Chapter 4: The Extraordinary Future

Our authors discuss many possible scenarios about the actual mechanism of human-computer mind transfer. These scenarios involve discussions of the type of robot to be constructed, ways to capture the details of a particular human mind, and the ways to upload a mind into a robot. I will first describe some details of the scenarios presented and then later attempt to classify them into a common framework of different options. Finally, I will comment on their feasibility. In the scenarios presented there are usually several parts to the process. First, we have to ascertain the contents or details of an individual's mind. Primarily this would be done by scanning it, either invasively (destructively) or noninvasively. Then we have to transfer the results of the scan into a robot brain or construct a robot brain to match the structure of the human brain scanned. Some scenarios have the robot brain ready and waiting, while others portray it as constructed 'on the fly.' Let's consider Kurzweil

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• Lydia Nottingham