Stupid (Or Clever) Conversation With Friends
Weekend was good. Got to spend time with lots of friends despite the rain.
I had the following conversation during a takeaway meal, and bear in mind we were completely sober.
K: If you’re teleported, right?
Me: Sure.
K: The you that reappears is an exact copy of you, but it’s not actually you because you have ceased to exist.
E: No, it’s you. It’s your atoms and molecules taken apart and reassembled somewhere else. Who else would it be?
K: But it can’t be you because in that split second, you’ve ceased to exist.
Me: Can’t you just exist again?
K: No, because I’m not religious or anything. I think that if you cease to exist, then you can’t exist again. There’s no god. Once you’re gone, you’re gone.
E: Oh, but teleportation exists.
K: Hypothetically speaking.
Me: But if you’re being teleported, you’re saying you’re gone and then you’ve come back.
E: Or gone somewhere else.
Me: Whatever, you’ve still ceased to exist and then you exist again.
K: But that’s just it. You haven’t. It’s a copy of you.
Me: OK, so if I send you a file on a computer. If I email you a photo, that’s the same photo.
K: No, it’s a clone of that photo.
Me: Clone or not, it’s the same photo.
E: So if I take apart my car, bit by bit, and move all the parts and reassemble it somewhere else, then it’s still my car. It’s not a copy.
K: Yeah, but this is a person. A car doesn’t have a soul.
Me: But you don’t believe in a soul.
K: That’s irrelevant.
Me: No, it’s not. It’s the same as the car. We’re just parts, whatever your views. You’re teleporting atoms. Don’t go talking about souls.
K: I’m just saying I don’t think it’s you that reappears.
E: If I take the batteries out of my radio, it loses its memory, but only sometimes.
August 20th, 2007 at 7:46 am
Is that it? Worst sober conversation ever… you really must try harder mate.
Some pointers:
You need to veer off-topic more frequently, there were several openings in that conversation to nip out for a quick tete-a-tete on Buddhism or reincarnation, ditto a discussion on how electronic files are structured.
You also missed any mention of washing machines or other such domestic appliances. They always seem to figure in our sober conversations.
Yes, I said sober!
August 20th, 2007 at 8:12 am
Woah.
We went on to talk about Buddhism and reincarnation. And if animals were lower lifeforms than humans.
AND the washing machine died last week and a new one was delivered today, but I didn’t mention that.
Spooky.
August 20th, 2007 at 8:45 am
Actually Cliff, K and I DID discuss how electronic files were structured. K’s argument was that it wouldn’t be the same photo unless you physically scraped the magnetic particles off the harddrive and moved them to their ultimate destination. He did eventually concur that this wasn’t necessary after intelligent reasoning by myself, but I was too sober to remember what I said.
August 20th, 2007 at 8:59 am
… and another thing, “Oh, but teleportation exists” - I was totally misquoted, you make me sound like a wargaming sci-fi geek. Well, ok so I am, but I’ve got a motorbike, so that’s alright. I’m a chic geek.
August 20th, 2007 at 9:32 am
Damn - that’s the trouble when you quote your friends. Was meant to be sarcastic. If that’s not what you said then I got it wrong. I was laughing at that point.
No offence intended. That’s why I didn’t use your name.
You’re not a geek. I’m the one thinking: “I’m going to write this up on my blog.”
Also - I didn’t know you read this. Cheers.
August 20th, 2007 at 1:58 pm
I nw have a headache. Thanks a lot.
August 20th, 2007 at 3:11 pm
Ha! THIS is why I never blog about people who I’ve told about my blog, apart from MY friend E but she is very good about that sort of thing so it is fine.
August 20th, 2007 at 5:33 pm
People whose names start with E can handle it.