A) No, obviously not. There may, indeed, ...

B) ... how else would a being "know" what was going to happen?

C) {Why not have several choices, just no really bad choices? (If I read you correctly)]

   A) Here's how it works. The project leader or foreman or teacher of a certain class or whoever is in charge says whenever I say this (0.999999999999) I mean this (1) and poof! They are now "equal." It happens more than you might know that various endeavors must choose "working" definitions for practical reasons. It is not "illegal." I think maybe you do know. Our words and symbols mean whatever we choose for them to mean. (All definitions are arbitrary.)

   B) Good question, maybe it requires a superpower.

   C) Anther good question. I guess I'll have to get back to that one. Meanwhile maybe it's like a simple on/off switch without a means to determine how various choices change the remote future. Consider the science fiction of time travel and what seemingly insignificant act might change the future in very dramatic ways.

A) This reminds me of Yudkowsky's parable of bleggs and rubes.

B) Even with ontological determinism, knowing everything that's going to happen would still be a superpower; but I'm not sure how it would function without that determinism.

C) Mostly I was just saying that we can still have free will without the desire to do evil things. I'm not sure what your "it's" in "it's like a simple on/off switch..." is referring to. I've always loved time travel stories though I think most of them are pretty ridiculous even conceptually, since going back in time would require either the creation of new matter for there to be two "you's," or the moment you go back in time it would have to create a new timeline without you in it; either way I don't see how it would work. Still, lots of great stories can be told with the device! I just recently watched the first season of the new Doctor Who and really enjoyed it, eg.