Death

Death

Can we eradicate death? I am not so sure. It will require a transfer of consciousness and I don’t think we can do that – I don’t think we’ll ever do that! Simply because no one knows what consciousness is, no one can account for it. We are always in action like auto-pilot, always in motion. We don’t have time to contemplate every action that is achieved by the body. However, we do know habits are a factor in our actions. Namely the Hippocampus which is responsible for the transfer of short-term memories to long-term memories. Without the hippocampus, the mind is virtually useless – learning is hindered. We also have the Basal Ganglia, the element in the brain that helps with habits. Without the Basal Ganglia the brain cannot form habits. So can we create an artificial Hippocampus that is immune to time and transfer all our habits onto it? No, I don’t think so. The brain is very much biological. Perhaps “biological” doesn’t do justice to it – let’s try metaphysical. Carl Jung once stated that the mind or “psyche” which meant soul or sprit comprised of Unconsciousness, Personal Consciousness and Collective Consciousness. The unconscious mind which represents the underlying elements that motivate or dictate our behaviors and actions. The personal conscious which is self-explanatory and the collective consciousness that is like the unwritten law of life – the entity that is shared by every living organism that enables us to co-exist with one another – the Universe, what links everything! Paulo Coelho explores the concept of the “collective consciousness” on hit book the “The Alchemist” and he expresses it as “The language of the world”. So can we? Can we play God and bypass this fundamental aspect of life? Maybe we have a chance.

It was reported that an AI (Artificial Intelligence) Robot beat the best chess player in the world – at chess. This was achieved through algorithms and repetitions that resulted to mastery. The machine achieved mastery in a shorter time frame. So maybe chips to our minds are the answer? The danger in that notion is that we might find ourselves in danger of relinquishing our minds to AI. It just won’t be the same. In an attempt to explain consciousness and life Renee Descartes once stated “I think, therefore I am” – chips would void that statement. Not that it was correct but it was insightful and made sense in a period where life was simple. Can we not get a simple remedy to death? We can but it won’t be natural and biological. It would mean fusing with Artificial Intelligence. It would mean Cybernetics. It would mean Virtual Reality and it would mean plenty of data. Data so that algorithms can simulate our future behaviors and would then serve as our Basal Ganglia in an artificial simulated environment. Algorithms can preserve our consciousness. Algorithms can make us immortal. However, it comes back to that simple statement Renee Descartes once imparted to the world “I think, therefore I am”. With algorithms now the pulse, can we call it consciousness? Are you alive? Are you in control? Is your consciousness really preserved?

 

Not even in a simulated world or virtual world can our consciousness be preserved. Maybe we can because decisions are made via a simple logic gate but in a simulated world all conditions are controlled. Which makes all decisions predetermined and predictable. There is no freedom. There is no chaos. Life needs chaos! Is it really consciousness when Google, Apple, Amazon, Facebook and Microsoft are the guardians of the logic gates? Doesn’t it make those companies God? How can we be sure? Maybe we can prolong life but death is inevitable to all biological creatures. We can create prosthetic limbs and organs but the mind is separate from the body. The mind is prone to time. The mind was created by mother-nature. We can try to cheat her but she’s still a bitch who doesn’t suck. And maybe that’s a good thing. For centuries men have been cracking their heads trying to figure out women but to no avail. Women don’t even understand women. Just maybe it’s a code created by mother-nature designed for narcissistic and entitled men attempting to emulate God. Afterall, God himself didn’t understand women. He specifically told Adam and Eve to not eat from the tree but Eve led the rebuke. God overreacted and created hell when a slap would have sufficed. Not that I blame God – it’s a justified response, we all need to choose our way. Eve was the chaos that humanity needed. Just like how death is needed to refresh and reshuffle the cards of life. Death is that wonderful chaos that enables that world to move forward. Death is a great change agent as it does away with the old and introduces in the new. Maybe humanity has reached its peak and its fine, it’s been a beautiful ride, let’s create the new the best way we can and ride into the sunset with our heads held up high. Over 25 species of life become extinct every day, we knew our time was coming. Let’s be gracious and try to live life the best that we can. Let’s attempt to be all that we can be. Nothing can ever save us from death – death is our savior! The best invention mother-nature created to preserve her will.