RE: many worlds theory of immortality

From: Jonathan Colvin <jcolvin.domain.name.hidden>
Date: Thu, 14 Apr 2005 19:38:29 -0700

<snip>
>Stathias:
>Yes, everything that can happen, does happen, somewhere in the
>multiverse.
>There will certainly be a world where you get smarter and
>smarter, and ultimately you know everything. But at any point
>in the development of the multiverse, you are (1) certain to
>find yourself alive, and (2) most likely to find yourself
>alive in branches with higher measure. In the near future,
>this means you will not experience life-threatening illnesses
>or accidents.
>In the intermediate future, it probably means you will be
>living in times when anti-ageing technology or mind uploading
>becomes available. In the far future, you may survive as the
>result of some very bizarre coincidences, but these will still
>be the least unlikely of the possible bizarre coincidences.
>If you can think of a way in which becoming smarter and
>smarter is the most likely / least unlikely method for your
>long term survival, then perhaps this is something you can
>look forward to.

While I'm a supporter of Tegmark's Ultimate Ensemble, I think it is by no
means clear that just because everything that can happen does happen, there
will necessarily be a world where everyone becomes omniscient, or lives for
ever, or spends their entire life dressed in a pink rabbit outfit.
"Everything that can happen does happen" is not synonymous with "everything
we can imagine happening does happen". Worlds where we live forever or
become omniscient or are born dressed in a pink rabbit suit may not be
*logically possible* worlds. Just as there is no world in the multiverse
where 2+2=5, there may be no worlds in the multiverse where I live forever
or spend my entire life dressed in a pink rabbit suit.

Jonathan Colvin
Received on Thu Apr 14 2005 - 22:41:16 PDT