General / Off-Topic The Odd Thread

WeComeInPeace

WeComeInPeace
Wotthe ens said:
You sure it wasn’t just the synthesizer? ;-)
But yeah, you’re right about respecting other life.
Octopuses are another example of intelligence albeit different to our own.
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Not to spoil anything, but don't you think the synth was added in post? :p

Octopuses are really interesting when it comes to intelligence. We normally think that the reason humans developed the large brain we have, which is very unpractical in many ways, was that we needed it to become the social beings we are. Octopuses on the other hand are way less social than even cats. When two octopuses meet they normally fight until one is dead. Still, they are incredible intelligent being able to solve pretty complicated tasks, like unscrewing the lid of a jar from the inside. I know several humans that wouldn't be able to do that.

They even seem to have a separate "brain" for each arm. (Some) People have long dreamt about communicating with aliens ("two way SETI"). I would say that they could start by trying to communicate with octopuses, being one of the most "alien" species on Earth, without risking to invite a civilisation that was able to travel faster than light, and that would probably also have similarly advanced ways of enslaving us or just plain annihilate humanity.

Octopuses eyes btw. are very similar to the human eye, even though tracing DNA (way) back has shown that our lowest common ancestor was a (blind) snail.
 

Morbad

Morbad
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WeComeInPeace said:
like ants have shown capability to self recognize, we might want to revise our general understanding of how to treat the other species on the planet, unless we want to go down in history as being one of the Universe's most cruel creatures.
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Can't claim to know what might be out there in the universe, but it's a given that we are the most cruel creatures on this planet, both individually and as a species. Indeed, I think capacity for cruelty is probably a far better indicator of personhood than basic self-awareness. I guess from my perspective, it's the ability to make that choice and reflect on it that is the cut off; if one cannot engage in introspection, one is just a thing.
 

Globusdiablo

Globusdiablo
Morbad said:
...Can't claim to know what might be out there in the universe, but it's a given that we are the most cruel creatures on this planet, both individually and as a species. Indeed, I think capacity for cruelty is probably a far better indicator of personhood than basic self-awareness...
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If it's human nature to be cruel, how is it cruel?

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Morbad said:
...if one cannot engage in introspection, one is just a thing.
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How do you determine introspection? Are you suggesting that beings where humans can not measure introspection are to be considered just things?
 

Morbad

Morbad
Globusdiablo said:
If it's human nature to be cruel, how is it cruel?
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There is nothing mutually exclusive about being human and exhibiting cruelty, nor is 'human' synonymous with 'good'.

Globusdiablo said:
Are you suggesting that beings where humans can not measure introspection are to be considered just things?
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If something cannot communicate it's sapience to us and we cannot rationally infer it's presence, then yes, that's the pragmatic assumption.
 
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