army1987 comments on In Praise of Boredom - Less Wrong

22 Post author: Eliezer_Yudkowsky 18 January 2009 09:03AM

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Comment author: timtyler 18 June 2012 10:25:27AM -2 points [-]

I do not have issue with the majority of factual statements you make. What I have issue with is the appalling moral statements you make.

Gee, thanks for that.

Again, if you really think maximizing entropy is your real purpose in life; would you torture 50 children to death if it would get some sadistic aliens to make a far-off star go nova for you?

People often seem to think that entropy maximisation priinciples imply that organisms should engage in wanton destruction, blowing things up. However, that is far from the case. Causing explosions is usually a very bad way of maximising entropy in the long term - since it tends to destroy the world's best entropy maximisers, living systems. Living systems go on to cause far more devastation than exploding a sun ever could. So, wanton destruction of a sun, is bad - not good - from this perspective.

Comment author: [deleted] 20 June 2012 02:56:55PM 1 point [-]

Causing explosions is usually a very bad way of maximising entropy in the long term - since it tends to destroy the world's best entropy maximisers, living systems. Living systems go on to cause far more devastation than exploding a sun ever could.

Are you sure? A black hole is the system with the most possible entropy among those with a given mass. Your point would only be valid if interstellar civilizations are easy to achieve, and given that we don't see any of those around I don't think they are.

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