But if I don't do it, I'm not who I think I am.
this post was submitted on 07 Jun 2025
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I tend to think what "you" are is the pattern formed by the various electrical and chemical signals in your brain and whatever other parts of your body are involved in cognition, and since patterns are ultimately information, and a completely identical copy of some information is the same information with nothing to distinguish it, that a sufficiently perfect copy of you literally is you, and as such, if the teleporter works the way fictional teleporters are generally described as working, then yes, it is you.
For everyone else, yes. But the you you are now will cease to exist. Your consciousness won’t transfer.
I don't believe continuity of consciousness is actually required to maintain the identity of consciousness, is the thing. I think that, if you died, and then were brought back some how, you wouldn't have some "new" consciousness that merely think it's the first one, but literally would have the first one again, to the degree that such a thing can be called the same from moment to moment even under normal circumstances anyway.
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ok, i'm too stupid for this picture...why are commenters implying you die when you use the transporter? it's next to the rails isn't it?
It depends on how it works. The most popular form of transporter works by scanning your body down to the subatomic level, deconstructing the original body, and creating a perfect replica somewhere else. Imagine for a moment that it didn't deconstruct the original body (as seen in Star Trek: The Next Generation episode Second Chances). The original and the copy are two separate entities.
A transporter doesn't move you, it kills and reincarnates you. Unless it uses some kinda space bending wormhole tech to physically move the atoms from one spot to another, of course—then it doesn't kill you, and you're safe to pull the lever
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Have you seen "the prestiege"? I think that movie explains the problem perfectly.
It's also a really good movie so enjoy.
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No. Not because teleporter but because no need for multi track drifting if other path clear.
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The trolley problem but the only way to pull the lever is to take a nap first.
Since your consciousness stopped and then a new was started from the same meat is it still you?
If it is, then surely a new consciousness constructed from a pile of meat identical to your brain would also be you?
Your consciousness doesn't stop when you're asleep. Evidence: alarm clocks exist
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If we’re talking about atom-by-atom reconstruction, then the question is about philosophical zombies.
I don’t put much stock in any philosophies that say ~~you~~ the constructed being definitely would be a zombie. But I do believe in the possibility that ~~you~~ the constructed being could be a zombie.
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Nah, I'll send Tom Riker.