Hello Frank & Angelika
"It would seem that the unfathomable wellsprings of cumulative human
imagination, ingenuity, passion, and effort are not subject to any tether or constraint that cannot, over time, be unbound or circumvented.
Since its inception, humanity has been driven by an insatiable curiosity and quest for knowledge, while constantly striving to attain cherished ideals, which encompass innovation, advancement, adventure, freedom, honor, love, and hope. We invariably have a deep desire to challenge ourselves to be the best that we can possibly be, know no bounds and to devise elaborate tools if necessary, to assist us in the attainment of our goals."
Wow !!! Bravo !!!
Such a lofty vision !!
It is my own admittedly very limited experience that very, very few investigators - if any !! -other than your selves have recognised life's potential for, well, such a pinnacle - for this state of 'existential perfection' - for 'the attainment of this universe's highest existential plane'; nature's crowning work (?!) Just some of the ways I refer to 'the goal' you also envisage for us.
I wonder if you are familiar with Darwin's musings on this particular 'goal' :
"What limit can be put to this power (natural selection), acting during long ages and rigidly scrutinizing the whole constitution, structure and habits of each creature, - favouring the good and rejecting the bad? I can see no limit to this power, in slowly and beautifully adapting each form to the most complex relations of life." The Origin of Species, Sir Charles Darwin page 379 Oxford World's Classics.
In my essay (positioned second on the submissions date list) I suggest that in us this goal has already (almost) been attained in that we humans can now live - indeed thrive - 'anywhere, at any time, under any circumstances, or relocate, or terra form to suit'.
Nevertheless due to the fact that we humans are currently accomplishing this level of existence in the face of such galactic amounts of humanly perpetrated 'waste, loss & damage' not only towards our once glorious (& effectively perfect for us & all other life here) planetary home but also against ourselves, that we are now staring omnicidal oblivion square in the face. Tthis being the case we could hardly be called this universe's 'crowning work'.
I also go on to suggest that, most fortunately, the remedy not only also exists, is not only 'easy' to understand, is not only within us but is also 'logistically' easy to implement - even if it proves itself to be emotionally somewhat more recalcitrant.
And it is with the greatest of respect to your own work & to your own most excellent essay - I enjoyed it very much & learnt a great deal, thank you - that I suggest that it is not nanotechnology AI which will raise us up to this existential pinnacle but 'merely' a re-alignment with the forces that in us (& in all life - indeed embedded within the entire universe) have already almost achieved.
I am convinced that one of our biggest lapses at this time is our present misunderstanding of the evolutionary process, which although massively wasteful in that only the very, very few life forms that 'get it right' survive & achieve evolutionary viability, while the countless 'flawed' bazillions that are born/hatched/conceived every generation just die - most doing so most horribly ! - nevertheless evolution can readily be seen to be not only a truly directed ('upwards' !!) process, but again one that in us here on Planet Earth has (almost) achieved its goal in producing a fully evolved, perfectly adapted robustly thriving life form.
"Evolution is a process of adaptation & given enough time & raw materials will eventually produce a fully evolved, perfectly adapted life form, which particular fully evolved, perfectly adapted life form will be evidenced by the facts that it will be able, courtesy of its fully evolved
perfectly adapted state, to live - indeed thrive - anywhere, at any time, under any circumstances, or relocate or terra form to suit, doing so, moreover, without causing any waste, loss or damage to either itself or its surrounds, animate & inanimate alike.
In short, the fully evolved, perfectly adapted life form will live - indeed thrive - in perfect harmony with its surrounds.
Of course we humans are this endpoint-selected entity.
At least we would be if we weren't inflicting so much waste, loss & damage on both ourselves as well as all the rest of creation." (My essay Page 3.)
I apologize for drawing your attention so exclusively towards my own 'solution' but as I say at the beginning of my comments to you both, in my experience very few investigators - or anyone lay or expert alike for that matter - have a vision for us - for this universe - which is so lofty - & beautiful, & wondrous, & powerful, & happy & fulfilling ... but again I cannot see that nanotechnology even linked with AI could ever do a better job than nature has already done. If only we would listen to it.....
Thank you.
Margriet Anne O'Regan
