Comment on Cascio in The Atlantic, more on cognitive enhancement as existential risk mitigation

Fri, 19 Jun 2009 05:02:24 GMT

This is true. Yet capability to attack isn't the same thing as actually attacking.

Even at our current level of intelligence, and the world is not ravaged by nuclear weapons or biological weapons. Maybe we are just lucky so far.

All else being equal, smarter people are probably less likely to attack with globally threatening weapons, particularly when mutually assured destruction is a factor. In cases of MAD, attack isn't exactly "easy" when you are ensuring your own destruction as well. There are some crazy people with nukes, but you have to be crazy and stupid to attack in the case of MAD, and nobody so far has that combination of craziness and stupidity. MAD is an IQ test that all humans with nukes have passed so far (the US bombing Japan was not under MAD).

I propose a study:

The participants are a sample of despots randomly assigned to two conditions. The control condition is given an IQ test and some nukes. The experimental condition is given intelligence enhancement, an IQ test, and some nukes. At the end of the experiment, scientists stationed on the moon will measure the effect of the intelligence manipulation on nuke usage.

Discuss