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ndebord
March 10th, 2006, 09:57 AM
"So why listen to the voice of one who is not Ishmael, not Cassandra, not even Ralph Nader? Because I can tell you something that no one else can. I can tell you the exact moment when Homo sapiens will cease to exist."

http://www.salon.com/tech/feature/2006/03/09/nanobiobot/

Judy G. Russell
March 10th, 2006, 03:04 PM
That's assuming we're still around then and don't all get killed off in a nuclear exchange with Iran or some other lovely ending...

ndebord
March 10th, 2006, 05:08 PM
That's assuming we're still around then and don't all get killed off in a nuclear exchange with Iran or some other lovely ending...


Judy,

Iran? Nah. They do not and will not have enough of anything to be stoopid enough to hit us for quite some time. Perhaps by then, we'll be their new best friends. Fundamental Baptists and Fundamental Shiites united against secular Sunnis. <SIGH>

(I guess we could get by with the oil from Iraq and Iran...don't ya think?)

Judy G. Russell
March 10th, 2006, 10:17 PM
Fundamental Baptists and Fundamental Shiites united against secular Sunnis.Oh ... my ... lord ...

davidh
March 10th, 2006, 11:18 PM
Fundamental Baptists and Fundamental Shiites united against secular Sunnis. I wonder whether so-called religious ideologues are what they say they are and even if they believe what they say, that they are so dangerous without their allies.

After Medina beat Mecca, Mohammed's generals did not want to keep on fighting to conquer the rest of Arabia, UNTIL he said they could keep all the loot they won in women, cattle, gold, etc.

It's very unlikely that the protestant reformation would have spread as much as it did if it were not for the relatively less-landed rich who saw a great opportunity to seize land in the name of the reformation.

Look at the great chinese communist protectors of the poor proletariate who are ripping land from poor farmers to give to rich entrepreneurs. The new age Robin Hoods.

Follow the money.

Anybody who can go into politics and get stained only a little bit is worthy of admiration.

David H.

sidney
March 11th, 2006, 03:31 PM
http://www.salon.com/tech/feature/2006/03/09/nanobiobot/

From the sixth paragraph: "To stay up to speed, there is always Artificial Life, the official journal of the International Society of Artificial Life."

That's where I'm presenting my paper (http://www.sidney.com/wp/2005/12/19/artificial-life-x-conference-paper-accepted/20/) in June, at the International Society of Artificial Life's (http://www.alife.org/) tenth Artificial Life Conference (http://www.alifex.org).

-- sidney

ndebord
March 11th, 2006, 09:37 PM
From the sixth paragraph: "To stay up to speed, there is always Artificial Life, the official journal of the International Society of Artificial Life."

That's where I'm presenting my paper (http://www.sidney.com/wp/2005/12/19/artificial-life-x-conference-paper-accepted/20/) in June, at the International Society of Artificial Life's (http://www.alife.org/) tenth Artificial Life Conference (http://www.alifex.org).

-- sidney

Sidney,

So are you going to knock yourself off, then revivie yourself whole cloth, so you can present the paper as the very first artificial lifeform found on the planet Earth?

<g,d&r>

Judy G. Russell
March 11th, 2006, 10:20 PM
Hmmm... I'll be fairly close by during that same time period ... in Chicago!

earler
March 12th, 2006, 03:47 AM
I've yet to see any history of the reformation that bases its success on the poor landless taking land from the church. I suggest you read an excellent history of the reformation. Called 'the reformation'. The author is diarmaid macculloch. First published in 2003 it is also available in paperback. It beautifully written and considered the definitive history of the reformation.

-er

davidh
March 12th, 2006, 09:57 AM
I've yet to see any history of the reformation that bases its success on the poor landless taking land from the church. I suggest you read an excellent history of the reformation. Called 'the reformation'. The author is diarmaid macculloch. First published in 2003 it is also available in paperback. It beautifully written and considered the definitive history of the reformation.

-er I'm certainly not an authority on this. So I'll take your word for it. But I thought I said (or meant to say) it was a case of rich trying to steal from rich. No doubt that some of the princes (bishops) of the Roman church were appointed more for their political, money, and land connections than for their pastoral care of the flock. Even today being a robber baron is admired by many, money makes friends.

Anyway, even in cases of the organized poor (e.g. communists in china, vietnam, cuba, venezuela) stealing from the rich (Robin Hood style) it always seems to turn into rich stealing from rich and rich stealing from the poor sooner or later anyway. Isn't that what politics is defined as? Getting allies for power by giving favors? Sooner or later, you have to at least give the appearance of being friendly to somebody whose motives don't appear to be 100% honorable.

David H.

earler
March 12th, 2006, 02:04 PM
Other than henry viii, who grabbed the property and moneys of the monasteries, the reformation was really more a matter of eliminating the corruption within the historic church. Not to denigrate the german states, none had the wealth that existed in the habsburg, bourbon, and tudor lands. Of course, the bourbons and the habsburgs didn't touch the church itself. After all, they had already emasculated rome itself, which until the renaissance remained a fetid backwater.

-er

sidney
March 12th, 2006, 06:25 PM
So are you going to knock yourself off, then revive yourself whole cloth

I probably should make a backup first.

And test the restore procedure.

-- sidney

sidney
March 12th, 2006, 06:27 PM
Hmmm... I'll be fairly close by during that same time period ... in Chicago!

If the test backup/restore works, I could send it to Chicago while I give the talk. Or vice versa. If I could tell which is which.

-- sidney

Judy G. Russell
March 12th, 2006, 06:47 PM
Is the world ready for two of you? Is the world ready for ONE?

ndebord
March 12th, 2006, 07:21 PM
I probably should make a backup first.

And test the restore procedure.

-- sidney

Sidney,

Just remember, clones, according to folklore (or is that SF now?) can be flawed!

Seriously, congratulations on your success in this. Being the first non-science person in my family tree in 3 generations, I am at a loss to understand what you've accomplished here, except to note that I've always been able to crib enough to write about stuff that I have not a clue about!



<g>