JenniferRM comments on Poll: What value extra copies? - Less Wrong
You are viewing a comment permalink. View the original post to see all comments and the full post content.
You are viewing a comment permalink. View the original post to see all comments and the full post content.
Comments (136)
That would be an pretty big "original privilege" :-)
Generally, when I think about making copies, I assume that the status of being "original" would be washed away and I would find myself existing with some amount of certainty (say 50% to 100%) that I was the copy. They I try to think about how I'd feel about having been created by someone who has all my memories/skills/tendencies/defects but has a metaphysically arbitrary (though perhaps emotionally or legally endorsed) claim to being "more authentic" than me by virtue of some historical fact of "mere physical continuity".
I would only expect a copy to cooperate with my visions for what my copy "should do" if I'm excited by the prospect of getting to do that - if I'm kinda hoping that after the copy process I wake up as the copy because the copy is going to have a really interesting life.
In practice, I would expect that what I'd really have to do is write up two "divergence plans" for each future version of me, that seem equally desirable, then copy, then re-negotiate with my copy over the details of the divergence plans (because I imagine the practicalities of two of us existing might reveal some false assumptions in the first draft of the plans), and finally we'd flip a coin to find out which plan each of us is assigned to.
I guess... If only one of us gets the "right of making more copies" I'd want the original contact to make "copyright" re-assignable after the copying event, so I could figure out whether "copyright" is more of a privilege or a burden, and what the appropriate compensation is for taking up the burden or losing the privilege.
ETA:: Perhaps our preferences would diverge during negotiation? That actually seems like something to hope for because then a simple cake cutting algorithm could probably be used to ensure the assignment to a divergence plan was actually a positive sum interaction :-)