Duplicating Humans May Lead to Problems
Consider this scenario...
A man named Jack Flash enters a room with a nondestructive uploading booth. He notices the
furnishings and decorations. He enters the booth, and the door slides shut. There is a low
hum which goes on for a few minutes. Then, a voice says 'the copying process is complete,
please exit the booth'. He does so, walking out into the familar room and exiting it.
In the corridor, who should Jack Flash see but....Jack Flash. This must be the copy. But THIS
Jack Flash insists he is the original. It turns out that the room in which the copy emerges is a
laid out in the exact same way as the room in which Flash entered the booth. Same
furnishings, same decoration, arranged the same way. What Jack expected to see when the
booth door opened, based on his memories, is precisely what the copy would see based on his
duplicated memories. So, how can either Jack possibly know if he really existed for decades
prior to this day, or if those memories were 'manufactured' less than five minutes ago?
Because this problem has arisen before, Jack Flash Two, the copy, has had an RFID chip
embedded in his neck indicating that he is the duplicate. As it turns out, Jack Flash Two and
Jack Flash One get in an argument as to who has the rights to live in Jack's home. In the
ensuing battle, Jack Flash Two kills Jack Flash One. Jack's children come to bury him and
inherit his fortune. Jack Flash Two complains to the Judge that he is Jack Flash One and is
not dead...that the dead person is only a copy. The oldest child discovers what has happened.
She is a lawyer and technically astute. In fact, she has an Smartphone which scans for RFID
chips. She proves to the judge that the living Jack Flash is the copy using her Smartphone.
As you can see, it turns out that Jack Flash Two is an evil twin. He is sentenced to die. Given
the technology, under these circumstances, a human may be 'unmurdered'. To accomplish
this, Jack Flash Two is made to step into the uploading booth where a copy is made. By order
of the court, this copy does not have an RFID chip. This copy is adjudicated to be the original
Jack Flash. Everyone gathers around and celebrates the fact that the original Jack Flash's life
has been restored.
Normally, the restored Jack Flash would have memories of having killed Jack Flash One.
During the duplication process, however, the judge ordered that his brain be modified to
remove such memories.
Most of the Flash family attends the execution of the Duplicate Evil Jack Flash Two. Jack
Flash One doesn't attend, however. Due to a mix up, Jack Flash's mother attends the
execution and is heard saying, "where did I go wrong?" Her sons and daughters console her
and tell her that it is not really her son being executed. She is too old to understand about
people duplication and the intricate details of what happened, but she gets over it when she
meets her 'real' son afterwards. Everyone lives happily ever after.
People are seen picketing out front. They are against capital punishment. I talked to one of
these picketers and he said "why not just modify the brain of the murderer so that he doesn't
remember what he did and doesn't have any motivation to do it again?" Good question. The
only answer I could think of is that it is the way humans have treated murderers in the past.
What do you think? Write to dafacxt@gmail.com
Next
Consider this scenario...
A man named Jack Flash enters a room with a nondestructive uploading booth. He notices the
furnishings and decorations. He enters the booth, and the door slides shut. There is a low
hum which goes on for a few minutes. Then, a voice says 'the copying process is complete,
please exit the booth'. He does so, walking out into the familar room and exiting it.
In the corridor, who should Jack Flash see but....Jack Flash. This must be the copy. But THIS
Jack Flash insists he is the original. It turns out that the room in which the copy emerges is a
laid out in the exact same way as the room in which Flash entered the booth. Same
furnishings, same decoration, arranged the same way. What Jack expected to see when the
booth door opened, based on his memories, is precisely what the copy would see based on his
duplicated memories. So, how can either Jack possibly know if he really existed for decades
prior to this day, or if those memories were 'manufactured' less than five minutes ago?
Because this problem has arisen before, Jack Flash Two, the copy, has had an RFID chip
embedded in his neck indicating that he is the duplicate. As it turns out, Jack Flash Two and
Jack Flash One get in an argument as to who has the rights to live in Jack's home. In the
ensuing battle, Jack Flash Two kills Jack Flash One. Jack's children come to bury him and
inherit his fortune. Jack Flash Two complains to the Judge that he is Jack Flash One and is
not dead...that the dead person is only a copy. The oldest child discovers what has happened.
She is a lawyer and technically astute. In fact, she has an Smartphone which scans for RFID
chips. She proves to the judge that the living Jack Flash is the copy using her Smartphone.
As you can see, it turns out that Jack Flash Two is an evil twin. He is sentenced to die. Given
the technology, under these circumstances, a human may be 'unmurdered'. To accomplish
this, Jack Flash Two is made to step into the uploading booth where a copy is made. By order
of the court, this copy does not have an RFID chip. This copy is adjudicated to be the original
Jack Flash. Everyone gathers around and celebrates the fact that the original Jack Flash's life
has been restored.
Normally, the restored Jack Flash would have memories of having killed Jack Flash One.
During the duplication process, however, the judge ordered that his brain be modified to
remove such memories.
Most of the Flash family attends the execution of the Duplicate Evil Jack Flash Two. Jack
Flash One doesn't attend, however. Due to a mix up, Jack Flash's mother attends the
execution and is heard saying, "where did I go wrong?" Her sons and daughters console her
and tell her that it is not really her son being executed. She is too old to understand about
people duplication and the intricate details of what happened, but she gets over it when she
meets her 'real' son afterwards. Everyone lives happily ever after.
People are seen picketing out front. They are against capital punishment. I talked to one of
these picketers and he said "why not just modify the brain of the murderer so that he doesn't
remember what he did and doesn't have any motivation to do it again?" Good question. The
only answer I could think of is that it is the way humans have treated murderers in the past.
What do you think? Write to dafacxt@gmail.com
Next
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