On 11/12/2013 1:37 PM, Quentin Anciaux wrote:



2013/11/12 meekerdb <meeke...@verizon.net <mailto:meeke...@verizon.net>>

    On 11/12/2013 1:02 PM, Quentin Anciaux wrote:



    2013/11/12 meekerdb <meeke...@verizon.net <mailto:meeke...@verizon.net>>

        On 11/12/2013 12:45 PM, Quentin Anciaux wrote:



        2013/11/12 meekerdb <meeke...@verizon.net <mailto:meeke...@verizon.net>>

            On 11/12/2013 12:23 PM, Quentin Anciaux wrote:
            This is ASSA, and I find that absurd, there is no absolute 
probability of
            being alive, probability is only meaningful between two moments...

            But there's a probability of being alive at time t in the future,


        This is ASSA

            and that can become arbitrarily small, and in fact it is 
arbitrarily small


        If absolute measure makes sense, then your absolute measure is always
        decreasing, still in MWI, as there is always a next moment (which will 
be as
        *real* as the previous one), I don't see how ASSA is relevant for the 
question.

        I guess it depends on how you value future states.  If only those you 
exist in
        matter then you can ignore the ASSA.  No need for life insurance.  No 
concern
        about global warming.


    That does not follow... RSSA is moment to moment... If you have a gun in 
front of
    you and you shoot in your head and if MWI is true, there will be more 
branches
    where you are crippled than where you are perfectly safe (and a hell of a 
lot more
    where you're dead, but *we don't count where you're not*).

    But that's part of what bothers me about this idea.  How 
crippled/brain-damaged can
    you be and still count as a continuation?  Are there degrees of 
continuation?


As long as you still feel you, that counts.

    If so, why can't the degrees asymptote to zero?


It is, reread my previous message, there is a continuum of such continuations. The one that don't count are the one where nothing is left from you. I would say also, there is a continuum but by RSSA, nearest continuation should have higher probability.





            - so all rational decisions will be based on assuming it becomes 
zero.  Right?


        I don't see how decisions come into play here, rational decisions 
depends on
        the one taking them... I would rationally choose to minimize arm for me 
(so as
        not to put my life in jeopardy), because if MWI is true *and* with 
RSSA, me in
        front on a shotgun, will likely result me being crippled while not dead 
with a
        hell lot more probability than being perfectly safe

        But most such events, like being shot with a shotgun, are essentially 
classical
        which implies that your continuations depend on extremely improbable 
events


    Sure, but the point is *αΊ—here is a continuation*; that's all what is needed 
for the
    argument to follow.

    "There is a continuation" seems to slough over what counts as a 
continuation and
    whether we should care about it.


There is a continuum of continuations, the point is there is, so you either argue MWI is false, but your argument is pointeless if MWI is true, that's the way it is.

Well I'm certainly not dogmatically assuming MWI. In fact I'm testing whether it leads to absurdities.

    If the only continuations are quite different from what you think of as 
Quentin
    Anciaux, do they still count?


The only thing that count is 1st POV...

So *you* Quentin Anciaux (incidentally, how do pronounce that?) don't necessarily continue. It is just that there is a continuation of 1p POVs. So we're down to the question of what constitutes a 1p POV.

    And I don't think you can just rely on the continuity of Hilbert space 
evolution
    because the time scale of that evolution can be much faster than the 
sequences of
    conscious thought. So as far QM goes you could evolve from Quentin Anciaux 
to Neo
    (or to Brent Meeker) in a millisecond.


        - Rumsfeld's unknown unknowns, e.g. you wake up from having dreamed a 
whole
        life which led to you being shot, or you discover you are just 
participating in
        a simulation in which you were shot, or you're not really Quentin 
Anciaux,
        or...  Did you read "Divided by Infinity"?


        .... RSSA is of use, ASSA not much at all.

        So have you bought an annuity for your retirement?


    You confuse things... RSSA is important, and that's why you buy a life 
insurance.

    Life insurance I understand, it is for other people that survive you (in 
almost all
    worlds).  But an annuity is for yourself, so that you don't outlive your 
savings in
    your retirement.


 So what ?

So if you think you will live much longer than the insurance companies think you will, you should buy an annuity for your (very) old age.

Brent

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